Red Flags (Alvarez-Moreno Files, 1) by Michael Procopio

[Ulysses]

Red Flags (Alvarez-Moreno files 1)
By Michael Procopio
Magic Lemon Tree Books, 2024
Four stars

This is the book that sets up the rest of the Alvarez-Moreno series. We’re in a world I see more and more these days: everyone knows magical creatures exist. It’s not clear if this is a good thing or not. We meet Mateo Alvarez-Moreno as an agent for DOSA (Department of Supernatural Activity), planted on the filming set of a popular TV reality show called Red Flags. What ensues is a lot of fun. The odd aspect of Michael Procopio’s book is the tone, which can shift from gossipy banter to bloody mayhem and back again. The author has an agenda, and it’s to get inside the heads of the characters. Mateo’s own emotional backstory is important, and indeed plays a central part in the book’s unfolding.

Ultimately, the story feels like a mashup of “The Real World” (the first reality show on TV, 1992) and Agatha Christie’s “And Then There Were None.” It’s an odd mix of moods, and I do wish the Red Flags Mansion, where all the action takes place, had been given a more significant role in the story.

But Mateo is a pretty compelling young man, troubled and big-hearted and as brave as a hero ought to be. He introduces us to the dramatically altered world in which all his players live, coping with the consequences of the paranormal revelation in everyday life. I suspect that the cast from this book will reappear in different roles in the coming books in the series.