Customer Reviews

The Last Days of the Incas

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In a nutshell this book is an excellent introduction to the Spanish conquest of Peru and the demise of the Inca empire. The author does an excellent job of making history "come alive" for the reader. Unlike many other works of historical non-fiction, the book intersperses historical facts with glimpses into the personal lives of the historical characters. It delves into the culture of Incas and describes how the Inca empire came into being. It compares and contrasts the relatives strengths and weaknesses of the Spanish and Inca forces in battle for control of the Inca empire, and discusses how tactics and strategies evolved over time. It does not gloss over the horrible atrocities exacted by the Spanish on the Incas during this period of time either, which is something a lot of historical works do not delve into. The book finishes off by describing the later discovery of Machu Picchu and Vilcabamba, the fabled "Lost City of the Incas." I highly recommend this book.

Planning my first trip to Peru I purchased a copy of "The Last Days of the Incas" after reading a review in the newspaper. I wasn't disappointed. Kim MacQuarrie's prose brings what is one of the most exciting stories that has ever occurred in the Americas to life in vivid and startling detail. Once I began reading the book, I literally was unable to put it down. Not only does "The Last Days of the Incas" bring the conquest to life, but it also includes chapters on the modern discoveries of Inca ruins in Peru, and also explains how Machu Picchu (a must see) fits into the history of the Inca Empire. This book does an amazing job of placing you at the heart of the conquest. Francisco Pizarro and his four brothers come completely to life as do a colorful assortment of other Inca and Spanish characters. You'll feel the sharp wind in the Andes whipping round your legs, the buzz of bullets from harquebusiers whizzing by your ears as you experience the valiant and brave efforts of the rebel Inca emperor, Manco Inca, struggle against all odds to hold onto his empire. If you are going on vacation to Peru or South America, or just want to experience an amazing and epic story first hand, then I can't recommend this book enough. Really extraordinary.

I absolutely loved this book. Everyone in my family loved this book. It is a rip-roaring adventure that explains an important piece of South American history in a way that captivates the attention at the same time that it makes that particular period in history understandable. How could a small group of illiterate Spanish explorers change the history of an empire of 10 million people? This book is a real-life example of the ideas proposed in the book "Guns, Germs, and Steel." Although I visited many of the important sites in Peru in which the story takes place a few years ago, I now want to return in order to see those places again from the vantage point of what I learned in "The Last Days of the Incas." This book makes history come alive and the lessons contained therein have relevance in today's world.

If you want to read about the conquest of the Incas, one of the two biggest epic stories in the Americas (the other being Cortes' conquest of the Aztecs, then you really only have two choices: John Hemming's "The Conquest of the Incas," and Kim MacQuarrie's "The Last Days of the Incas." Hemming's book was published in 1970, thus recent discoveries in Peru during the last four decades are missing--and a lot has happened since then. It is a very detailed book with lots of footnotes and research, however, it was written by an academic and is average in writing quality. There is thus no attempt in Hemming's book to bring the characters to life, or even to tell their full stories. MacQuarrie's book, on the other hand, was published in 2007 and thus is very up-to-date. You'll learn about recent and important discoveries in 1999 and 2001, how Machu Picchu figured into the conquest and was discovered, and so on (which Hemming's does not). But what really sets it apart from any other book on Inca history is the writing quality. "The Last Days of the Incas" is really a phenomenal read, the best that I've come across, period. Not since William Prescott's "The Conquest of Peru" (published in 1847 and a big best seller in its time, but now very outdated) has anyone achieved what MacQuarrie has achieved, bringing the conquest of the Incas back to life. "The Last Days of the Incas" is not only well researched and up-to-date, but the book is an amazing page-turner. Once you pick it up, you won't be able to put it down. The author really succeeds in recreating Pizarro and his conquistadors and the various Inca emperors as full, three-dimensional characters. In sum, if you want to transport yourself in a time machine back to the 16th century in Peru and feel what it was like to be a participant in the sprawling epic that was the conquest of the Inca civilization, there's only one book to get: "The Last Days of the Incas." It's a real "tour de force."

It feels that there could not be any better documentarical history book about the conquest of Inca, than this. It reads so much easily but also it does not lose any holistic perspectives, owing to its solid base of relevant literature. You can get the very clear and wide range of understanding on the political and social systems and backgrounds of the both empires, Inca and Spain, as well as the conquest itself. The author's writing skill is so marvellous that you would feel to be there and see vividly all the scenes developing, the feelings and emotions of the chracters. The book is wrtten also in a way to explain, when necessary, the past by bridging it to the present we are accustomed, so sucessful in providing its full meanings.

I think this book gives a wonderful, illuminated history of Inca Peru and is a captivating read. It got a little monotonous in the middle with all the battle scenes, and I think less time on this, and more time on the epilogue would have been better. Still, I feel like a have a wonderful crash course in Inca culture to kick off my trip to Peru.