Review: THE FEAST OF SAN SEBASTIAN by Jonathan Marcantoni

Our top cop was in his position for only a month when the students at La UPI went on strike. He had his cops shut off the electricity, the AC, and the water going into the campus, as well as blocked any food from coming in. After the strike was over, the students held another protest on the steps of the Capitol, so he ordered the police to tear gas them. He’s in the pockets of North American developers who order him to raid poor neighborhoods in order to relocate the residents and turn their communities into beach resorts. This man is the most corrupt person on the island, which is no easy task. What I am asking of you two, in exchange for your freedom, is to assassinate Aurelio Oviedo Narvaez.

My thoughts: Raw and blunt—those are the first words that come to mind when reading this book. Diving deep into the underground politics of Puerto Rico, this book carries a dialogue dripping with savage flavor along with an informal writing style full of character.

Inspired by a published study, this book read like a newspaper article—stoic and indifferent relaying just the pertinent highlights of events. It pretty much preaches at you with political outrage.  Quite frankly, I’m not too partial on a book that screams out at me like a drill army sergeant. I like to be absorbed by the story, get to know the characters (whether I like them or not), and follow along in the life span of the book.

In all honesty, I was somewhat confused when I read the back summary. I really couldn’t tell what it was about. Was it a mystery, a thriller, or what?  Did it involve a cop, a bomb, a raid? And who was Narvaez? Why was he so special?

Like any new dish, I like to give anything a small taste to see how it is; but, in the end, this book was not my chocolate pudding. It's definitely suited more for the palate of the political and societal elite.