Title: The Incredible Wedding of a Dictator
Author: Horacio A. Hernandez
Publisher: Aspire Publishing Hub
ISBN: 979-8896830337
Pages: 156
Genre: Genre Fiction / Historical Fiction
Reviewed by: Christina Avina
Pacific Book Review
When studying the history of a country or past civilization, one of the things which always fascinates people in general is how the culture and beliefs of the people that made up those civilizations impacted the political, social, and historical direction they would take. There are the positive cultural impacts which can resonate with families for generations, and then there are the negative beliefs that power hungry, controlling individuals can manipulate and form their own narratives in order to push the civilization into a dark direction, one that could even become the end of said civilization.
It is in that vein author Horacio A. Hernandez shared the historical fiction novel The Incredible Wedding of a Dictator. The story takes place in the fictitious community known as Dolorosa Village, or Villa Dolorosa. The story follows the history of the community, from its earliest beginnings to the arrival of foreign settlers to the growth and expansion of a civilization and culture and the rise of a powerful dictator. Exploring everything from love found in the most desolate of places to the myths and legends that dictate a powerful figure’s rise to power and the destruction that the community faced as well, the novel is a promising look into how culture can impact the direction a nation or people can take as history progresses.
The fast pace and rich history the author establishes, both the fictitious history of the nation of Dolorosa Village and the world history that was meshed into this fictional island’s culture, was so dynamic and kept this reader invested early on from the beginning. The way the author wrote this novel, with perspectives shifting into a “story told from within a story about another story”, allows the audience to not only experience this island’s history in full, but become ingrained with both the powerful historical figures of this place and the locals who became impacted years later.
For readers who enjoy fictional storytelling, including historical fiction and mythology, as well as studies on cultural impacts on society, this is the perfect read. The author’s use of world building was next level in this book, allowing the reader to engage with this fictional nation and the myths and legends that grew from discovered literature, similarly to how we view Greek and Roman mythology now, despite it being considered religion back in the day. The study of how power-hungry leaders can grow and thrive in such a belief system, whether it be cults or political movements, was very prevalent in this book, and became a fascinating retrospective on the power culture and belief has on people overall.
