Ines Of My Soul by Isabel Allende

On the flight to Chile I was totally absorbed by this book. I love historical fiction. You can begin to feel how people perceive themselves and their culture. Isabel Allende chronicles the story of Ines Suarez who helped found Santiago in the sixteenth century. Ines arrives in the New World from Spain searching for her disappeared husband. After her treacherous journey, she arrives in Peru only to find out that he has died. Soon after, however, she begins a 10 year love affair with Pedro de Valdivia, a conquistador from Francisco Pizarro's army. He convinces her to go to Chile to conquer the natives and spread Christianity. There begins the epic battles with the Mapuche people who have successfully kept the Incas from their territory. After Valdivia's death Ines, stays in Santiago and becomes a legitimate wife of another soldier. Her many contributions to building Santiago, and her compassion for the soldiers, kept the struggling population from abandoning their posts during the frequent sieges by the Mapuche. Ines's bravery is astounding. There is so little colonial history that really tells the contribution of the women who followed the men to battle and fought side by side the fiercest of enemies. Of course everything about Isabel's stories is magical.