A review by edgwareviabank
Urgent Matters by Paula Rodríguez
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
Urgent Matters isn't quite a crime or mystery novel, or even a detective story: all the crimes that go to influence the plot are presented as context and backstory, and the book kicks off when a different type of tragedy (a train crash) has just struck
The story is all about the way characters live the aftermath of the crash. A wanted criminal takes the opportunity to disappear. His partner takes refuge at the house of her compulsively religious sister (who sells sex toys and works at a casino), and their teenage daughter has something to hide. An overbearing matriarch, an accomplice, and several cops at various levels of incompetence and corruption complete the cast. Competing journalists with motives and ambitions of their own try to capture everything that takes place.
The unraveling of everyone's plans, secrets, fears, and contradictions creates a somber and reflective mood, and a complex web of relationships that is very interesting to dig into. Upon reaching the end, the characters felt very familiar, and I was left with a lot of curiosity to learn how their lives would go on.
The story is all about the way characters live the aftermath of the crash. A wanted criminal takes the opportunity to disappear. His partner takes refuge at the house of her compulsively religious sister (who sells sex toys and works at a casino), and their teenage daughter has something to hide. An overbearing matriarch, an accomplice, and several cops at various levels of incompetence and corruption complete the cast. Competing journalists with motives and ambitions of their own try to capture everything that takes place.
The unraveling of everyone's plans, secrets, fears, and contradictions creates a somber and reflective mood, and a complex web of relationships that is very interesting to dig into. Upon reaching the end, the characters felt very familiar, and I was left with a lot of curiosity to learn how their lives would go on.