The history of the early Americas is a story of before and after, defined and divided by a pivotal moment of contact between two distinct cultures. On the European side it is a tale of exploration, high-stakes treasure-seeking, and conquest. For indigenous Americans--including the Maya, the Nahua, the Ta no, and the Wari--it is the beginning of the end, a violent saga of disease, enslavement, and the loss of languages and rituals. This collision of...