"Laguna is an excellent book, an easy read, very well written."

- Ron Kauffman
Senior Lifestyles Radio

     "LAGUNA is an intriguing mystery peopled by very real characters thrown into a plot filled with twists and hard choices. Author Michael Putegnat has a gift for creating dialogue that is both believable and leads the plot forward. LAGUNA's quick pacing, evocative prose, and intriguing plot lead readers on a journey they won't want to end. There are so many great things to say about LAGUNA."

- Writer's Digest International Book Awards Commentary
      "Putegnat creates an intriguing fictive world. The author populates the story with colorful characters from a broad social palette, providing a subtle rendering of the niceties of corruption."

- KIRKUS
   "Laguna by Michael Putegnat is a vividly written and gripping novel of Laguna Madre native John Magne and the transformation of his delicate homeland and ranching town into a national reserve and high-priced natural gas field. As Magne manipulates and strives for power and ownership of the investment, one man and five women stand in his way, persistently interfering with his plans, each with different intent. An engaging page-turner, Laguna is very highly recommended to all general readers of good political fiction for its twists of plot which deftly carry the reader through an ultimately memorable and satisfying conclusion."

- Midwest Book Review

    March 24, 2006, 5 out of 5 stars 

"WOW - I never put it down!
Wow, what a book! I'm not usually a reader of suspenseful fast paced books, but I really identified with the women in this story and NEVER put it down! A definite must for all women, don't let the suspense throw you off, this book is a wonderful read."

From  Barnes & Noble website

  "My recommendation: Buy Laguna for the beach this summer but don't dare start reading it. If you do, you won't put it down until you are finished! Octavio Paredes, a Laguna Madre fisherman mysteriously disappears. At the same time, Jack Grider quits his job with US Fish and Wildlife when an environmental report is forcibly altered by his boss. John Magne is the patron of the large ranch affected by the report and is about to drill for gas. His political maneuverings remind us that the 15th century Spanish legacy of corruption in Texas is alive and well. The book is fast paced and an enjoyable read."

- Beck Spelce
 Austin, TX 
    "Greed, corruption, conspiracies, environmental issues, murder and vengeance. [Laguna] has something for everyone. A stunning first novel by Michael Putegnat, this story has more characters and subplots than any I’ve read in a long time. John Magne and his sons, Junior and Clint, were powerful ranchers with entangled ties to Congress. Enter con man, Festor Stubb and his chronies. But who is conning who? And where does Jason and Jack Grider fit? Octavio Paredes? And the mysterious Angela? Laguna Madre, a delicate coastal bay, is the setting for this tale. Will they be allowed to destroy the ecosystem by drilling into a natural gas field? Or will they be stopped in time? And by who? The characterization and intense dialogue will leave you hanging until the final action packed chapters. I guarantee you won’t be able to put it down. Mr. Putegnat…keep writing!"

- Simegen Reviews 

    "Laguna reminded me of East of Eden with all the multi-generational, countryside, revenge and rivalries. The book really started churning for me with Jack and the sailing chapters, then they really whizzed by and the story had everything, literally! A truly rollicking read with a lot of history, ethnicity, regional and enviro stuff, and the backdrop of family, Wall Street and Washington. Good job, I can’t wait for the next one!"

 - Harry Mizrahi
New York City

"Putegnat's crisp writing style, mastery of local detail and historical accuracy paints an intriguing picture of lowland South Texas that will remind readers of two other Texas Scribes, Larry McMurtry and A. C. Greene."

- Don Willet, Historian and editor    
Invisible Texans: Women and Minorities in Texas History
Texas A&M University, Galveston, TX   
    "I hate it! I could not put it down.You know that feeling where you are at the point in the story where you must read on to find out the end and it won't let you sleep until you do? That's this book. What a great read! The perfect beach book."

- Saul Levin, M.D.
 Washington, D.C.

 "An exquisite and complicated story masterfully woven by an author of uncommon brilliance, creativity and imagination: a ballet. The author is a master of language, sometimes  surprising, often subtle, always delightful."

- Fr. Armand Mathew, O.M.I.
 Brownsville, TX

 "As current as today’s headlines, Laguna by Michael Putegnat reflects the need for oil and natural gas and the role those energy resources have always played in Texas, a State whose budget has risen and fallen with the price of oil since the 1930s. The author, a fifth-generation native of Texas with extensive executive experience, has written an intriguing story about a ranching patriarch who is forced to transform an environmentally delicate coast bay, the Laguna Madre, into a natural gas field to keep his family from financial ruin. In the process, this takes him and his small town deep into Washington politics and New York investment banking circles. This reflects much of the author’s own experience and it greatly enriches an intricate story of personal, community and national objectives. One hopes this novel will emerge from among the many others being published these days to gain the kind of attention it deserves."

 - Bookviews

     "Laguna was wonderful...all the aspects one deserves in a novel: suspense, mystery, romance and a surprise ending. I must tell you that I do not spend much time reading novels due to all the required reading I must do. However, I started the book on a flight and I couldn't put it down. I have never been so pulled into a book. The sentences seemed to have a rhythm where the words flowed and before I knew it another page was turned. I look forward to the next one."

- Virginia Wood