The Queen of the South -- by Arturo Perez-Reverte

 

Arturo Perez-Reverte might have worked too hard on this one, but it was a best-seller and made into a five-season series on television. I saw part of it before something else got in the way.

The descriptions were top-of-the-line, and he didn't hold back with characters, scenes, and dialogue. Perez-Reverte, also author of The Fencing Master, is a master of his craft. He earned his fame by throwing himself into writing anything he could after working as a war correspondent for 21 years.

Perez-Reverte is also a frequent topic of discussion in Spanish bars. Many of his fans kept up with his southern coast temporary homes. The Queen of the South proves he wasn't just fishing from his yacht. This exhibits good nautical knowledge of those southern bays, ports, law enforcement, smugglers, and Mediterranean boating. Most of the book was set along that southern Spanish coast, and he demonstrated that he knows those waterways.

Part of the action was also set in Mexico, and if he didn't visit there he certainly had good sources.

The story neatly builds toward a dramatic shootout in Culiacan, Mexico before heroine Teresa Mendoza disappears into legend and speculation.

The author wisely credits various contributors on p. 437-438 of my edition. There is also a sample chapter at the end from Captain Alatriste. That was also made into a television series, and it might remind some historic fiction fans of Cornwell's Sharpe series.

I give The Queen of the South a 4 and 9/10 rating. It was very good reading, but there was one chapter near the middle that ran at a visibly slower speed than the rest of the content. It was a translated book, which could have figured in somewhere. The editing appeared to be strong, too.