Home to Santa Fe — Harlan Hague

This is a star-crossed love story set in the Southwest during the controversial war between the United States and Mexico in the 1840s. John Henry Harris joined the American Army of the West to defend his country against the Mexican invaders, but when he found no enemies in Santa Fé and fell in love with a daughter of Mexico, he began to question American motives for the war and to ponder the nature of violence. He was torn between duty and personal values, and he wrestled with questions of cultural differences and bias. Warmed by Morita's love and finding a place in her world, his mind began to open. John Henry was happy as he had never been, but the idyll ended. He was attached to the army column that carried the conquest westward. During the march, he longed for Morita and vowed to return to his brown sweetheart and the little adobe. On the trail, he sank into melancholy and was racked with debilitating headaches. He was at peace only by recalling Morita and Santa Fé. An idea began to take shape that would have been unthinkable before Morita. In California, he reluctantly committed himself to a battle that ended in a surrealistic climax.