James Villanueva

How do you break free when you're a prisoner of cultural myth and expectations? This is the dilemma 17 year old Santos finds himself in. He is a gay teen in a small Texas town where there's a big cultural and economic divide. His close friends all live in the better part, while he shares a small place in a poorer spot with his mother. He's no stranger to violence, having lost his father that way. He's inherited healing powers from his grandfather. They leave him burdened by the expectation that he must heal the emotional/spiritual wounds of those who come to him and his mother for help.
When a sixteen year old Honduran refugee, Dulcero, is brought for healing by a man who earns his living bringing illegals across the border and through the desert, it's the start of a new awareness for Santos.
Dulcero has experienced the horror of seeing both parents murdered before his eyes, the terror of navigating the dangerous journey from Honduras, and the agony of being separated from his little sister by customs agents. No wonder he's now mute.
What ensues is a growing attraction between the boys, the reader's introduction to Santos' friends, all of whom have their own stories to tell, and his evolution from prisoner of expectations to becoming something truer to his soul. This is a great look at part of a culture few of us ever have an opportunity to view.… (mais)