In a beautifully written piece of literary fiction by author Jonathan LaPoma, Understanding the Alacran, readers will be treated to a book that will engage both their minds and their senses. Taking place amongst the raw beauty of Mexico, the story follows 22-year-old William James, a young man who has given up a great career opportunity in the hopes of escaping a real sense of oppression, oppression that once led him to crime, drugs and a dark despair. He finds the freedom he has wanted in the beaches and mountains of Mexico, and all is well until he starts to feel a dark desire to become involved in the drug trade that seems to envelop the place he lives. When he meets a complex and mesmerizing woman, he begins to wonder if love will bring him to the place he needs. Will it? You’ll need to read this excellent book to find out.

I loved Understanding the Alacran. Loved. It. How’s that for a review? Well, it’s absolutely how I felt about this beautifully written, funny, moving and all-round wonderful coming of age story. Author Jonathan LaPoma has done an excellent job in creating characters that his readers will be able to connect with, relate to and truly come to care about. If that isn’t a hallmark of a great author, I’m not sure what is. Any reader who is looking for a fantastic work of fiction from a new author should absolutely read this book. I am pleased to be able to give this book my very highest recommendation, and look forward to reading more from the talented author, Jonathan LaPoma, as soon as I possibly can.

Understanding the Alacran by Jonathan LaPoma is a fantastic story that introduces the reader to a lifestyle that involves drugs and crime, a compelling character seeking redemption from drugs and fighting to leave behind the “crutches” of his life. William James is just twenty-two when he decides he’s had enough and leaves his teaching job in a Buffalo high school, traveling to Mexico in the hope of making a change. But Mexico will not change him because the place has its own temptations and they are hard to resist. He soon finds out that his past catches up with him, that no matter how far he runs, he’ll still have to face himself. But before he hits rock bottom, something extraordinary happens: he meets a woman who changes everything!

From the very beginning of the story, the reader gets swept away and pulled into the atmosphere in which the protagonist evolves. On the first page, describing a scene in Mexico, the narrator captures the general climate of the protagonist’s soul when he says: “The morning was peaceful, but I wasn’t.” The reader already gets a sense of what to expect from the start of the story. I enjoyed the protagonist’s journey, the passage from despair to hope, and above all, the search for inner freedom. Readers will also love the compelling characters and the way the author captures the Mexican culture, its beautiful setting with its smells and sounds in this inspiring tale. Overall, Jonathan LaPoma’s Understanding the Alacran is a wonderful coming-of-age story, and I was surprised at the allegory of the spider in the overall message of the story.