Scan barcode
A review by testpattern
Zero Saints by Gabino Iglesias
5.0
This was one I had trouble setting aside for anything. It's a vivid, violent, and unforgettable ride.
Fernando is a small-time drug dealer, selling pills and weed from the door of a club on 6th Street in downtown Austin. He's undocumented, but has found a place for himself in the Austin underworld.
The novel opens just as some scary dudes have gotten the jump on Nando, and his night is not going to get any better. The story that follows is tightly plotted, with rich characterization and a perfect narrative voice. We get a sense of the extent of criminal enterprise in a changing Austin through economically sketched backstory, but the focus is on a handful of characters across three violent days. It's a short work, but it feels very complete.
There is a very well-handled occult subplot that avoids feeling gimmicky or self-consciously exotic, but still manages to make the stakes feel higher and the dangers more than simply physical. More Twin Peaks than Jim Butcher.
I highly recommend this one. Gabino Iglesias is one to watch.
Fernando is a small-time drug dealer, selling pills and weed from the door of a club on 6th Street in downtown Austin. He's undocumented, but has found a place for himself in the Austin underworld.
The novel opens just as some scary dudes have gotten the jump on Nando, and his night is not going to get any better. The story that follows is tightly plotted, with rich characterization and a perfect narrative voice. We get a sense of the extent of criminal enterprise in a changing Austin through economically sketched backstory, but the focus is on a handful of characters across three violent days. It's a short work, but it feels very complete.
There is a very well-handled occult subplot that avoids feeling gimmicky or self-consciously exotic, but still manages to make the stakes feel higher and the dangers more than simply physical. More Twin Peaks than Jim Butcher.
I highly recommend this one. Gabino Iglesias is one to watch.