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Don't Send Flowers
From a writer whose work has been praised by Junot Diaz as "Latin American fiction at its pulpy phantasmagorical finest," Don't Send Flowers is a riveting novel centered on Carlos Trevino, a retired police detective in northern Mexico who has to go up against the corruption and widespread violence that caused him to leave the force, when he's hired by a wealthy businessman to find his missing daughter.
A seventeen-year-old girl has disappeared after a fight with her boyfriend that was interrupted by armed men, leaving the boyfriend on life support and the girl an apparent kidnap victim. It's a common occurrence in the region--prime narco territory--but the girl's parents are rich and powerful, and determined to find their daughter at any cost. When they call upon Carlos Trevino, he tracks the missing heiress north to the town of La Eternidad, on the Gulf of Mexico not far from the U.S. border--all while constantly attempting to evade detection by La Eternidad's chief of police, Commander Margarito Gonzalez, who is in the pockets of the cartels and has a score to settle with Trevino.
A gritty tale of murder and kidnapping, crooked cops and violent gang disputes, Don't Send Flowers is an engrossing portrait of contemporary Mexico from one of its most original voices.
A seventeen-year-old girl has disappeared after a fight with her boyfriend that was interrupted by armed men, leaving the boyfriend on life support and the girl an apparent kidnap victim. It's a common occurrence in the region--prime narco territory--but the girl's parents are rich and powerful, and determined to find their daughter at any cost. When they call upon Carlos Trevino, he tracks the missing heiress north to the town of La Eternidad, on the Gulf of Mexico not far from the U.S. border--all while constantly attempting to evade detection by La Eternidad's chief of police, Commander Margarito Gonzalez, who is in the pockets of the cartels and has a score to settle with Trevino.
A gritty tale of murder and kidnapping, crooked cops and violent gang disputes, Don't Send Flowers is an engrossing portrait of contemporary Mexico from one of its most original voices.
442 pages, Paperback
First published November 13, 2015
64 people are currently reading
1463 people want to read
About the author
Martín Solares
20 books74 followersMartín Solares is a Mexican writer whose first novel, The Black Minutes, is a crime thriller that, according to a Publishers Weekly contributor, "treads a ... tightrope between police procedural and surreal fantasy."
Awards include: Premio Nacional de Cuento Efrain Huerta (the Efrain Huerta National Prize for Short Stories), 1998, for "El Planeta Cloralex"; Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize (shortlisted) for The Black Minutes.
Awards include: Premio Nacional de Cuento Efrain Huerta (the Efrain Huerta National Prize for Short Stories), 1998, for "El Planeta Cloralex"; Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize (shortlisted) for The Black Minutes.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
September 8, 2018
Don’t Send Flowers by Martin Solares is a 2018 Grove Press publication.
There aren’t many crime dramas, one can recommend by saying ‘this is an important book’ or a ‘must read’, to anyone other than to those who typically read books within that category. However, this book might be the exception.
For those who are fed up with implausible plot lines, constantly craving realism in your fiction, you will have met your match with this novel. While it makes for a great work of fiction, unfortunately it is all too plausible, and all too realistic. It will certainly put things in perspective.
When the sheltered girl of a wealthy man is taken hostage, a former detective, Carlos Treviño, is hired to find her, while attempting to fly under the radar of Commander Margarito Gonzalez, the corrupt chief of police.
Sometimes an overused word is still the only one that will adequately describe something. In this case, I can’t think of a more apt word than 'gritty'. This is a vivid, very depressing look at Mexico, and what has become of it. Crime dramas that utilize a current situation as a basis for a story often makes one wonder if the story was, at least in part, based on fact.
This is well developed, raw, intricately detailed crime thriller, packed with stunning twists, and edge of your seat suspense. This book has been accurately labeled as 'noir', a personal favorite of mine, which does help to offset some of the grit, giving the story a bit of polish, smoothing out some of the rough edges.
The novel is taut and edgy, perfectly paced, with such well-drawn characterizations, it was like I was actually there watching these horrible and strange events unfold in real time.
I do wish this book would see more coverage, gaining enough momentum to cross over into the mainstream consciousness. This novel is not just a strong crime drama, a well written piece of noir fiction, but is also a searing portrait of the current situation in Mexico. Reading this novel, even if one is not exactly a huge fan of crime thrillers would assuredly raise awareness of Mexico’s plight.
This story is so intimate, it gives readers an up close and personal look at how drug lords rule over law enforcement and politicians in a way news reports could never convey. Yes, it is fiction, but it’s the most realistic and one of the most unforgettable crime novels I’ve read in a long time.
5 stars
There aren’t many crime dramas, one can recommend by saying ‘this is an important book’ or a ‘must read’, to anyone other than to those who typically read books within that category. However, this book might be the exception.
For those who are fed up with implausible plot lines, constantly craving realism in your fiction, you will have met your match with this novel. While it makes for a great work of fiction, unfortunately it is all too plausible, and all too realistic. It will certainly put things in perspective.
