About the book

Sold into slavery to the Spanish adventurer Cortes as a child, the life of the Aztec princess Malinali is one of the greatest and most enduring legends of Mexico. Reviled as a traitor responsible for the destruction of the native people yet honoured as a heroine and symbolic mother of the nation, her extraordinary and passionate story has never before been so evocatively told. Colin Falconer brings the Aztec empire to life in blazing colour and examines with compelling detail the life of Malinali, who went from being Cortes' slave to translator, and ultimately his lover. Contradictory, intelligent and sensuous, Malinali soon found herself implicitly involved in his plans for domination ...