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Luis Chavez #1
Fields of Wrath
Following his ordination as a priest, Father Luis Chavez returns to the mean streets of his youth, hoping to put his past behind him. But the brutal murder of a worker in Ventura County’s vast farm fields compels Luis to return to his criminal roots in order to unravel a massive conspiracy. Teaming up with Michael Story, an ambitious Los Angeles deputy DA, Chavez goes undercover as a farm laborer to bring down an immense human-trafficking ring tied to one of California’s most prominent and powerful families. Fighting to stay on the path of the righteous while confronting evil at every turn, Father Chavez finds himself in a battle of good versus evil, with the souls of hundreds hanging in the balance.
303 pages, Paperback
First published January 12, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 216 reviews
January 2, 2016
FIELDS OF WRATH
Very good Kindle First book for January. I am not going to write 4 paragraphs reviewing or analyzing it- I will just say it is a page turner. The priest- Luis Chavez is pretty much a super hero. It's an exciting story and I'm sure the next book in the series will be just as good.
Very good Kindle First book for January. I am not going to write 4 paragraphs reviewing or analyzing it- I will just say it is a page turner. The priest- Luis Chavez is pretty much a super hero. It's an exciting story and I'm sure the next book in the series will be just as good.
March 19, 2016
Mostly I enjoyed this novel as a new priest get involved in a mystery that points to corruption from business to government. A man who has gone form gangbanger to become a priest. Mostly as a novel it worked pretty well.
The only aspect that annoyed me was this minor plot line that seemed to add nothing to the story along with some of the dialogue which seemed to me me to be a veiled attack on priestly celibacy.
At one point
“Did you know that for centuries Catholic priests were allowed to be married? It was the First Lateran Council that changed that in the twelfth century. When there was pushback from the clergy, the Vatican began arresting and killing the wives.”
This was simply dumb as rock, since as history this never happened. The history of priestly celibacy in the Church starts at the beginning and their is a convoluted path where it becomes practice (not doctrine). It was certainly not started as late as the First Lateran Council.
Ok, people can have characters say dumb things. But that and some other dialogue made me thing it was the authors view point intruding. It was more akin to a anti-Catholic Jack Chick tract than character dialogue that serves a point. Still I can of course be totally wrong on the authors intention regarding this and I missed how it served the story. I am rather sensitive to bad Catholic history, not the actual bad Catholic history - but the fake bad Catholic history.
The only aspect that annoyed me was this minor plot line that seemed to add nothing to the story along with some of the dialogue which seemed to me me to be a veiled attack on priestly celibacy.
At one point
“Did you know that for centuries Catholic priests were allowed to be married? It was the First Lateran Council that changed that in the twelfth century. When there was pushback from the clergy, the Vatican began arresting and killing the wives.”
This was simply dumb as rock, since as history this never happened. The history of priestly celibacy in the Church starts at the beginning and their is a convoluted path where it becomes practice (not doctrine). It was certainly not started as late as the First Lateran Council.
Ok, people can have characters say dumb things. But that and some other dialogue made me thing it was the authors view point intruding. It was more akin to a anti-Catholic Jack Chick tract than character dialogue that serves a point. Still I can of course be totally wrong on the authors intention regarding this and I missed how it served the story. I am rather sensitive to bad Catholic history, not the actual bad Catholic history - but the fake bad Catholic history.
March 19, 2016
I picked this up as a Kindle First free for Amazon Prime. It was a wonderful surprise.
There is a nuanced look at different priests in a large L.A. parish. One of those priests is Luis Chavez, a former gangbanger who found God and wound up back in his home town. There is a Mexican man who was harassed by cops his entire life and took the unusual path of becoming an officer himself to do it the right way. There are desperate illegal immigrants, crooked lawmen, and scheming corporation managers.
They've all got their own problems in real life and on the job. In other words, these are more interesting and complex characters than I often find in a mystery, whether free or otherwise. The mystery is involved and the writing is good to boot.
Most of all I like the way the Catholic faith is represented through Father Luis. We see him in many encounters with various priests, believers, scoffers, and acquaintances from the old life. No one is neutral and many challenge him. Yet Father Luis never seems to hit a false note. He's sincere, honest, and nonjudgmental while somehow never being soft about the things that count. The author never makes the mistake of attributing too much to God or presenting a cynical or overly deferential view of the Church. This is really refreshing.
