Anti-hero Don Vargas is wrenched from a deteriorating lifestyle in modern-day New Mexico when his promiscuous wife kicks him out. He ends up renting a dilapidated casita which - unknown to him -is actually the Portal to another world-ancient and magical. A talking bat, Nightwing, lures Vargas through that dusty Portal on a quest to the Valle Abajo, where local clanspeople expect him to save them from the evil and wily Soreyes and their mysterious Tower.

A century earlier, Teresa, a curandera from Don's own Rio Grande Valley, tried to defeat the Soreyes, but succeeded only in slowing them down. Now, the clans expect Don to prevail where she failed. But he just wants to drink beer and forget his troubles. Only the disarming beauty of a young curandera, Raquela, and pint-sized Nersite, a storyteller and warrior can hope to convince Don to accept their quest.

Complications arise, surprises shock-all conspiring to spawn the dramatic conclusion of Book I.

Contemporary Fantasy set in New Mexico and an alternative New Mexico that is ancient and magical. Features adventure, mystery, a portal, romance, Hispanic lifestyle, religious beliefs and issues, alcholism, mysticism, and pyschological issues. It is ultimately a story of redemption and the search for meaning.