Puerto Escondido / The Hidden Port
A long-seller since the day of its publication in 2015 and a great literary revelation: a remarkable first noir novel that sold over 200.000 copies in 18 reprints. A gripping thriller which weaves the real events from the times of the Spanish Civil War and its aftermath in the extraordinarily actual investigation. Three years after its publication the novel continues on the lists of best-sellers in Spain and in Latin America.
An old tragic episode, the result of ambition and passion, of betrayal and madness will unexpectedly break out in the present times with unpredictable consequences. Oliver, a young Londoner, finding himself in a difficult family situation and grieving over a sad loss, inherits Villa Marina, a large colonial house, situated on the beach in a small coastal village of Suances in Cantabria. During the major renovation, the workers find in the basement a walled-up dead body of a new born baby together with a rather dated object. Following this discovery, there begin to occur several murders in the area (in Suances, Santillana del Mar, Santander and Comillas) which, together with the surprising results of the forensic examinations of the bodies jeopardize the efforts of the Investigations Division of the Civil Guard and of Oliver’s, who then begins a personal journey and a race against time to find the murderer.
The development of the plot, the remarkable skill of the author, the characters which reveal both the excitement and the disillusionment in life and the story line proper of a thriller…
The dialogues between the members of the Civil Guard, not devoid of a certain measure of humour, the tension between some of the characters and genuine suspense of the complex plot are some of the key elements of this brilliant narrative of The Hidden Port.
A complex narrative in which María Oruña provides the reader with a clue in every chapter heading.
The archaeologist of crime.
Mais la plus belle réussite de María Oruña, sans conteste, c’est qu’elle brouille en permanence les cartes autour d’un passé qui se recompose, jusqu’à la dernière page. Avec un art consommé de la chausse-trappe et une maîtrise qui rappelleront à certains Jaume Cabré et sonConfiteor.