Come for the mystery. Stay for Father Luis.
UPDATE
There is some bad Dan Brown-ish style Catholic "history" in the book. Such as ...
Regardless of how I took them, they aren't true, most especially the one quoted above. So don't buy into them.
There is a nuanced look at different priests in a large L.A. parish. One of those priests is Luis Chavez, a former gangbanger who found God and wound up back in his home town. There is a Mexican man who was harassed by cops his entire life and took the unusual path of becoming an officer himself to do it the right way. There are desperate illegal immigrants, crooked lawmen, and scheming corporation managers.
They've all got their own problems in real life and on the job. In other words, these are more interesting and complex characters than I often find in a mystery, whether free or otherwise. The mystery is involved and the writing is good to boot.
Most of all I like the way the Catholic faith is represented through Father Luis. We see him in many encounters with various priests, believers, scoffers, and acquaintances from the old life. No one is neutral and many challenge him. Yet Father Luis never seems to hit a false note. He's sincere, honest, and nonjudgmental while somehow never being soft about the things that count. The author never makes the mistake of attributing too much to God or presenting a cynical or overly deferential view of the Church. This is really refreshing.
Come for the mystery. Stay for Father Luis.
UPDATE
There is some bad Dan Brown-ish style Catholic "history" in the book. Such as ...
“Did you know that for centuries Catholic priests were allowed to be married? It was the First Lateran Council that changed that in the twelfth century. When there was pushback from the clergy, the Vatican began arresting and killing the wives.”Oy veh. No. No they didn't. And the celibacy issue is misrepresented, as one might expect since it is more complex than a few negative shots can convey. However, I never took them seriously mostly because of how Father Chavez reacted. I tended to ignore those comments, possibly because the characters all seemed to have good reasons for wanting to push their hate on the Church ... not good reasons as in valid, but as in making it a scapegoat for their own faults.
Regardless of how I took them, they aren't true, most especially the one quoted above. So don't buy into them.
January 30, 2016
My Amazon Prime membership offers me free books every month - so far I have not been impressed, and when on a whim I decided to try this one (sometimes the third is the charm) I'm afraid my point of view hadn't/hasn't changes. A not uninteresting idea for a novel - illegals in Southern Cal, exploited by large US companies, and several murders, while a street-wise Catholic priest attempt to right all wrongs. But weighed down by dull. plodding writing style, a climax that comes too early and an epilogue that goes on forever, signifying very little.
I should say that I am not a causal reader. When I read non-fiction it is because I want to learn - when I read fiction I want to be thrilled by the plot and characters, and startled by the way a smart author tells the tale. Every once in a while at different times of my life I have tried to pick up a book (well, a Kindle in my case - eye issues) at random. Only very very rarely have I been pleasantly surprised. Fortunately, this kind of pop fiction can be whisked thru in a few days, but as I am in my late 60s I think my current experiment in picking up a book just because it's free has ended. Lie is too short, and there are too many really fine books that I've not yet read for me to waste even a few days on this dull stuff.
I should say that I am not a causal reader. When I read non-fiction it is because I want to learn - when I read fiction I want to be thrilled by the plot and characters, and startled by the way a smart author tells the tale. Every once in a while at different times of my life I have tried to pick up a book (well, a Kindle in my case - eye issues) at random. Only very very rarely have I been pleasantly surprised. Fortunately, this kind of pop fiction can be whisked thru in a few days, but as I am in my late 60s I think my current experiment in picking up a book just because it's free has ended. Lie is too short, and there are too many really fine books that I've not yet read for me to waste even a few days on this dull stuff.
January 4, 2016
Great read.
Unusual plot, Father Luis Chavez and farm workers in California. Illegal workers brought in by boat, conditions they work and housed. Prostitution, police department and DA sometimes knowingly helping biggest farm owner Marshal family.
Unusual plot, Father Luis Chavez and farm workers in California. Illegal workers brought in by boat, conditions they work and housed. Prostitution, police department and DA sometimes knowingly helping biggest farm owner Marshal family.
January 27, 2016
It's as if the author took every cliche ever written about Catholic Priests and threw them all into this book. I believe he tried to make characters the average reader could relate to, but ended up making all the characters (especially the priests) so deeply flawed that they were no longer believable.
