Bless Me, Ultima 8-12

I have to admit, I am officially hooked on this book. Chapters 8-12 were even more interesting and exciting than the first seven chapters. They begin with Antonio's brothers suffering from "war-sickness" or most likely post-traumatic stress disorder. This doesn't surprise me at all saying they entered the stressful war at a very young age and didn't have much of a childhood. Because of this, Antonio's brothers urge him to stay youthful as long as he can and not want to rush to grow up. I also think I found these chapters entertaining because magic was finally introduced in the story. Magic was introduced in the curing of Uncle Louis from his curse. He was placed in a curse by the barkeeper, Tenorio's, daughters. Ultima puts a lot of effort into coming up with a cure for Louis and spends several days trying to get it right. This shows that Ultima is a nice, caring person, but i'm not so sure i'm completely convinced of Ultima's character just yet. There something about her that makes me question her intentions. A prediction I have for the rest of the book is that Antonio will become a male witch. After going with Ultima to cure his uncle, I have a feeling Ultima is almost trying to train Antonio for the future. Another thing I noticed in chapters 8-12 is Antonio's parents bitterness towards each other. I love how Anaya made them absolute opposites and their continued opposition and fighting in these chapters adds a lot to the story. They can't seem to agree on anything. I'm really excited to keep reading Bless Me, Ultima and see what happens next!