The investigation into a young woman’s disappearance in 1989 falters as Yugoslavia unravels in war.
Beautiful Silva doesn’t come home. Young cop Gorki Sain discovers that she isn’t what she seemed–she dabbled in drugs and dealt in heroin. But Gorki soon finds himself out of a job as Yugoslavia plunges into a fratricidal war. Yet her brother stubbornly continues the search, amid the upheavals of Croatian society, from the fall of communism, through the 1991-1995 war, to the explosion of tourism with its toxic land speculation and corruption. Much happens as if we were witnessing vengeful providence at work in an ancient tragedy, in this case, set off by a sordid crime.
Jurica Pavičić (born 1965) is a Croatian writer, scriptwriter, and journalist, living in Split. He has written seven novels, two collections of short stories and essays. His work has been translated into five languages, but Red Water is his first novel to be translated into English.
Matt Robinson, born in the UK in 1978, lives in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Formerly a foreign correspondent with Reuters, he now works as a freelance editor and literary translator. Red Water is the second novel he has translated.
My thoughts: When seventeen year old Silva doesn’t come home from a local festival, her parents think she’s with her boyfriend, but he was away the night before. Where can she be? As her family search for her, worry grows. The police detective, Gorki Sain, assigned to her case is stumped too. There seem to be no witnesses to anything. But Silva had secrets.
As Yugoslavia falls into civil war and splits apart, only Silva’s father and brother Mate continue searching for her. Travelling further and further afield following possible sightings. A witness did eventually come forward, claiming to have spoken to Silva at the bus station.
As the years go by and people’s lives change, her family remain haunted by her absence. Even the former detective wonders what happened to her. Will they ever know?
Clever and interesting, blending the family’s lives with the history of Croatia in the late 80s to present day, as Silva’s absence leaves its mark on many lives. This gripped me and didn’t let go. The ending was unexpected and the twists to the tale enjoyable and satisfying. Brilliant.
*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in this blog tour, but all opinions remain my own.
ramblingmads 