The Eagle's Throne - Carlos Fuentes

The year is 2020. In a fit of ill-advised independence, the Mexican President  has incurred the double wrath of the United States by calling for the removal of US  troops from Colombia and demanding higher prices for Mexico s oil. Unfortunately for him, the country satellite communications system is controlled through a shell company in Miami. Unsurpriseingly, the system goes down.

At a stroke Mexico si deprived of phone, fax and email, In a country where politicians never put anything in writing, letters are now the only way to communicate, leaving the private lives and true feelings of all brutally exposed. Especially regarding the hot topic of the day: Who will be the next President, the next to ascend the Eagle s Throne?

As the characters jockey for position in the race to identify and ally themselves to the future President, the letters fly ever faster, wittier and more mendacious. Who will be the victor? Glamarous Maria del  Rosario s protege and would-be lover, the handsome Nicolas Valdivia? Her bitter rival, the bald satyr Tacito de la Canal? Or  the unsavoury ex-President Cesar Leon? How will the bets be placed when the punters include some of the runners? And who has the most of lose? These and many other questions must be aswered before the last letter is sent.