When the sheltered girl of a wealthy man is taken hostage, a former detective, Carlos Treviño, is hired to find her, while attempting to fly under the radar of Commander Margarito Gonzalez, the corrupt chief of police.
Sometimes an overused word is still the only one that will adequately describe something. In this case, I can’t think of a more apt word than 'gritty'. This is a vivid, very depressing look at Mexico, and what has become of it. Crime dramas that utilize a current situation as a basis for a story often makes one wonder if the story was, at least in part, based on fact.
This is well developed, raw, intricately detailed crime thriller, packed with stunning twists, and edge of your seat suspense. This book has been accurately labeled as 'noir', a personal favorite of mine, which does help to offset some of the grit, giving the story a bit of polish, smoothing out some of the rough edges.
The novel is taut and edgy, perfectly paced, with such well-drawn characterizations, it was like I was actually there watching these horrible and strange events unfold in real time.
I do wish this book would see more coverage, gaining enough momentum to cross over into the mainstream consciousness. This novel is not just a strong crime drama, a well written piece of noir fiction, but is also a searing portrait of the current situation in Mexico. Reading this novel, even if one is not exactly a huge fan of crime thrillers would assuredly raise awareness of Mexico’s plight.
This story is so intimate, it gives readers an up close and personal look at how drug lords rule over law enforcement and politicians in a way news reports could never convey. Yes, it is fiction, but it’s the most realistic and one of the most unforgettable crime novels I’ve read in a long time.
5 stars
August 11, 2018
5 gripping but heartbreaking stars to Don’t Send Flowers! 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟
It hurt my heart to read this book because it was a solid reminder of life in some parts of Mexico today. What you should know is that my best friend of over 25 years has dual citizenship in Mexico and the United States. I was fortunate to travel with her family there, completely immersed in the language and culture. I never felt unsafe, and I never would have expected to feel that way. On a fundamental level, it is heartbreaking to witness what is occurring in such a beautifully cultured country. The status of Mexico is not a political issue for me. It is a deeply personal one.
Martin Solares is a skilled writer. He immediately brought the main character, Carlos Trevino, to life. Trevino is a retired police detective who left the force because of all the corruption and violence he faced on a daily basis. He is going to confront it all again when he is hired to find a well-to-do family’s kidnapped daughter. Unfortunately, what happened to the daughter is common in that region of Mexico.
As Trevino tracks the the young woman, he is also attempting to avoid the chief of police who is morally corrupt and working alongside the cartels.
Solares’ narrative is gritty, haunting, and even brutal at times, while also original and vitally important. This is not an easy read, but it felt like a realistic and honest portrayal. The tension building feels so exciting until you remember that, while the main character is fictional, the status of safety in parts of Mexico is not. Kudos to Solares for this masterful depiction.
Thank you to Grove Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
My reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com
It hurt my heart to read this book because it was a solid reminder of life in some parts of Mexico today. What you should know is that my best friend of over 25 years has dual citizenship in Mexico and the United States. I was fortunate to travel with her family there, completely immersed in the language and culture. I never felt unsafe, and I never would have expected to feel that way. On a fundamental level, it is heartbreaking to witness what is occurring in such a beautifully cultured country. The status of Mexico is not a political issue for me. It is a deeply personal one.
Martin Solares is a skilled writer. He immediately brought the main character, Carlos Trevino, to life. Trevino is a retired police detective who left the force because of all the corruption and violence he faced on a daily basis. He is going to confront it all again when he is hired to find a well-to-do family’s kidnapped daughter. Unfortunately, what happened to the daughter is common in that region of Mexico.
As Trevino tracks the the young woman, he is also attempting to avoid the chief of police who is morally corrupt and working alongside the cartels.
Solares’ narrative is gritty, haunting, and even brutal at times, while also original and vitally important. This is not an easy read, but it felt like a realistic and honest portrayal. The tension building feels so exciting until you remember that, while the main character is fictional, the status of safety in parts of Mexico is not. Kudos to Solares for this masterful depiction.
Thank you to Grove Press for the ARC. All opinions are my own.
My reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com
August 30, 2018
On June 22, 2018, Newsweek ran a story that started with this sentence: “Two more political candidates have been slain in a bloody campaign in Mexico where running for office can be a death sentence.” Read the article and you learn that candidates for local offices, and in some instances individuals who have not yet registered as candidates are being gunned down in the street by drug cartels. These are public executions. Candidates are not being poisoned or strangled in their living rooms, out of sight. Between September 2017 and June 22, 121 politicians have been murdered and there have been 400 attacks against politicians, a record for Mexico. I’d like to believe that’s a record for any country, but perhaps not.
For cartels to have stability in their revenue stream, they need cops, mayors and soldiers they can count on. We call it corruption. They call it business.
This is the world Martin Solares describes in vivid detail. In the northern Gulf region, three cartels are battling it out: Los Nuevos, Los Viejos and La Cuarenta. They operate with impunity because arresting them is pointless in a region where they will be released and never tried. No sane cop would risk his life and his family on a pyrrhic gesture. Citizens stay in their homes after dark because going to a restaurant is an unnecessary risk. Nurses and doctors may vacate the emergency room if a gang member arrives, in order to avoid being caught in the cross-fire if a rival gang member arrives to take out a competitor and creates collateral damage. When a wealthy man’s daughter is kidnapped and, after several days, no ransom demand is received, he contacts retired cop and current police-target, Carlos Trevino, and hires him to find her and negotiate her return. You can imagine why dad doesn’t call his local police station.