The Luis Chavez character was especially ridiculous. First, a newly ordained priest would not be allowed to just wander off and start his own little detective case with absolutely no repercussions (also not every "nice" priest is carrying on a decades long affair with a parishioner). Second, I find it unlikely that said priest turned detective would immediately seek out his former gang bangers and start using foul language and engaging in other illegal activities. It is out of character.
The story would be moving along with a very un-priestly Luis (honestly I forgot he was even supposedly a priest most of the time) when suddenly the author would remember that his main character was a man of God and add some italicized internal thoughts "Lord, please help me!"
In fact, the only time Luis "felt" like an actual priest was in the epilogue. That is a priest character I would be more interested in reading about.
As for the rest of the story. It was ok. It felt like a stretch most of the time. I kept waiting for the "bad guys" to break into a maniacal laugh. There were also several unresolved, rather superfluous story lines.
I recieved a free copy of this book through Kindle First
The Luis Chavez character was especially ridiculous. First, a newly ordained priest would not be allowed to just wander off and start his own little detective case with absolutely no repercussions (also not every "nice" priest is carrying on a decades long affair with a parishioner). Second, I find it unlikely that said priest turned detective would immediately seek out his former gang bangers and start using foul language and engaging in other illegal activities. It is out of character.
The story would be moving along with a very un-priestly Luis (honestly I forgot he was even supposedly a priest most of the time) when suddenly the author would remember that his main character was a man of God and add some italicized internal thoughts "Lord, please help me!"
In fact, the only time Luis "felt" like an actual priest was in the epilogue. That is a priest character I would be more interested in reading about.
As for the rest of the story. It was ok. It felt like a stretch most of the time. I kept waiting for the "bad guys" to break into a maniacal laugh. There were also several unresolved, rather superfluous story lines.
I recieved a free copy of this book through Kindle First
January 4, 2016
This was a free Kindle book through Amazon prime. It's the first of those offers that I have actually read to the end. The timing of it was good for me because I read much of it while sitting through a five hour plane delay and then a two hour flight. It definitely helped the time go faster!
Reading a book like this on an iPhone may have had its ramifications. I felt as if there were so many plots going and I wondered how they would all tie together. The answer? Most of them did but not all. Then I decided that maybe Mark Wheaton is already working on a sequel and will carry on the story of Oscar and Luis or Miguel and Luis or Michael and Helen or for that matter, the very brief and definitely left out there, story of Oscar and Helen.
I appreciate the fact that the main character is a good priest, a smart and tough and compassionate man. His back story is a story of resilience and hope.
I hope the story of present day slavery is exaggerated but it may not be.
Reading a book like this on an iPhone may have had its ramifications. I felt as if there were so many plots going and I wondered how they would all tie together. The answer? Most of them did but not all. Then I decided that maybe Mark Wheaton is already working on a sequel and will carry on the story of Oscar and Luis or Miguel and Luis or Michael and Helen or for that matter, the very brief and definitely left out there, story of Oscar and Helen.
I appreciate the fact that the main character is a good priest, a smart and tough and compassionate man. His back story is a story of resilience and hope.
I hope the story of present day slavery is exaggerated but it may not be.
February 17, 2016
I won this novel in a goodreads drawing.
This is a terrible book that relies on cliches and coincidence to try to make some lame point about illegal immigration.
Luis is a Catholic priest, whose best friend is a criminal, who gets mixed up investigating a ring human traffickers. Apparently nobody told Wheaton the current talking point that most illegals come from China these days. Anyway, a "factory farm" is involved, and some boring big business type conspiracy takes place, and a whole lot of extraneous political pontificating.
If you want to be hit over the head by amnesty propaganda, you might like it.
This is a terrible book that relies on cliches and coincidence to try to make some lame point about illegal immigration.
Luis is a Catholic priest, whose best friend is a criminal, who gets mixed up investigating a ring human traffickers. Apparently nobody told Wheaton the current talking point that most illegals come from China these days. Anyway, a "factory farm" is involved, and some boring big business type conspiracy takes place, and a whole lot of extraneous political pontificating.
If you want to be hit over the head by amnesty propaganda, you might like it.
October 26, 2021
Part of me trying to clear out the books from my Kindle.
Unsure why my past self downloaded this because this was like an action-ish book? Not my favorite. lol and the POV switches were too much.
