Fraile Muerto SPANISH- 376 pages. Based on actual historical facts, the novel is a mesmerizing portrait of the clash between the newly arrived pioneers and the inhabitants of the Pampas in 1856. British dandys, gauchos , decent criollos , Ranquel indians, railway workers and drovers mix in a telltale struggle of prejudices and true assessments that are deeply rooted in the baffling society that constitutes the present Argentina.