The first third of Don’t Send Flowers is Trevino’s search for the daughter. It is one close call, assault, daring checkpoint encounter, check-in with dad and follow-up on sketchy leads after another. Relentless tension is the best way to describe it. Just when you think the story is close to ending, the focus of the novel shifts to chief of police, Margarito Gonzalez, Trevino’s former boss and sworn enemy. Solares takes the reader back to Gonzalez’ earlier days and it takes very little time to understand how he ended up making the choices he made, because his choices were inevitably death versus the offer he couldn’t refuse. Not that he is conflicted about his corruption. He isn’t. Things are the way they are. He’s unwilling to be screwed out of what’s his, as he nears the end of his career.
Solares doesn’t spare his readers any ugliness. This novel travels a familiar path for fans of Don Winslow, but it is far more accessible than Winslow’s novels, and Solares' style is entirely different. There’s a never-ending supply of blood, sweat, bodies, wounds, pain, intimidation, double-crosses, desperation and intensity, and Trevino and Margarito are fully realized characters who behave authentically and don’t waste words or time. Don’t Send Flowers is fine during the Trevino part, but it begins to soar when Margarito takes center stage. Perhaps because there are (isolated, occasional) moments when you can take a breath and not fear a fatal shot being fired. Perhaps because complex, corrupt characters are inevitably more intriguing to read about than straight arrows. Perhaps because there’s no other character quite like Margarito, that I can recall.
And the ending is spectacular.
Mystery fans be warned: Don’t Send Flowers is not likely to satisfy you, because focusing on the how, who and why of the missing daughter is an exercise in frustration. This novel is for suspense/crime readers, and those who especially enjoy a novel that tees up two smart, strong, complex characters, each of whom wants to see the other gone, but only one of whom is committed to that outcome. Bringing an interest in Mexico and/or its drug cartels to the party isn’t essential. Solares ensures that, by the time you finish, you’ll be interested in both Mexico and its drug cartels for a long, long time to come.
Thanks to Edelweiss+ and Grove Press for providing a review e-copy.
For cartels to have stability in their revenue stream, they need cops, mayors and soldiers they can count on. We call it corruption. They call it business.
This is the world Martin Solares describes in vivid detail. In the northern Gulf region, three cartels are battling it out: Los Nuevos, Los Viejos and La Cuarenta. They operate with impunity because arresting them is pointless in a region where they will be released and never tried. No sane cop would risk his life and his family on a pyrrhic gesture. Citizens stay in their homes after dark because going to a restaurant is an unnecessary risk. Nurses and doctors may vacate the emergency room if a gang member arrives, in order to avoid being caught in the cross-fire if a rival gang member arrives to take out a competitor and creates collateral damage. When a wealthy man’s daughter is kidnapped and, after several days, no ransom demand is received, he contacts retired cop and current police-target, Carlos Trevino, and hires him to find her and negotiate her return. You can imagine why dad doesn’t call his local police station.
The first third of Don’t Send Flowers is Trevino’s search for the daughter. It is one close call, assault, daring checkpoint encounter, check-in with dad and follow-up on sketchy leads after another. Relentless tension is the best way to describe it. Just when you think the story is close to ending, the focus of the novel shifts to chief of police, Margarito Gonzalez, Trevino’s former boss and sworn enemy. Solares takes the reader back to Gonzalez’ earlier days and it takes very little time to understand how he ended up making the choices he made, because his choices were inevitably death versus the offer he couldn’t refuse. Not that he is conflicted about his corruption. He isn’t. Things are the way they are. He’s unwilling to be screwed out of what’s his, as he nears the end of his career.
Solares doesn’t spare his readers any ugliness. This novel travels a familiar path for fans of Don Winslow, but it is far more accessible than Winslow’s novels, and Solares' style is entirely different. There’s a never-ending supply of blood, sweat, bodies, wounds, pain, intimidation, double-crosses, desperation and intensity, and Trevino and Margarito are fully realized characters who behave authentically and don’t waste words or time. Don’t Send Flowers is fine during the Trevino part, but it begins to soar when Margarito takes center stage. Perhaps because there are (isolated, occasional) moments when you can take a breath and not fear a fatal shot being fired. Perhaps because complex, corrupt characters are inevitably more intriguing to read about than straight arrows. Perhaps because there’s no other character quite like Margarito, that I can recall.
And the ending is spectacular.
Mystery fans be warned: Don’t Send Flowers is not likely to satisfy you, because focusing on the how, who and why of the missing daughter is an exercise in frustration. This novel is for suspense/crime readers, and those who especially enjoy a novel that tees up two smart, strong, complex characters, each of whom wants to see the other gone, but only one of whom is committed to that outcome. Bringing an interest in Mexico and/or its drug cartels to the party isn’t essential. Solares ensures that, by the time you finish, you’ll be interested in both Mexico and its drug cartels for a long, long time to come.