I also don’t like Corporations being a large part of the mystery so this is a me problem.
Unsure why my past self downloaded this because this was like an action-ish book? Not my favorite. lol and the POV switches were too much.
I also don’t like Corporations being a large part of the mystery so this is a me problem.
June 23, 2017
Listened to this with Audible. It was an entertaining listen. The main character (Luis Chavez), a LA gangster turned priest, gets involved in a complicated human trafficking and corruption scheme by a large farming company in California when a potential whistle blower is found on the church grounds with a gunshot wound. While trying to help the woman, Luis ends up going undercover as a strawberry picker on the farm and helps to uncover the corruption.
August 19, 2021
Good storyteller. I felt Mark Wheaton combined research with his imagination in creating a very real and tragic story. Good read
February 4, 2016
Having lived in Southern California for several decades, I’m always interested in mystery/thriller series that take place in that area. When I saw Fields of Wrath by Mark Wheaton in my Amazon Prime selections list, it not only interested me because it takes place in the agricultural area near Ventura but because it deals with migrant farm workers. Slavery may have been outlawed in the mid 1800’s but some migrant farm workers in different parts of the U.S. are still not that far from slaves.
Fields of Wrath is Book #1 in a new mystery/thriller series featuring ex-gang member Luis Chavez, a newly ordained Los Angeles priest. Given that Cesar Chavez was a driving force in getting better working conditions for migrant farm workers, this main character’s last name seems only fitting. Most of you already know that I like novels which don’t just provide a gripping story but also provide a window into the lives of people about whom you may be unaware, except on a superficial level. Fields of Wrath provides that kind of window as well as one hell of a nail-biting read. Sound interesting? Read the rest of my review at http://popcornreads.com/?p=8876.
Fields of Wrath is Book #1 in a new mystery/thriller series featuring ex-gang member Luis Chavez, a newly ordained Los Angeles priest. Given that Cesar Chavez was a driving force in getting better working conditions for migrant farm workers, this main character’s last name seems only fitting. Most of you already know that I like novels which don’t just provide a gripping story but also provide a window into the lives of people about whom you may be unaware, except on a superficial level. Fields of Wrath provides that kind of window as well as one hell of a nail-biting read. Sound interesting? Read the rest of my review at http://popcornreads.com/?p=8876.
January 5, 2016
Surprisingly amazed
I read this book through the Kindle First program on Amazon. After reading the synopsis it was the most interesting of the six offered. However, I expected either a poorly written book about a priest with misinformation about the Church as often happens, or an overly-preachy sermon about human rights and immigrant workers. I got neither. What I did get was a great book that brought the issues of human trafficking to light in a gentle and relatable way, while at the same time making me feel like there might be so much more we don't know about it. The protagonist was constructed so as to be a believable figure rather than one that was shoehorned into the role. And some of the little twists along they way kept my interest - I could not wait to get back to reading this book! The worst part about this book is that I'm done with it and now have to wait for the author to write another one.
I read this book through the Kindle First program on Amazon. After reading the synopsis it was the most interesting of the six offered. However, I expected either a poorly written book about a priest with misinformation about the Church as often happens, or an overly-preachy sermon about human rights and immigrant workers. I got neither. What I did get was a great book that brought the issues of human trafficking to light in a gentle and relatable way, while at the same time making me feel like there might be so much more we don't know about it. The protagonist was constructed so as to be a believable figure rather than one that was shoehorned into the role. And some of the little twists along they way kept my interest - I could not wait to get back to reading this book! The worst part about this book is that I'm done with it and now have to wait for the author to write another one.
January 6, 2016
Great book Great read
I don't leave a lot of book reviews but this book was so much better then I had expected. I received it as a kindle first book, but would have bought it if I had known how much I would enjoy it. I am curious about sequels as this was a book one, I usually hate those kinds of books, when I am forced to buy more to find out what happens, but this is a stand alone book. It wasn't preachy, even with a priest being the main character. The editing was good with no obvious goofs.
I don't leave a lot of book reviews but this book was so much better then I had expected. I received it as a kindle first book, but would have bought it if I had known how much I would enjoy it. I am curious about sequels as this was a book one, I usually hate those kinds of books, when I am forced to buy more to find out what happens, but this is a stand alone book. It wasn't preachy, even with a priest being the main character. The editing was good with no obvious goofs.
