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A review by shawntowner
Abril rojo by Santiago Roncagliolo
5.0
I had some initial reservations about reading Red April because I don't know much about Peruvian revolutionary history or the Senderista. Fortunately, the novel is much more of a murder mystery than it is a work of historical fiction. The plot deals with a serious of gruesome murders that occur during Holy Week in Peru. A young prosecutor investigating the crimes feels that it might be the work of terrorists. It's the terrorist angle that really makes Red April such a great novel.
This could be just because I read the novel on the same day as the New York Times ran an article about the use of the word 'terrorism,' but I really enjoyed the way Red April mixed a murder mystery plot with a questioning of the nature and meaning of terrorism. The prosecutor in the story has to deal not only with the murders but is also faced with the difficult task of separating friend from foe and terrorists from freedom fighters.
This could be just because I read the novel on the same day as the New York Times ran an article about the use of the word 'terrorism,' but I really enjoyed the way Red April mixed a murder mystery plot with a questioning of the nature and meaning of terrorism. The prosecutor in the story has to deal not only with the murders but is also faced with the difficult task of separating friend from foe and terrorists from freedom fighters.