A review by willkay
The Queen of the South by Arturo Pérez-Reverte

5.0

I'm on holiday - hurrah! This means it is time to turn my attention to the (very important) task of learning Spanish. I made two "New Year's Resolutions". One was to learn some Spanish before the year was out, the other was to keep a running list of the books I have read on this here blog. So, time to work on one of my resolutions.

Instead of learning Spanish I have been reading! The Queen of the South by Arturo Perez-Reverte is the latest book that I have finished. The best way to describe it is "a page turner". On the opening page the heroine, Teresa Mendoza, receives a call on a phone, a phone that she has been told that: "If it rings start running. And don't stop running. Ever." The book covers the next twelve years of her life as she flees Mexico, ends up in Africa, spends time in jail, moves to Spain and then finally returns home.

It is really difficult to explain how much I liked this book. It's strange, I am sat here at the computer, reading as I type and I realise that I am being slightly "flat" in my description - which isn't fair to the book because it is a fast-paced, thrilling ride. Teresa starts the book as a girlfriend of a drug runner and ends up building a huge drug-running empire. The book is written in a very clever way, the author acts as an investigative journalist, writing the "biography" of "The Queen of the South" (as Mendoza becomes know). However, the book is written in such a way that at the end I googled Teresa Mendoza because I really, really thought she was a real person. The book includes many situations, many people that have happened or existed. And by the end of the book I had become so involved with the main character that I wanted her to be real. I wanted her to find the peace that she deserved. And yes, I realise that wanting a major drug runner to escape and live in peace is not the way I normally feel but the author makes you become invested in the characters. Hell, by the end of the book I had fallen in love with most of the drug runners and dealers and actually hated the authorities and their "witch hunts".

The other wonderful thing about this book was it gave me an insight into how Mexicans think and behave. Obviously I live with one (a Mexican that is) and have a small handle on her behaviour patterns but it was fascinating to discover that instead of Maria being a totally unique individual, she is also a product of her country. There was a lot of familiarity, for me, in the book. Place names, Spanish/Mexican expressions, a general understanding of "that's the way they think" and a total recognition of "that's the way they dress and wear their hair".

I loved this book. Because of the world I now occupy, drugs (running and dealing) are part of my life background - not because I am involved but because I come across it most every day, it exists in my life - and the history of drug cartels is something that I have become interested in. The fact that my nickname at Maria's office is that of a famous drug dealer might have something to do with my fascination. The fact that three times a week I cross the border knowing that as I do, there is a good chance that right next to me is someone smuggling drugs interests me.

This review probably doesn't do the book justice. I really enjoyed it, would recommend it.