January 25, 2016
I am hooked
I was looking for a new book to read and came across Fields of Wrath. I could not put it down.
Luis had a struggle to escape the hard life that was felt him as a young man. How could this one time gangster use his past life to help him in his life given to serving God? Would it be a handicap as he tried to prove himself a gain a position in the church or would Luis get side tracked helping out a beautiful young lady on the run ?
I was looking for a new book to read and came across Fields of Wrath. I could not put it down.
Luis had a struggle to escape the hard life that was felt him as a young man. How could this one time gangster use his past life to help him in his life given to serving God? Would it be a handicap as he tried to prove himself a gain a position in the church or would Luis get side tracked helping out a beautiful young lady on the run ?
February 2, 2016
Saving Grace
It's a shame that there is such a thing as migrant worker/sex trafficking. This story takes you on a ride through the desert, on a foot chase full of purpose, on a daily sweat-filled crop workers job to hopefully discover inhumanity at its worst and bring those responsible to justice. Luis Chavez makes this journey.
It's a shame that there is such a thing as migrant worker/sex trafficking. This story takes you on a ride through the desert, on a foot chase full of purpose, on a daily sweat-filled crop workers job to hopefully discover inhumanity at its worst and bring those responsible to justice. Luis Chavez makes this journey.
May 12, 2016
*Received an ARC e-book copy from Amazon's Kindle First program.
Good mystery/thriller book. Be forewarned: the main character is a priest, so don't be surprised by the talk of God, quoting of scriptures, etc...
I look forward to the next book
Good mystery/thriller book. Be forewarned: the main character is a priest, so don't be surprised by the talk of God, quoting of scriptures, etc...
I look forward to the next book
January 20, 2016
Compelling read.
Very interesting story and probably more fact than fiction. Perhaps one day society will believe that money can be made without exploiting cheap labor and treat all people with tact and divinity.
Very interesting story and probably more fact than fiction. Perhaps one day society will believe that money can be made without exploiting cheap labor and treat all people with tact and divinity.
February 28, 2016
Interesting from the first page
Well written, interesting characters that are well developed and sympathetic, a real page turner that isn't predictable. This is the first of a series and so good that I will make sure to find others by the same author. Highly recommend.
Well written, interesting characters that are well developed and sympathetic, a real page turner that isn't predictable. This is the first of a series and so good that I will make sure to find others by the same author. Highly recommend.
January 17, 2016
Page turner
Spell binding from beginning to end. There are a lot of plot twists and turns, hard to put down, excellent book
Spell binding from beginning to end. There are a lot of plot twists and turns, hard to put down, excellent book
February 3, 2016
Quite the page turner! I had a little trouble following all the characters but enjoyed the suspense and the story
January 15, 2016
Compelling and suspenseful.
Great story about the travails facing farmworkers and human trafficking. Father Luis a very good hero with a great backstory.
Great story about the travails facing farmworkers and human trafficking. Father Luis a very good hero with a great backstory.
February 22, 2016
Great Read!
I so enjoyed this book! I will read more! Great character development and suspense throughout the book. I hope the next book comes soon!
I so enjoyed this book! I will read more! Great character development and suspense throughout the book. I hope the next book comes soon!
April 23, 2019
A fierce priest fighting the human trafficking in the streets and fields.
I (quite strangely) liked that novel, even if I have more than one of critical comments. But there is something as the real care about the people, something really human present here. And I like that.
Well, to be honest, this is a common mystery book with an unexpected hero, the former street child, now reformed man - young priest. Without this kind of hero, the novel would lack (even more), as there is nothing new here - corrupt rich people and local politicos, oppression, machinations etc. But Father Luis is very much able to deliver the caring touch. He is the one hero to whom you believe his real, true interest in the people, even when the said people are sinners (and we all are sinners). And don´t we all wait for somebody who would truly care, who would see us as we are and would still care?
But. Father Luis is no Father Brown (and Chesterton was far superior writer, too). Also the theology presented here is sometimes very edgy, with all the modern angles (i.e. celibacy and relations to the women) questioned and sometimes attacked. And Father Luis himself can behave like a Wild West gunslinger hero without any weight on his conscience and/or any questions asked by the law and police! Sorry, not taking it.