Thanks to Edelweiss+ and Grove Press for providing a review e-copy.
September 12, 2020
Don’t Send Flowers 💐 is a dark, gritty, hardboiled crime story that takes you back to the corrupt small towns of forties and fifties pulp fiction where everyone in town is on the take and there are few allies for any honest man who dares to set foot there. But, the difference here is that the fictional resort town of La Eternidad is a realistic depiction of what has become of much of Mexico, a once-promising third world paradise with so much beauty and so many resources. Drug trade, smuggling, and corruption have taken this slice of paradise and turned it into a deadly killing ground where various cartels and gangs each prove themselves nastier and more barbaric than the other. Areas once populated by families out for the evening are vacant wastelands where no one dares go out at night. The police force is corrupt, mainly because the alternative to being on the take is their family’s lives being forfeit. Country roads are filled with checkpoints where buses are routinely robbed, emptied.
Trevino was that one honest cop, they one good guy, but they ran him out of town, after his fellow officers nearly beat him to death. The rich may live behind their walls, but kidnapping is a lucrative sport and this father wants his daughter back. So Trevino is pulled out of hiding to go to war and investigate and find this poor damsel. And, everyone wants revenge on him. Nowhere’s safe for him.
The writing is clear, gritty, nasty, and the twists and turns this case will take will surprise you. Real good stuff!
Many thanks to the publisher for providing a copy for review.
Trevino was that one honest cop, they one good guy, but they ran him out of town, after his fellow officers nearly beat him to death. The rich may live behind their walls, but kidnapping is a lucrative sport and this father wants his daughter back. So Trevino is pulled out of hiding to go to war and investigate and find this poor damsel. And, everyone wants revenge on him. Nowhere’s safe for him.
The writing is clear, gritty, nasty, and the twists and turns this case will take will surprise you. Real good stuff!
Many thanks to the publisher for providing a copy for review.
August 19, 2019
Like this one a great deal, mostly due to the great characterization. I would recommend this book to my friends and I intend on reading more by this author.
June 25, 2016
Si las novelas policiacas son imposibles en un país en el que los policías no investigan los crímenes porque ellos son los criminales y la descomposición institucional hace inverosímil cualquier intento por construir una trama alrededor de la resolución de un caso, Martín Solares llega a demostrar que ésta imposibilidad puede estar en el centro de la novela negra mexicana.
Recuerdo que Federico Campbell decía que en México debería llamarse novela roja y que su tema central era la impunidad.
Pues eso.
Recuerdo que Federico Campbell decía que en México debería llamarse novela roja y que su tema central era la impunidad.
Pues eso.
June 20, 2018
No flowers okay, I won't send any. I will give my accolades though. Solares punches hard with this one. Sometimes I felt, no more please stop a little, but he continues relentlessly and I continued reading. No escape. But what for me is just a book, for a whole nation it is their everyday reality. Solares paints a disturbing picture of present day Mexico and it's troubles. Even more disturbing because the picture he gives corresponds to that given by the media or the little media time that finally reaches me on the other side of the ocean.
The writing gives the necessary punches with a graceful economy, no overflowing of words. Punch and retreat for protection. I appreciated the three point of views given. I must admit that I did feel disappointed at each changeover though because in each instance I was so into the moment that I felt the loss.
An ARC gently give by publisher/author via Netgalley in return gor a review.
In Mexico, running for office can be a 'death sentence'
The writing gives the necessary punches with a graceful economy, no overflowing of words. Punch and retreat for protection. I appreciated the three point of views given. I must admit that I did feel disappointed at each changeover though because in each instance I was so into the moment that I felt the loss.
An ARC gently give by publisher/author via Netgalley in return gor a review.
In Mexico, running for office can be a 'death sentence'
November 6, 2018
It took me a bit to get into, but then I liked it and stayed pretty engaged until halfway. Then the book stops cold and starts part 2 with a different main character. It completely lost the flow for me. And it was like two different books. All the good stuff from the first half was barely mentioned until the end, and there was an excessive amount of flashing back into the new MC's past, that messed with the storyline. When the original story was wrapped up, finally, I feel it was forced and weird. And left too much unresolved. Disappointed.
February 16, 2019
Set in a modern northern Mexico town that is in effect blood-soaked badlands this is a gritty and brutal thriller in two distinct halves.
Carlos Treviño is an ex-cop recruited to find the teenage daughter of a wealthy industrialist.
The second half concerns itself with Treviño's old police antagonist, the corrupt opportunist, Chief Margarito González.
It’s perhaps unsurprisingly very macho (especially the second half). A stronger criticism I have is that the plot becomes messy and chaotic but is saved by Solares’s setting; a grim and lawless Mexico run by drug lords and corrupt officials.
Carlos Treviño is an ex-cop recruited to find the teenage daughter of a wealthy industrialist.
The second half concerns itself with Treviño's old police antagonist, the corrupt opportunist, Chief Margarito González.
