By Amy Cochran, Grand Rapids Public Library, Main
When I viewed Apocalypto in the theatre, I was intrigued by the Mayan city and glimpses of a complicated society behind the bloody sacrifices, although I still was firmly on the side of Jaguar Paw and his people. In the spirit of learning more about a civilization that practiced blood sacrifice, and in search of a page-turning mystery, I picked up Demon of the Air: An Aztec Mystery. I thoroughly enjoyed the solid mystery but loved the way the author paints a vivid portrait of a complex and brutal society in the last years before it is swept away by European conquerors.
Rumors of men with pale skin have just started to reach Mexico/Tenochtitlan, making for an uneasy and paranoid environment among the elite of the great city. We first meet Yaotl, our dubious hero, in a tight spot. As an ex-priest and now a slave, his master has ordered him to escort a doomed man to the temple of the war-god for execution, but the erstwhile sacrifice breaks free and dives to his death over the side of the pyramid. Yaotl barely escapes when the priests would just as soon sacrifice him instead of a useless dead body.
As he returns to his master’s house, Yaotl is summoned to a meeting with Emperor Montezuma, who orders him to find several missing sorcerers or end up in prison himself.
In his search for the sorcerers, Yaotl must navigate through a society with an elaborate class structure based almost solely around prowess in battle and a belief in the importance of sacrifice and ritual eating. He is soon caught up in a power struggle between the emperor and Yaotl’s own master, an embittered old man who believes he should have been emperor instead of Montezuma.
Mysteries such as why the families of the missing sorcerers are being slaughtered and how Yaotl himself is connected to the underlying plot make for an interesting read. But I especially enjoyed the many details of life in the Aztec city, such as how hair length and style depends on your level in society, and how an auspicious date of birth determines your destiny. This is a fun mystery with insights into a lost culture.