But I believe him when he speaks about his faith. And some of the faith-based comments are not just spot-on, they are something I have heard from several priests, too. So I think that the author himself is either a lapsed/former Catholic, or at he has a Catholic presence in his life. As I am Catholic myself, this aspect is interesting for me.
So I leave this book with mixed feelings, some of which are of banging-my-head-on-the-desk nature and some are of being refreshed in my faith. A curious mix - so let me start with the second volume in this series :)
I (quite strangely) liked that novel, even if I have more than one of critical comments. But there is something as the real care about the people, something really human present here. And I like that.
Well, to be honest, this is a common mystery book with an unexpected hero, the former street child, now reformed man - young priest. Without this kind of hero, the novel would lack (even more), as there is nothing new here - corrupt rich people and local politicos, oppression, machinations etc. But Father Luis is very much able to deliver the caring touch. He is the one hero to whom you believe his real, true interest in the people, even when the said people are sinners (and we all are sinners). And don´t we all wait for somebody who would truly care, who would see us as we are and would still care?
But. Father Luis is no Father Brown (and Chesterton was far superior writer, too). Also the theology presented here is sometimes very edgy, with all the modern angles (i.e. celibacy and relations to the women) questioned and sometimes attacked. And Father Luis himself can behave like a Wild West gunslinger hero without any weight on his conscience and/or any questions asked by the law and police! Sorry, not taking it.
But I believe him when he speaks about his faith. And some of the faith-based comments are not just spot-on, they are something I have heard from several priests, too. So I think that the author himself is either a lapsed/former Catholic, or at he has a Catholic presence in his life. As I am Catholic myself, this aspect is interesting for me.
So I leave this book with mixed feelings, some of which are of banging-my-head-on-the-desk nature and some are of being refreshed in my faith. A curious mix - so let me start with the second volume in this series :)
August 3, 2017
“If you’re judging the sinner and not seeing the man, maybe God really did have a reason to send you out there…”
Fields of Wrath by Mark Wheaton is the first book in the Luis Chavez suspense thriller series. It is a hard-boiled detective mystery featuring an unlikely protagonist, and the concept is uniquely original. It follows the exploits of a young priest in Los Angeles who took to vigilante justice to solve crimes and bring criminals to justice.
The story begins with Anne Whittaker, a legal aide, who had been shot twice in her driveway at point-blank range by a large caliber pistol in what was believed to be a robbery gone bad. Her purse was missing and her car stolen, though it was later located in a Walgreens parking lot in Oakland. When another woman wounded by a bullet sought refuge in the safety of the church, she refused to be taken to the hospital fearful of her fate. Unsettled by the incidents, Father Luis Chavez who received his training at the St. Robert Bellarmine Seminary in New York takes the matter into his hands and unravel a massive conspiracy.
Fields of Wrath by Mark Wheaton is suspenseful, and fans of hard-boiled mystery will have a lot to cheer for. Full of surprises with its unpredictable twists and turns, author Mark Wheaton has done a fine job in crafting a story that brings to the fore the rampant corruption prevalent in law enforcement and the pathetic plights of undocumented migrants.
Fields of Wrath by Mark Wheaton is the first book in the Luis Chavez suspense thriller series. It is a hard-boiled detective mystery featuring an unlikely protagonist, and the concept is uniquely original. It follows the exploits of a young priest in Los Angeles who took to vigilante justice to solve crimes and bring criminals to justice.
The story begins with Anne Whittaker, a legal aide, who had been shot twice in her driveway at point-blank range by a large caliber pistol in what was believed to be a robbery gone bad. Her purse was missing and her car stolen, though it was later located in a Walgreens parking lot in Oakland. When another woman wounded by a bullet sought refuge in the safety of the church, she refused to be taken to the hospital fearful of her fate. Unsettled by the incidents, Father Luis Chavez who received his training at the St. Robert Bellarmine Seminary in New York takes the matter into his hands and unravel a massive conspiracy.
Fields of Wrath by Mark Wheaton is suspenseful, and fans of hard-boiled mystery will have a lot to cheer for. Full of surprises with its unpredictable twists and turns, author Mark Wheaton has done a fine job in crafting a story that brings to the fore the rampant corruption prevalent in law enforcement and the pathetic plights of undocumented migrants.