It’s perhaps unsurprisingly very macho (especially the second half). A stronger criticism I have is that the plot becomes messy and chaotic but is saved by Solares’s setting; a grim and lawless Mexico run by drug lords and corrupt officials.
September 20, 2018
I liked this book well enough. The character works for me and there are some wonderful descriptions. The setting in time an place is horrific and borders on crossing genre lines. Sadly, I believe the author is giving a true account of the effect America's gluttony for narcotics is having on the Mexican people. This could've been a wonderful book had the story arc been shortened. I also think some of the prose is lost in the translation. There are times when a word clunks, a glaring word choice misstep, which gives the undesirable impression that the translator has made other errors.
David Putnam Author of The Bruno Johnson series.
David Putnam Author of The Bruno Johnson series.
September 23, 2018
Crime noir, Mexican style. The two halves of the story didn’t integrate well together. It almost seemed like two separate books.
November 24, 2019
BR 2019 Read Harder
Wow. Review to come.
There are quite a few excellent five-star reviews of this book, so I won't attempt to make a full account but rather a few personal notes.
I picked this book not knowing anything other than it would meet one of the 2019 RH challenges. Fortunate for me that I love crime novels, and especially noir crime and then… to have this book paint such a blistering picture of what people are fleeing from (I work with an organization that has many immigrant clients) made this perhaps the best book of the challenge. It opened my eyes to the everyday darkness that people must live with, manage to evade or become part of… while this isn't an example of some of Solare's writing, this one little passage just spoke to me about the world that he is describing:
" …In those fleeting moments, they [Margarito and his colleagues] transmitted the gravitas of the law, as if people understood what it meant for a guy dressed in blue to be carrying an automatic pistol in his holster. All they had to do was knock on the door of any house and ask for someone by name, and everyone within earshot knew something serous was going down. It only used to take one cop, just one, to make an arrest: the perp would simply accept that the game was up and it was time to submit to a power greater than himself. Of course, as you got older… you came to understand that justice and the police force don't always go hand in hand in this country. In a perfect world they'd be joined at the hip, but here— as in many other countries—justice and the police acknowledge one another from afar with a little nod, but they ultimately live separate lives." [364-365]
Not for the weak of stomach. But very very good.
Wow. Review to come.
There are quite a few excellent five-star reviews of this book, so I won't attempt to make a full account but rather a few personal notes.
I picked this book not knowing anything other than it would meet one of the 2019 RH challenges. Fortunate for me that I love crime novels, and especially noir crime and then… to have this book paint such a blistering picture of what people are fleeing from (I work with an organization that has many immigrant clients) made this perhaps the best book of the challenge. It opened my eyes to the everyday darkness that people must live with, manage to evade or become part of… while this isn't an example of some of Solare's writing, this one little passage just spoke to me about the world that he is describing:
" …In those fleeting moments, they [Margarito and his colleagues] transmitted the gravitas of the law, as if people understood what it meant for a guy dressed in blue to be carrying an automatic pistol in his holster. All they had to do was knock on the door of any house and ask for someone by name, and everyone within earshot knew something serous was going down. It only used to take one cop, just one, to make an arrest: the perp would simply accept that the game was up and it was time to submit to a power greater than himself. Of course, as you got older… you came to understand that justice and the police force don't always go hand in hand in this country. In a perfect world they'd be joined at the hip, but here— as in many other countries—justice and the police acknowledge one another from afar with a little nod, but they ultimately live separate lives." [364-365]
Not for the weak of stomach. But very very good.
May 14, 2019
This book takes the normal trope of headstrong, thorough detective taking down the cartels and turns it on its head. For most of the book, the detective has been kidnapped and unable to fulfill his contract with a Mexican cartel boss to find his kidnapped daughter. It just gets odder and more fascinating from there. I'd recommend Don Winslow's novels on the U. S. "war on drugs" to provide context and immersion in the sordid ecosystem of Mexican border towns ravaged by cartel violence.
August 24, 2018
Martin Solares is a wonderful writer who brings to life the characters, life in Mexico, and the daily struggles of the people whose lives are impacted by the corruption and violence that they deal with daily.
The main character, Carlos Treviño, is a retired detective who lives far away from his home town because he could not bear dealing with the corruption of the police who curry up to politicians and drug dealers. However, when the daughter of a wealthy businessman is kidnapped, Treviño is called in to find the teenager because the father does not trust the police. The suspense is gripping; I read the book in one day because I had to know if the daughter was still alive and if she would be rescued in time.
I lived in Central America for many years and this book reflects the same problems that occur there and enlightens the reader as to the reasons that so many people try to seek safety in the US. Mexico and Central America have beautiful friendly people and ancient cultures and Solares depicts both sides of life in those countries today. This is the first time that I have read a book by Solares but I am going to read his other books now!
