The victim is Luis Reigosa, a 34 year old musician. Reigosa played the saxophone, listened to jazz music, read crime fiction and trusted a lover who tied him to his bed and cruelly tortured him to death. There is significant detail of the damage to the body concentrating on the genitals. His water-blue eyes are wide open.
Caldas equally loves jazz. His prefers classic jazz performers.
Aiding the inspector is the massive Rafael Estévez, involuntarily transferred from Zaragosa. He has a quick temper and the Galician talent for ambiguity constantly frustrates him. Interviewing the cleaner who discovered the body, a “youthful sixty-four” year old woman, sets him boiling with answers of “more or less” and “[I]t was pretty much as it says there, yes” and “[I]t might have been roughly the way you describe it”.
Both experienced police officers and myself were stunned by the bizarre, extremely painful, means of murder.
I appreciated that they are officers who take time for a meal of fresh sardines and potatoes and local cheeses washed down with a jug of local white wine. Too many fictional sleuths are too driven to stop for a nice meal.
Caldas is dismayed that the popularity of Patrol on the Air means he is known as the radio policeman. Estévez is amused by the discontent of his superior.
As Reigosa was gay the investigation takes the inspector into the gay community. Caldas has but a little knowledge of gay life in Vigo.
The investigation is guided by evidence and the clever mind of Caldas willing to trust instincts honed by years of experience.
The plot moves smoothly. The characters are interesting. The detail on the murder was very graphic and clearly intended to shock. While I did not find the detail exploitive I hope the next book is frank about murder but less gruesome in the particulars.
In a refreshing change from the current fashion for 300 page to 400 page to even longer novels, Villar wrote a fine mystery in 167 pages. I shall read the second.
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Jose Ignacio at his fine blog, The Game's Afoot, has a review of the book and biographical information on Villar
Thanks for the mention, Bill. Glad you enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteJose Ignacio: Thanks for the comment. I appreciate your well written and researched posts and opinions.
DeleteOh, I hope you'll read and enjoy the second one, Bill. Death on a Galician Shore is a fine, fine novel, and also not a long one. I'm so glad you enjoyed the Leo Caldas character. I did, too, and I truly enjoyed the setting for these novels; it's done so well. I'm only sad that there haven't been more of them.
ReplyDeleteMargot: Thanks for the comment. I am going to have to look for Death on a Galician Shore. A series of two is too short.
DeleteI read the second novel but not the first, but I would really like to read more - and hope that the author writes more (and they get translated into English).
ReplyDeleteMarina: Thanks for the comment. Well put. I wish there were more. I think translations have become better during my reading lifetime and I no longer shy away from translated books.
ReplyDelete