Book Review #20: "Hard Red Spring"

Hey Everyone,

  I am going to review the book "Hard Red Spring" by Kelly Kerney. This book is fresh for the picking as it is released today March 29, 2016. For those of you who would like to purchase a copy of this book CLICK HERE. This book took place in the backdrop of the tensions between the Mayan natives, people of Spanish descent in Guatemala, and the influence of American citizens and American politics.  This book consists of four stories spanning over a 100 years. It is ultimately about a missing girl. Her story is told throughout three other stories that build off each other in connecting 4 different families of different generations into one storyline. 

     Overall I would rate this book three and a half stars out of five. This was an intriguing, book filled with a rich history of Guatemala. I particularly loved the depth that this book went into. I loved how this book while fiction read like a nonfiction. It was a fictional story told in the backdrop of real events. This book truly got to the core, the heart and flesh of Guatemala's violent history. It brought forth some very real questions that are extremely relevant to today's world. Such as how does a genocide occur? How does one heal from the traumatic events such as genocide? How does one move forward?  How do people handle conflict?

     I did have some difficulty reading this book. At the beginning of the book it was hard to tell where the story was going and because of this it made the book seem a little disjointed. However this book ended with a bang. It was the best part of the book. The ending was what made this book worth reading. The ending came full circle, it tied up all the loose ends of the story together. It was like each of the four stories/parts of this book built its way to tip top of a climax and then just stopped when everything was getting good. It left me cold I needed that closure, however I did get that closure I needed at the end. So in a way it was delayed gratification. I also did feel that the characters in this book could have been stronger. Or that this book would have been better if more of the characters were likable people. 

     With this said, everyone has different likes and dislikes. Just because I disliked the style of this book, does not mean you will too. As I said the ending was what made this book worth the read. The overall storyline was excellent. Especially the depth it went into bringing to life Guatemala's rich history. 

     I would like to thank Netgalley, Kelly Kerney (the author) and Penguin Group Viking (the publisher) for giving me an opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Until the next page,

Jill