I also want to compliment Heather Cleary for her translation of the book. Translations usually frustrate me (I was raised in a bilingual home) but the book flows and incorporates the lyricism of the Spanish language smoothly.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Grove Atlantic and Grove Press, Black Cat through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
The main character, Carlos Treviño, is a retired detective who lives far away from his home town because he could not bear dealing with the corruption of the police who curry up to politicians and drug dealers. However, when the daughter of a wealthy businessman is kidnapped, Treviño is called in to find the teenager because the father does not trust the police. The suspense is gripping; I read the book in one day because I had to know if the daughter was still alive and if she would be rescued in time.
I lived in Central America for many years and this book reflects the same problems that occur there and enlightens the reader as to the reasons that so many people try to seek safety in the US. Mexico and Central America have beautiful friendly people and ancient cultures and Solares depicts both sides of life in those countries today. This is the first time that I have read a book by Solares but I am going to read his other books now!
I also want to compliment Heather Cleary for her translation of the book. Translations usually frustrate me (I was raised in a bilingual home) but the book flows and incorporates the lyricism of the Spanish language smoothly.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Grove Atlantic and Grove Press, Black Cat through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
September 11, 2018
Um . . . still a little bit numb from this one . . .
I can't comment on the quality of the writing, it's translated from Spanish and it would take me several weeks and one dog-eared dictionary to read it in the original language. I can comment on the qualities of the translation. It's a dry, detailed, rush police procedural in some chapters, and a vivid character study in others. Again, I have no idea if that's a function of the translation, Mr. Solares' intended effect, or just a trope of Mexican crime fiction.
The story, though? iDios mio!
Mr. Solares portrays northern Mexico, along the Gulf Coast, in concentric rings of corruption: city governments, state governments, federal governments, the army, oligarchs, crime lords, maybe even the Devil himself. Now, that tracks with, say, the MAGA crowd's stereotypical view of Mexico, but Mr. Solares is clear about the great corrupting influence: America, with its endless supply of cheap guns and its endless demand for cheap drugs. So much for the politics. The plot doesn't so much expand as evolve from a simple kidnapping case to a bloody, Byzantine conspiracy thriller, messy by design, not unlike Raymond Chandler at his most confusing. But like Chandler, Mr. Solares has a gift for compellingly crooked characters, so I'm interested in his future books.
I can't comment on the quality of the writing, it's translated from Spanish and it would take me several weeks and one dog-eared dictionary to read it in the original language. I can comment on the qualities of the translation. It's a dry, detailed, rush police procedural in some chapters, and a vivid character study in others. Again, I have no idea if that's a function of the translation, Mr. Solares' intended effect, or just a trope of Mexican crime fiction.
The story, though? iDios mio!
Mr. Solares portrays northern Mexico, along the Gulf Coast, in concentric rings of corruption: city governments, state governments, federal governments, the army, oligarchs, crime lords, maybe even the Devil himself. Now, that tracks with, say, the MAGA crowd's stereotypical view of Mexico, but Mr. Solares is clear about the great corrupting influence: America, with its endless supply of cheap guns and its endless demand for cheap drugs. So much for the politics. The plot doesn't so much expand as evolve from a simple kidnapping case to a bloody, Byzantine conspiracy thriller, messy by design, not unlike Raymond Chandler at his most confusing. But like Chandler, Mr. Solares has a gift for compellingly crooked characters, so I'm interested in his future books.
February 12, 2019
This is gritty, raw Mexican noir with a violent, bloody plot and hideous, corrupt, immoral characters. And it is very well done.
The teenage daughter of a rich businessman is kidnapped and ex-detective Carlos Trevino is hired to find her. He scours the backstreets of the fictional coastal resort of La Eternidad, a town caught in the middle of a bloody territorial war between two drug cartels.
Alongside Trevino's search is the story of Police Chief Margarito, a man whose decades of corrupt, murderous rule are about to come to an end, by either retirement or the payback of those he has wronged - whichever comes first.
As in James Ellroy's best work, Solares has created a world filled to the brim with awful people in a town where everyone is on the take and bodies are dropped at an alarming rate. He doesn't quite have the panache of Ellroy, nor the cinematic quality of Don Winslow, but his storytelling is hardboiled and moves at a thrilling pace. A cracking slice of seedy Mexican noir.
The teenage daughter of a rich businessman is kidnapped and ex-detective Carlos Trevino is hired to find her. He scours the backstreets of the fictional coastal resort of La Eternidad, a town caught in the middle of a bloody territorial war between two drug cartels.
Alongside Trevino's search is the story of Police Chief Margarito, a man whose decades of corrupt, murderous rule are about to come to an end, by either retirement or the payback of those he has wronged - whichever comes first.
As in James Ellroy's best work, Solares has created a world filled to the brim with awful people in a town where everyone is on the take and bodies are dropped at an alarming rate. He doesn't quite have the panache of Ellroy, nor the cinematic quality of Don Winslow, but his storytelling is hardboiled and moves at a thrilling pace. A cracking slice of seedy Mexican noir.
