[buwaya]

The go-to modern work these days is the one by Hugh Thomas.
Extremely comprehensive and detailed, as usual for Thomas.

Prescotts is the old standard work, interestingly a translation of Prescott’s (my dad had this too) was also the standard Spanish-language history for over a century!
Prescott (in English) has the advantage in the antique qualities of poetic narrative, in the art of description, over Thomas.

[dennisw]

The go-to modern work these days is the one by Hugh Thomas.
Extremely comprehensive and detailed, as usual for Thomas.

I read the Hugh Thomas book. I gave me great ideas why Mexico is such an awful place today    btw he passed away in 2017 at age 87