Sweet Home
Sweet Home It is a mystery novel and suspense written by the Spanish actor and author Pablo Rivero. The work was published in 2023 by the Suma de Letras publishing house. After titles like the brood, any text created by Rivero generates genuine interest from critics and readers, who have given this, his fifth book, mostly positive opinions.
Despite its more than five hundred pages, Many readers claim to have read this intriguing crime novel in three days or less. This is not surprising, since Pablo Rivero has an easy-to-follow narrative style, although his plots can become slow at certain moments, only to assault the audience with unexpected twists and unpredictable endings.
Synopsis of Sweet Home
A husband, a house and a child: the life of her dreams
Julia is a former stewardess who has been married to Rubén, the love of her life, for a decade. Throughout their marriage, The two lovers have longed for nothing more than only one thing to complete your happiness: a son. However, the consolidation of this desire has eluded them long enough for love and sanity to wane. Still, perhaps there is some hope left in a different place.
Julia and Rubén bought a piece of land on the outskirts of Madrid and, once her new house was finished, the protagonist moves to occupy it. Rubén, for his part, must fulfill work commitments, so he lets his wife go to the property alone while he finishes her pending tasks. Nevertheless, The luxurious residential area seems to hide macabre secrets under the Persian carpets.
How many mysteries can a girl who is not a mother endure?
Julia's new house is surrounded by a dark natural landscape. Lonely nights and cold rooms make you feel uneasy, and the restlessness does not disappear when she realizes that she is locked up with some neighbors whose behavior begins to be increasingly strange. The diverse selection of well-defined characters is made up of strangers.
The first one that can be mentioned is an old man who seems to be watching over the protagonist. The second, for his part, is a huge man who tends to pretend to be someone he is not. The third, a handsome young man who produces feelings of fear and desire in the protagonist, simultaneously. Despite them, Julia has Laura, an adorable old woman who accompanies her and helps her overcome the days of loneliness.
About a social class with power, the pressure for motherhood and hypocrisy
The gray and desolate moments that Julia must go through in her enormous house on the outskirts of the city do not end with the arrival of Rubén. There is something beyond the walls that worries her. Is it the people? The weather? That need to have a child and not being able to do it? The author places great emphasis on the latter. The social criticism is so evident that it hits with its reality.
Of course, even in 2023 there is pressure on women from society, which expects a lady to have everything that was supposed to be made for her before she reaches a certain age. But men are not exempt from this pressure, since men are forced to achieve success at work to fulfill their own role. All of these topics are addressed in Sweet Home.
The uncertainty that lasts over time becomes a true hell
They say that it is better to fall into the void than to be left hanging on the cliff, and that is exactly what the quote in the sentence of this paragraph means. En Sweet Home, the protagonist explores a constant feeling of claustrophobia. Despite the grandeur around him—his mansion, his neighborhood, his promises of a hopeful future—his world is mired in dependency, fear, tribulation, and anguish.
This is, perhaps, the best achieved in Sweet Home: the setting, the accurate description of how macabre a house can become in complete darkness. The feeling of loneliness without being alone is another of the fundamental tropes of the novel, since Julia's regret frames all her actions and reactions to the voices that accompany her delusions. In this sense, you have to wonder how sane this woman is.
Narrative style of the work
Much of the readers' admiration for Pablo Rivero's books is due to his easy narrative style, short chapters and fast pace. While it is true that the author takes his time at the beginning and in the middle of the work, it is also true that this slowness promotes a necessary ascent in the plot, since the slowdown helps to tie a knot that will only be untied at the end.
The past is hidden until its last consequences to reveal a devastating present and an uncertain future. In Sweet Home There is no room for serenity. On the contrary, Each chapter brings the reader closer to a climactic and hopeless moment, although, by the way, this is quite positive for the plot of a thriller, Well, fans expect precisely that: speed, darkness and drama.
About the Author
Pablo José Rivero Rodrigo was born on October 1, 1980, in Madrid, Spain. Before dedicating himself to literature, he stood out as an actor, playing characters like Toni Alcántara in the series Tell me how it happened, of Spanish Television. Rivero has characterized this role since the show's premiere in 2001. The author has also collaborated on films such as parrot's chocolate (2004) and Brother's night (2005)
Rivero Rodrigo has served as a model for the controversial photographer Bruce LaBruce, who made him a portrait of a seductive angel, which was included in an exhibition about LaBruce in Madrid in February 2012. In 2017, he wrote his first novel, since then, he has written five in total. His works explore themes such as patricide, psychosis and fear.
Other books by Pablo Rivero
- I will never be afraid again (2017);
- Penitencia (2020);
- The girls who dreamed of being seen (2021);
- the brood (2022)