August 25, 2018
GNab Don't Send Flowers is an exceptional novel that takes place in Eternidad, Mexico on the Gulf of Mexico not far from the U.S. border. Once a sleepy little town, Eternidad has over the last twenty years become the epicenter of drug runners and shady politicians where nothing is sure but death and kickbacks. Margarito has been the chief of police for those twenty years, slowly losing sight of the loyalties and morals he brought with him to the job. Carlos Trevino worked for him, once upon a time. This time they will probably be on opposing sides in the rescue of kidnapped 15 year old Christine De Leon. Once trust is gone it's impossible to have faith in it again. But there is always karma.... Though sometimes it strikes in the middle and catches both ends.
Netgalley
pub date Aug 24, 2018
Grove Press, Black Cat
Netgalley
pub date Aug 24, 2018
Grove Press, Black Cat
November 26, 2016
No había leído a Martín Solares. Gran error. Me encantó esta novela. Me sacudió también porque reconocí a una ciudad en la que viví tantos años, y en la que me tocó vivir exactamente lo que Solares describe en su novela. Es compleja, interesante, llena de tensión: no podía dejar de leer.
August 5, 2022
Wróciłam do niej po długiej przerwie i kurwa gdyby ona się skończyła w połowie a nie była na siłę wydłużana była by to spoko książka, a tak od połowy czułam się jakbym czytała coś innego, coś na co totalnie nie miałam ochoty, chciałam wrócić do poprzedniego bohatera a nie czytać a kimś kto mnie średnio obchodzi.
December 15, 2018
Woof, disappointing. I love noir. This should have been in my wheelhouse. But way too many examples of deeply unconvincing exposition dumps from the mouths of characters.
Great topic, promising setup, but did not work for me. (Read about 20%.)
Great topic, promising setup, but did not work for me. (Read about 20%.)
November 27, 2024
2.5
The writing was good, the story was interesting. I just could not connect to the characters and found that I didn't really care what happened.
The writing was good, the story was interesting. I just could not connect to the characters and found that I didn't really care what happened.
January 17, 2019
I found this book needlessly repetitive and overwritten, with scene after scene of horrible events past and present and depressingly suicidal views of life in northern Mexico. At some point, you start empathizing with the life choices of the brutalized citizenry, who leave in droves or lock themselves in their houses, and lose patience with the protagonist and the "victims" he's "helping". The pace is frantic, but the plot moves very slowly. And you just know there's so much more awful stuff to come! I didn't finish, got half way through and abandoned it. Also, I found the translation often quaint in its use of American slang to translate the Spanish slang. The translator would have been better off to just leave the Spanish and provide a nice glossary. Finally, I found some of the characters performing roles that seemed unlikely, like the American consul character, who seemed to have outsize influence for his lowly job. I kept hoping for a revelation that he was CIA or something, but it just goes on and on with him providing all the important connections that the detective needs, without any explanation of why or how he has so much influence.
April 11, 2019
This was an incredible audiobook. It took me a few goes to get past the first hour because the Spanish names were all so unfamiliar, but once I got going it drew me right in. The editing was tight, the translation superb, the pacing just right and a superb plot. Highly recommended.
September 14, 2022
I enjoyed part one of this book but part two didn’t flow and dragged on and on. I almost didn’t finish it and wish I hadn’t bothered since the ending wasn’t great either.
January 4, 2019
Set on the Gulf of Mexico in a fictionalized version of Tampico, this crime novel sets out to display the total absence of a normal civil society in a city terrorized by drug cartels struggling for control. There is no way to not be involved -- every business must pay someone, every building gets built with dirty money, every police officer is in someone's pocket, no one can be trusted, and kidnapping is everyday business.
However, when the beautiful teenage daughter of one of the city's wealthiest men is kidnapped, he seeks advice from the American Consul General, who suggests hiring a police detective who left the force four years ago following a run-in with the corrupt Chief of Police. There are so many allusions to past events that I was sure that this book had to be the second in a series, but it doesn't appear to be.
And so, ex-cop Carlos Trevino does his best to investigate the case, with one of the rich man's bodyguards as a driver. It's a harrowing journey, as he flits around the city, dodging cartel men and his old boss's men, who are on the lookout for him. Then, when things seem to be headed for a resolution about halfway through the book, it drops him and switches protagonists. The second half of the book switches to the perspective of the corrupt Chief of Police, Margarito, who is also scrambling to survive as the cartels intensify their conflict and the political winds shift. It's a disorienting shift, from hero to villain, but an effective one.
By the end of it all, there's been a lot of killing, beating, and general violence, both to individuals, but more importantly, to civil society. It's a bleak portrait of Mexico under cartel terror, and not a book to read on vacation.
However, when the beautiful teenage daughter of one of the city's wealthiest men is kidnapped, he seeks advice from the American Consul General, who suggests hiring a police detective who left the force four years ago following a run-in with the corrupt Chief of Police. There are so many allusions to past events that I was sure that this book had to be the second in a series, but it doesn't appear to be.
And so, ex-cop Carlos Trevino does his best to investigate the case, with one of the rich man's bodyguards as a driver. It's a harrowing journey, as he flits around the city, dodging cartel men and his old boss's men, who are on the lookout for him. Then, when things seem to be headed for a resolution about halfway through the book, it drops him and switches protagonists. The second half of the book switches to the perspective of the corrupt Chief of Police, Margarito, who is also scrambling to survive as the cartels intensify their conflict and the political winds shift. It's a disorienting shift, from hero to villain, but an effective one.
