A Pretty Face

By Rafael Reig

" Rafael] Reig delights in keeping his readers on their toes. For such a brief book -- it can be read in one afternoon -- it covers a lot of ground, and all of the elements come together at the end. Reig is playing around in A Pretty Face -- and inviting his readers to play along."-- NPR.org "A wonderfully absurd little existential novel."-- The Independent on Sunday "Rafael Reig's manic inventiveness appears to know no bounds. . . . Enjoy the humour and intellectual breadth."-- The Times (London) Children's author Lola Eguibar is dead. With the help of her teenage character Benito, she sets out to investigate her own murder. Set in a surreal Spain that is part of the United States, where everyone speaks Anglo and the world has exhausted its supply of oil, this is a remarkable blend of crime, science fiction, and satire. Rafael Reig was born in 1963. He lives in Madrid, where he combines university teaching with his writing activities.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1852429224
• ISBN13: 9781852429225
• Release Date: December 2008
• Publisher: Serpent's Tail
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 0.44 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 4.9" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

A superbly written blend of fantasy, mystery, and unconventional conventions

Deftly translated from the original Spanish by Paul Hammond, "A Pretty Face" is an original metaphysical mystery by Rafael Reig set in a kind of alternate universe where in the city of Madrid in 1999 the oil mines have been drained dry, the Spanish Communist party has succumbed to an American army coup making Spain a part of the USA and Anglo the official language. The rich reside in the safety of gated communities, the poor survive where ever and how ever they can. Drug addicts live in fear of genetic engineers who are testing a neuroprotein called K666 which they think might even put an end to death. The story is narrated by Maria Dolores Equibar's tormented ghost after she is murdered. The daughter of the doctor who discovered K666, and with the help of an imaginary sidekick Benito (a randy, one-eyed teenage hero from her series of successful kids novels), Maria's ghost slowly unravels the tangle of events which led to her own violent demise. "A Pretty Face" is a superbly written blend of fantasy, mystery, and unconventional conventions making it a fast paced, unexpectedly conflated, terrifically entertaining read. Also very highly recommended is Rafael Reig's previous sci- fi/detective/western/literary romance/comically detailed novel "Blood On The Saddle".