A fast-paced, well-written novel set in and around Los Alamos, New Mexico in the final preparations before Trinity, the first successful test of the atomic bomb. Real-life figures Oppenheimer, Groves, Gold and Fuchs are mixed in with many fictional characters, the lead being Army Sergeant Joe Peña. The author makes Joe do a lot of heavy lifting: he's Native American and grew up in the area so can serve as a liaison between the Army and the local Native communities, and taught a teenage Oppenheimer how to ride horses. Joe's also a former professional boxer, a jazz pianist, son of a renowned Native potter, and attracts officer's wives to his bed like moths to a flame. This makes him a perfect candidate to be an informer for the head of security at the installation who wants Oppenheimer to revealed as a Soviet spy at all costs.
There's some beautiful writing here in descriptions of the landscape and weather, some great fight scenes and depictions of the Native communities and their suspicion that having the Army and Los Alamos as a neighbor may not be the best thing for their long-term viability. Joe's being caught between two worlds provides enough conflict to make the book exciting without the added villainy of the security chief. While Joe is a great character, he gets placed at every pivotal scene to the point that it strains credibility. The book's ending is thrilling but somehow unsatisfying. ( )

An early book by Cruz Smith, this book takes place during WWII, when Oppenheimer developed the nuclear bomb at Trinity.
The main character is a native indian; a boxer, a jazz musician, now a soldier and a spy. He has very little volition, seems to be drifting through life (reminiscent of the protagonist in the much later The venice girl), although he does have agency and takes charge when push comes to shove. ( )

En una tormenta de nieve en Nuevo México, cuatro hombres cruzan una cerca de alambre de púas en Stallion Gate para seleccionar un sitio de prueba para la primera arma atómica. Son Oppenheimer, el físico; Groves, el general; Fuchs, el espía. El cuarto hombre es el sargento Joe Peña, un héroe, delator, luchador, músico, indio. Estos cuatro hombres, y un elenco de soldados, matones y científicos, cambiarán la historia para siempre.

Smith published this book directly after his big hit, 'Gorky Park.' However, it never achieved that much success. Reading it, I can see why. It's an interesting concept, but not necessarily wholly successful.
It's an historical novel about a Native American man, Joe Pena, in the US military who is assigned to work with Oppenheimer on the Trinity Project. (the nuclear bomb). Pena's been fished out of a jail cell due to his ties with Oppenheimer, and is really expected to spy on the man, whom his superior suspects is a traitor.
Although the book comes *this* close to being a thriller, it really isn't. It's more of a rumination on racism, suspicion, poverty, ambition, violence, and, of course, love.
It's a very tense book, but the tension is more of an overarchingly oppressive aura than the tension of impending action - we, of course, know what happened at Trinity/Stallion Gate, so the outcome is not really in doubt.
This was not a bad book, but it was not my favorite by Cruz Smith. ( )

good novel @ N. Mexico setting up bomb Indian chief; army scout — ? ending

In a New Mexico blizzard, four men cross a barbed-wire fence at Stallion Gate to select a test site for the first atomic weapon. They are Oppenheimer, the physicist; Groves, the general; Fuchs, the spy. The fourth man is Sergeant Joe Pena, a hero, informer, fighter, musician, Indian. These four men -- and a cast of soldiers, roughnecks and scientists -- will change history forever.