By the end of it all, there's been a lot of killing, beating, and general violence, both to individuals, but more importantly, to civil society. It's a bleak portrait of Mexico under cartel terror, and not a book to read on vacation.
January 28, 2025
The city of La Eternidad, Mexico, is being torn apart by competing gangs who want control. At varies times the police chief has helped one side or the other as he is just as corrupt as the criminals. This level of corruption lead Carlos Trevino quitting and moving away as he wanted to live.
Years later he is hired to find the missing daughter of a local business man. He very reluctantly accepts the job but it means he must face his past.
Then, halfway through the book, Carlos disappears and we follow the police chief. We do learn more about Carlos but the second half of the book is mostly about the police chief. It's almost like there are two stories here. This shift of focus changes the story completely. However, by this time I didn't really care what happened any of them.
I didn't like these characters. It's an eye opening story about the dark side of life in Mexico but the story was too disjointed for me to enjoy. The ending of all the story lines was wrapped up very quickly and not very satisfying. It was a challenge to read this not because of the subject, but because of the writing style.
Years later he is hired to find the missing daughter of a local business man. He very reluctantly accepts the job but it means he must face his past.
Then, halfway through the book, Carlos disappears and we follow the police chief. We do learn more about Carlos but the second half of the book is mostly about the police chief. It's almost like there are two stories here. This shift of focus changes the story completely. However, by this time I didn't really care what happened any of them.
I didn't like these characters. It's an eye opening story about the dark side of life in Mexico but the story was too disjointed for me to enjoy. The ending of all the story lines was wrapped up very quickly and not very satisfying. It was a challenge to read this not because of the subject, but because of the writing style.
October 8, 2020
This is a book that makes American crime noir and the grittiest police novels look like child's play. La Eternidad is a city that makes the darkest corners of any big city seem safe. Between the police, the military, the local government, local businessmen, and the cartels, the only people honest about what they do are the cartels. Everyone else is owned or works for someone else. Nothing is what it appears to be. The kidnapping of the daughter of a local business leader brings retired detective Carlos Trevino into the picture. Trevino is pressured into helping find the girl. He left the corruption of the police force and tried to live in peace and is now dragged back into the world he rejected.
Martín Solares paints a picture of violence, brutality, and corruption that is plaguing Mexican cities. Solares' fictional La Etrenidad is near where he was born on the Gulf Coast. A dark book about what is now commonplace. Timely, violent and realistic.
Available August 24, 2018
Martín Solares paints a picture of violence, brutality, and corruption that is plaguing Mexican cities. Solares' fictional La Etrenidad is near where he was born on the Gulf Coast. A dark book about what is now commonplace. Timely, violent and realistic.
Available August 24, 2018
November 18, 2018
Gritty well written page turner
Don’t send Flowers pulls the reader in from the first few pages with its gritty, raw characters who are so masculine, hard edged and often nefarious but so human that even the most malevolent of characters have to admired for their sheer resilience in a Mexico that has become a war zone where even the most just man has to go to extreme lengths to survive. The book is dark and violent but so moving and gives such insight into the problems and struggles of a Mexico that has been at times decimated by poverty, drugs and violence leaving its people gripped with fear. For those who love Cormick McCarthy or Tanya French, you will enjoy This book. This Book is action-packed, and the reader never knows where the plot will turn. Don’t Send Flowers is a most literary thriller.
Don’t send Flowers pulls the reader in from the first few pages with its gritty, raw characters who are so masculine, hard edged and often nefarious but so human that even the most malevolent of characters have to admired for their sheer resilience in a Mexico that has become a war zone where even the most just man has to go to extreme lengths to survive. The book is dark and violent but so moving and gives such insight into the problems and struggles of a Mexico that has been at times decimated by poverty, drugs and violence leaving its people gripped with fear. For those who love Cormick McCarthy or Tanya French, you will enjoy This book. This Book is action-packed, and the reader never knows where the plot will turn. Don’t Send Flowers is a most literary thriller.
July 7, 2020
The first half of the book seemed to drag on and for me it was hard to follow. I thought the Trevino character was pretty cliched - retired cop, feels he got screwed over, wants nothing to do with an investigation, but here I am right in the middle of it. Hope was fading quickly for me, and I had all but lost interest - then part 2 came along and the chief was a much more interesting character, his story had a greater degree of depth and grit, and the pace picked up immensely. The author's use of simile and metaphor was really distracting and clunky at times but I think this may have been due to the translation from Spanish to English?
August 16, 2018
A tough but impressive read. Carlos Trevino is hired to find Christine, who has been kidnapped in the Mexico of cartels, violence, and corruption. This is not, however, a mystery or a procedural, but more a suspense and meditation on what has happened to a beautiful country. Told from three perspectives, it includes that of Margarito, the Chief of Police who is as corrupt and craven as they come. This is dark, gritty, and quite violent- but realistic. Thanks to the publisher for the ARC. This is not long but it lingers and will make you look at the news differently.
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