Andean Express

Home > Other > Andean Express > Page 15
Andean Express Page 15

by Juan de Recacoechea


  “Yes, but I’m puzzled. Doña Clara, she’s a classy woman . . .”

  “That is it . . . for being classy woman, send Alderete to hell. Ricardo, promise you not say nothing. On your word—if not, Doña Clara in trouble, even though no proof. Alderete already underground. End of story.”

  “Gulietta . . . did she know?”

  “I do not think so. She sexy girl, but not diabolical. You the same.”

  “Thanks for telling me. I’ll sleep better now.”

  “Even though you think a lot about Carletti girl.”

  “It’ll pass with time.”

  “There are a lot of girls, you very young. Not run out of chances.”

  “You didn’t tell anyone else?”

  “I am discreet guy.”

  Petko called the bartender, who was preparing to close down. A peaceful time of night, with the sea breeze alleviating the heat.

  “It on me,” said Petko.

  “Will you stay a few more days?”

  “Go back Tuesday on train. I finish everything I have to do.”

  And so began Ricardo’s vacation: mornings at the beach, siestas in the afternoon, social outings with Canepa, evenings in the company of his parents and the Tréllez’s. There were the visits to the port, the daily double-features at the movie theater, and the sleepless nights thinking about Gulietta. With every passing day, though, the memories receded, little by little, until only faint images remained . . .

  I wish to thank my father, John Althoff, who introduced me to Bolivia and whose love and support made it possible for me to pursue this adventure.

  —A.A. (translator)

  Also available from Akashic Books

  AMERICAN VISA

  a novel by Juan de Recacoechea

  260 pages, trade paperback original, $14.95

  “Dark and quirky, a revealing excursion to a place over which ‘the gringos’ to the north always loom.”

  —New York Times Book Review

  “Beautifully written, atmospheric, and stylish in the manner of Chandler . . . a smart, exotic crime fiction offering.”

  —George Pelecanos, author of The Turnaround

  THE UNCOMFORTABLE DEAD

  a novel by Subcomandante Marcos & Paco I. Taibo II

  268 pages, trade paperback original, $15.95

  “Great writers by definition are outriders, raiders of a sort, sweeping down from wilderness territories to disturb the peace, overrun the status quo and throw into question everything we know to be true . . . On its face, the novel is a murder mystery, and at the book’s heart, always, is a deep love of Mexico and its people.”

  —Los Angeles Times Book Review

  ADIOS MUCHACHOS

  a novel by Daniel Chavarría

  246 pages, trade paperback original, $13.95

  *Winner of a 2001 Edgar Award

  “A zesty Cuban paella of a novel that’s impossible to put down . . . a great read.”

  —Library Journal

  “A steamy, sexy, kinky, pulpy mix of comedy, mystery, and murder.”

  —Booklist

  “Daniel Chavarría has long been recognized as one of Latin America’s finest writers.”

  —Edgar Award–winning author William Heffernan

  THE AGE OF DREAMING

  a novel by Nina Revoyr

  320 pages, trade paperback original, $15.95

  “The Age of Dreaming elegantly entwines an ersatz version of film star Sessue Hayakawa’s life with the unsolved murder of 1920s film director William Desmond Taylor. The result hums with the excitement of Hollywood’s pioneer era . . . Reminiscent of Paul Auster’s The Book of Illusions . . . [with] a surprising, genuinely moving conclusion.”

  —San Francisco Chronicle

  SOUTH BY SOUTH BRONX

  a novel by Abraham Rodriguez

  292 pages, trade paperback original, $15.95

  “A street poet like Bob Dylan, Rodriguez has woven a lyrically inventive and sophisticated noir . . . Full of unforgettable one liners, South by South Bronx manages to film a neighborhood filled with beauty, danger, and magic. One fearless, hell of a literary mystery novel.”

  —Ernesto Quiñonez, author of Bodega Dreams

  HAVANA NOIR

  edited by Achy Obejas

  360 pages, trade paperback original, $15.95

  Brand new stories by: Leonardo Padura, Pablo Medina, Carolina García-Aguilera, Ena Lucía Portela, Arnaldo Correa, Achy Obejas, Miguel Mejides, and others.

  “A remarkable collection . . . Throughout these 18 stories, current and former residents of Havana deliver gritty tales of depravation, depravity, heroic perseverance, revolution, and longing in a city mythical and widely misunderstood.”

  —Miami Herald

  These books are available at local bookstores.

  They can also be purchased online through www.akashicbooks.com.

  To order by mail send a check or money order to:

  AKASHIC BOOKS

  PO Box 1456, New York, NY 10009

  www.akashicbooks.com, [email protected]

  (Prices include shipping. Outside the U.S., add $8 to each book ordered.)

 

 

 


‹ Prev