I knew nothing about the Narvaez expedition, so this book was a lot of new information. As always, I think it's pretty interesting when writers attempt to give voice to the voiceless. And I get the feeling that Laila Lalami did a lot of research on the topic and the period, because the writing was perfectly vivid and very realistic for 16th century. Also, I grew up with a lot of old adventure novels, and I feel as if Lalami was writing in that tradition, which made the story all the more enjoyable. It's a fascinating novel, well researched and well written, so I'd recommend it if you enjoy historical adventures.