Book Review: “The Sons of El Rey” by Alex Espinoza

Oct 28

Håfa adai! Welcome to my review of The Sons of El Rey by Alex Espinoza. It may still be spooky season, but the fourth Monday of this month will still feature a book club review.

This book review consists of two parts: a spoiler-free plot summary and my thoughts on the story. In the second part, I give my personal rating and break down the setting and worldbuilding, storytelling, cast of characters, and themes. There may be some lightweight spoilers—such as how characters interact with each other and the world around them—but I will not give away any major plot twists or endings. I want to share my opinions of the book and maybe encourage you to purchase a copy of your own.

Click on the tags at the bottom of this post to see all reviews with the same tags in the Fiction bookshelf.

Spoiler-Free Plot Summary

Ernesto and Elena Vega leave the ranches of Michoacán to pursue better opportunities in Mexico City. While working in construction, Ernesto is noticed by a lucha libre trainer and is thrust into the world of Mexican wrestling. Ernesto finds success and notoriety throughout Mexico as the luchador known as El Rey Coyote. But his devotion to El Rey Coyote creates unbridgeable divides between him, his wife Elena, and others he cares about. Elena did not sign up for a marriage of neglect and rejection. She made a vow, but even she has her limits. Could Ernesto ever truly be only hers?

Freddy Vega continued his father’s legacy in East Los Angeles, California, as El Rey Coyote Jr. Years later, Freddy is doing what he can to keep his father’s gym open in a post-pandemic world. But the pressure of Ernesto’s legacy is only made heavier for Freddy as he faces the reality that his once larger-than-life father is dying. And Freddy’s attempts to connect with and support his son always seem to come across the wrong way.

Julian Vega, the only son of Freddy Vega, wants to support his father during this time: his grandfather is dying and the family’s gym is suffering. But Freddy’s pride and apparent machismo prevent Julian from getting close. Julian did not follow his father and grandfather’s tradition of lucha libre, but that does not mean that the expectations and stereotypes of luchador culture do not follow him. Julian wants happiness in his professional and romantic life as a gay Mexican-American man. And he refuses to let such expectations and stereotypes tell him what that happiness should look like.

The Sons of El Rey follows three generations of the Vega family as their lives take them from 1960s Mexico City to 2020s Los Angeles. This epic story uses the voices of multiple perspectives to explore family secrets, forbidden love, and the internal conflict that arises when who you think others want you to be collides with who you are.

Important Trigger Warning for The Sons of El Rey

The Sons of El Rey portrays derogatory language against members of the LGBT+ community. The use of this language is essential to the plot. If derogatory language against members of the LGBT+ community causes you distress or discomfort in any way, then please make sure to take necessary steps to prepare and protect yourself before and after reading this book.

My Thoughts on The Sons of El Rey: 4.75 stars

The Sons of El Rey is told from the perspective of multiple characters along multiple timelines: Ernesto Vega, Elena Vega, Freddy Vega, and Julian Vega. Alex Espinoza takes the reader backwards and forwards through time in a manner that coherently emphasizes the significance of the present-day events. You feel Ernesto’s conflict of societal expectations and personal wants, Elena’s frustrations and need not to be left behind, Freddy’s attempts to be there for his son, and Julian’s perception that this father is indifferent at best.

Alex Espinoza’s prose elegantly weaves through multiple complex topics and themes. Three questions in particular came to mind as I experienced The Sons of El Rey.

Should societal norms or family legacy influence individual identity and expression?
Where is the line drawn between the public optics of reputation and the private workings of support?
What arises when honoring your family’s past conflicts with honoring who you are today?

First: Should societal norms or family legacy influence individual identity and expression? The immediate and correct answer seems like it should be “no, you should feel supported in your individual identity and expression if you are not harming anyone in the process.” But, more often than not, the honest answer is that many individuals feel unable to present their authentic identities and expressions because of societal norms and family legacy.

One of the themes central to The Sons of El Rey is Julian Vega’s ability to live authentically as a gay man in a Mexican-American family closely linked to the seemingly machismo world of lucha libre. Many of the struggles within Julian’s personal life include finding a respectful balance between how he is seen as the grandson of El Rey Coyote and son of El Rey Coyote Jr. by admirers of the sport, how he is seen as a Mexican-American man by Americans who are not Mexican, and how he is seen as a gay man by those who interact with him. The societal norms and family legacy that Julian Vega has had to live with throughout his life have greatly shaped the way he navigates and expresses his individual identity.

Second: Where is the line drawn between the public optics of reputation and the private workings of support? This is difficult to answer without giving away any major plot twist, so I will be intentionally vague and hope that I adequately address the question at hand. In the dynamic between Freddy Vega and his son Julian Vega, Freddy does his best to show support for his son in a manner that takes into consideration what has been said by Julian’s school counselors and other people. But he does not actually talk to Julian! Freddy does not have the tools or understanding that perhaps the best way to support Julian is to talk with Julian. This leaves Julian with the impression that his father (1) does not genuinely support him and (2) cares more about being seen as macho and stoic than communicating with his son.

Third: What arises when honoring your family’s past conflicts with honoring who you are today? This is another difficult question to answer without giving away a major spoiler, so I will be intentionally vague again. From the perspective of Julian Vega, who his family wanted him to be and who he is at the start of The Sons of El Rey are two incredibly different people. With a grandfather and father who are proud luchadores, he believed he was expected to continue the family tradition. Instead of loving choreographed fights and colorful costumes, Julian loves poetry and prose. The internal conflict that Julian experiences largely stems from how what he believes honoring your family’s past looks like collides with who he is.

The internal conflict felt by the principal characters throughout The Sons of El Rey is amplified by their inabilities to be honest with themselves, which causes them not to communicate with each other. Ernesto and Elena Vega are not honest with themselves about their own frustrations and harm each other in the process of maintaining the images they have of themselves. Freddy and Julian are not honest with themselves about how to support each other, which causes each other to feel left out and unsupported.

My overall rating for Alex Espinoza’s The Sons of El Rey is 5 out of 5 stars. It is a beautifully composed and emotional journey through time and space as told by three generations of the Vega family. This book was the October 2024 title selected by the book club I am a member of. Alex Espinoza is also the author of Still Water Saints, The Five Acts of Diego León, and Cruising: An Intimate History of a Radical Pastime. I had not heard of his work before this book was recommended by a member of the book club, and I am so glad I had the opportunity to experience this story. I look forward to reading Alex Espinoza’s other works and posting future book reviews.

Dångkulo' na' saina ma'åse'! Thank you so much for reading my review of The Sons of El Rey by Alex Espinoza.

Rating Cheat Sheet

4.75 - 5.00 stars: Everyone should read this book! (If you’re into that sort of thing.)
4.00 - 4.50 stars: I appreciated many aspects of this book. I recommend it!
3.00 - 3.75 stars: I liked some aspects of this book. I won’t revisit it, but someone else might really like it.
2.00 - 2.75 stars: There were some things I appreciated about this book, but I do not recommend it.
0.25 - 1.75 stars: I do not recommend this book. I did not enjoy or appreciate the experience of it.

Post Date: 28 October 2024