Set in Montevideo, The Hand that Feeds You by Mercedes Rosende, translated from Uruguayan Spanish by Tim Gutteridge, is a reminder of the precious literary resources lying outside the English-speaking realm. Especially in terms of crime stories and writing, there is an immense bibliography of authors that unfortunately are brought to the attention of the wider public only through translations.
Rosende is however well known in Germany, with her Crocodile Tears being praised and awarded. The Hand That Feeds You is a sequel to this book, but it can be read and understood without necessarily being familiar with the first one. However, after the reading experience of The Hand...one may immediately want to read it and even learn some Spanish to read in original the books not translated yet by this author.
From the very first line, my interest was awaken and I could not separate from the book until the end. A story of a bank heist going wrong, shared through pieces of story puzzled shared by different protagonists, mostly women, it is chaotic with a completely irregular timeline and too fast to catch up sometimes, nevertheless the best thriller race I run in my mind in a while.
The Hand That Feeds You captivates the reader both through the story and the style. Now, I only wish I can discover more and more interesting Latin American crime writers, including from Uruguay. My Spanish skills can´t wait to expand.
Rating: 5 stars
Disclaimer: Book offered as part of the book tour but the opinions are, as usual, my own
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