March 16, 2019
Rated 2.85
Following his ordination as a priest, Father Luis Chavez returns to the mean streets of his youth, hoping to put his past behind him. But the brutal murder of a worker in Ventura County’s vast farm fields compels Luis to return to his criminal roots in order to unravel a massive conspiracy. Teaming up with Michael Story, an ambitious Los Angeles deputy DA, Chavez goes undercover as a farm laborer to bring down an immense human-trafficking ring tied to one of California’s most prominent and powerful families.
A look at the illegal immigrant group providing legal "temp help" to exceedingly greedy major food corporations. Disturbing story of human-trafficking. I wonder how much of this is happening in USA.
Following his ordination as a priest, Father Luis Chavez returns to the mean streets of his youth, hoping to put his past behind him. But the brutal murder of a worker in Ventura County’s vast farm fields compels Luis to return to his criminal roots in order to unravel a massive conspiracy. Teaming up with Michael Story, an ambitious Los Angeles deputy DA, Chavez goes undercover as a farm laborer to bring down an immense human-trafficking ring tied to one of California’s most prominent and powerful families.
A look at the illegal immigrant group providing legal "temp help" to exceedingly greedy major food corporations. Disturbing story of human-trafficking. I wonder how much of this is happening in USA.
November 29, 2022
Crime
I don't know what to say, a young Priest new to this Parish is put into a position that brought him back to his old ways as a young kid and teenager living in lower Los Angeles and surrounding communities close the Mexican border. Trying to save a young girls life was a feat that was beyond his capabilities amongst the living circumstances his was within the walls of death. Though he did his best, even risking his own life trying to help those who were slaves of field crop mongrals. A very vast criminal trafficking ring that killed many was finally brought down by many government entities. Many died and those who didn't had to live the rest of their own lives Carring a great burden. If only they cared.
I don't know what to say, a young Priest new to this Parish is put into a position that brought him back to his old ways as a young kid and teenager living in lower Los Angeles and surrounding communities close the Mexican border. Trying to save a young girls life was a feat that was beyond his capabilities amongst the living circumstances his was within the walls of death. Though he did his best, even risking his own life trying to help those who were slaves of field crop mongrals. A very vast criminal trafficking ring that killed many was finally brought down by many government entities. Many died and those who didn't had to live the rest of their own lives Carring a great burden. If only they cared.
May 24, 2017
One of the central characters in this modern novel is Louis Chavez, a priest. The author knows his geo area of southern California and the spiritual perspective of a man of the cloth who had a past in the LA gang world. It is a wide ranging novel that deals with human trafficking, farm labor and human greed. Well written and probably really four stars except for some big plot mechanisms that don't quit fit the actual landscape of what you could get away with in a modern setting. That said, I would definitely read another of the Louis Chavez series because of it's interesting perspective on spirituality and human nature.
May 19, 2018
A brand new type of hero
My dad is an ordained deacon in the Catholic Church and has also written stories as a hobby, he actually wrote a story about a catholic priest as a detective type, like Fr. Chavez in this book.
I like the somewhat mysterious background of Fr. Chavez, we know that he was a gangbanger as a youngster and his brother was killed before he changed his ways, but it doesn't really get into any specific crimes but that he did do some time for crimes. Maybe a prequel will be written, I'd read it.
Great book!
My dad is an ordained deacon in the Catholic Church and has also written stories as a hobby, he actually wrote a story about a catholic priest as a detective type, like Fr. Chavez in this book.
I like the somewhat mysterious background of Fr. Chavez, we know that he was a gangbanger as a youngster and his brother was killed before he changed his ways, but it doesn't really get into any specific crimes but that he did do some time for crimes. Maybe a prequel will be written, I'd read it.
Great book!
November 4, 2018
I believe this is the author's first book. I hope his writing improves with time because the main character, Father Luis Chavez, shows promise.
The plot is confusing and events just seem to jump out at the reader with no foreshadowing and no action by the characters. The author spends a lot of time using dialog to explain what has happened in the book rather than using action by the characters to drive the plot. The plot items that are not covered in the last few chapters are addressed in the epilogue...again through dialog.
The plot is confusing and events just seem to jump out at the reader with no foreshadowing and no action by the characters. The author spends a lot of time using dialog to explain what has happened in the book rather than using action by the characters to drive the plot. The plot items that are not covered in the last few chapters are addressed in the epilogue...again through dialog.
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