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Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Mario Conde, Padura's tormented Cuban police detective, is at his anguished best in this sequentially second volume of the so-called Havana Quartet, which constitutes a four-season chronicle of one year (1989) in Conde's life, though it's the last of the four to be available in English translation. The hard-drinking, romantic Conde, who's wanted to become a writer but ended up as a policeman in a corrupt and struggling land, constantly questions his fate as he investigates the murder of young, good-looking school teacher, Lissette Núñez Delgado, who taught at Pre-University High School, the same school Conde attended in his youth. Conde's return to his old school triggers nostalgia and regrets as he interviews the headmaster, students and fellow teachers. The original title, Vientos de Cuaresma (The Winds of Lent), captures the extensive wind imagery that Padura skillfully uses to capture Conde's state of mind. (June 30)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
Praise for the Havana Quartet:"Overlaid with a rich smoky patina, an atmosphere that reeks of slums and riches, cigar smoke and exotic perfumes. Havana Black is a strong tasting book, a rich feast of wit and feeling." Independent"Drenched with that beguiling otherness so appealing to fans of mysteries of other cultures, Havana Blue will also appeal to those who appreciate the sultry lyricism of James Lee Burke. " Booklist"...a magnificent Dickensian evocation of the city's street hassle; it takes in drugdealers, hookers, people queuing for pizza, newly-weds, the hotels and baseball fans, and captures the enthralling gloom of dimly lit, apocalyptic early-evening Havana.' Times Literary Supplement"A great plot, perfectly executed with huge atmosphere. In Havana Black you can almost smell the cigar smoke, rum and cheap women." Daily Mirror"Conde's quest follows the basic rhythm of the whodunit, but Padura syncopates Havana Red with brilliant riffs on Cuban sex, society, religion, even food." Independent
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
5.0 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Havana police procedural, Jun 1 2008
By Harriet Klausner - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Havana Gold: The Havana Quartet (Paperback)
In 1989 Cuban police detective Mario Conde hates being a cop as he would have preferred to be a writer. However, no matter how he tries to romanticize his existence, he must eat and so cop he is. Drinking helps him when state sponsored corruption interferes with his investigation.
His current case makes him want to quit in order to turn into a 24/7 alcoholic. Someone murdered pretty Pre-University High School schoolteacher, Lissette Nunez Delgado. This particular inquiry hits home as Conde went to school here when he dreamed of becoming a Cuban Hemingway. As he interviews the headmaster, staff and pupils, Conde wonders what happened to his dreams and those of his countrymen.
The fourth Havana police procedural is a great tale (likes its colorful predecessors) that follows one year in the life of a dedicated cynical Cuban cop. The story line is fast-paced as Conde investigates the murder of a young popular teacher, but runs into bureaucracy from the school and his superiors. However, the key to this saga remains the disenchanted hero who struggles to do his job properly, which to him means solving the case, but to others connotes satisfying the state and the Party.
Harriet Klausner
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Best of the Series, Dec 26 2009
By A. Gaynor - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Havana Gold: The Havana Quartet (Paperback)
I've read the entire series and I would have to say Havana Gold is the best of the group. The case that Lt. Conde is handed takes him back to his old high school to investigate the murder of a young, popular teacher who may not be exactly what she seemed in the classroom, while in his personal life he becomes entangled (literally) with a woman who's as mysterious as she is passionate. To complete the story, stir in some bad blood with another detective and the copious amount of rum that The Count uses as a self-prescribed anesthetic in order to cope with his job and life.
While Havana Gold is the fourth book released in the series, in Padura's chronology it's the second story. Each book is set in each season of the year 1989; Blue, winter; Gold, spring; Red, summer; Black, autumn. While each book stands on it's own and it's not necessary to read them in any particular order, Padura does make backward references, so you might want to take that into consideration.
Lastly, Padura is not an "easy read"; his prose can sometimes get ponderous, especially during Conde's introspective periods, which are frequent. But it also flows, such as in Havana Red where the author describes each one of a number of individuals at a party in way that makes you feel you're actually there scanning the room, all in one sentence that encompasses an entire page. Also beware of sudden changes of tense and person that'll leave you wondering, "Where did this come from?". Don't worry, it'll become obvious as you read on.
Hope this helps.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Magnificent Mystery, Jun 23 2008
By Mr. Chips "book junkie" - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Havana Gold: The Havana Quartet (Paperback)
I recommend the entire Havana Quartet. This is the Mystery genre combined with that 'mysterious' thing we call Literature. In the not-too-distant future, when Havana is destroyed by MacDonalds, Starbucks, and Target, these books will no doubt recall a different era in Havana that one may look back to with nostalgia (not so different, perhaps, that one feels for New York City before it became something between Las Vegas and Disneyworld for the rich, famous, and wretched!). After reading the Quartet, I also recommend the other Mario Conde mystery entitled, "Adios, Hemingway." Another Mario Conde mystery set six, seven years later.
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