The north face of the heart.
The north face of the heart (2019) is the comeback of Dolores Redondo after the successful Baztán Trilogy. Yes, after the “rest” of the character of Amaia Salazar for some years, this work brings us. It was an equally fruitful period for the Spanish writer, as evidenced by her award-winning novel All this I will give you (2016). In this new literary piece, Redondo takes readers back in time, to the year 2005.
In the novel, the writer recounts the experiences of Salazar (aged XNUMX) during an exchange program between Europol officers at the FBI Academy in Quantico. There, the then deputy inspector of the Provincial Police participates in a true case led by Aloisius Dupree, head of investigations. This is "The Composer", a serial killer prone to attacking entire families during major natural disasters ... and Katrina I was about to arrive.
About the author, Dolores Redondo
Dolores Redondo Meira was born on February 1, 1969, in Pasajes, a coastal town near San Sebastián, Spain. She is the first-born of four siblings, the result of the union between a sailor and a housewife, both of Galician origin. He began to write short stories and children's stories from the age of fourteen. Later, he enrolled at the University of Deusto to study Law, but did not complete the degree.
Later, he trained in gastronomic restoration with the intention of becoming a chef; He even opened his own restaurant in San Sebastián. Since 2006, Dolores Redondo has lived in Cintruénigo —a small town in the Navarra Ribera— where she began to dedicate herself entirely to writing. In 2009 he released his first novel, The privileges of the angel. Almost four years later he consecrated himself with the Baztán trilogy.
Baztán trilogy
This series starring the inspector of the Navarra Provincial Police, Amaia Salazar, turned Dolores Redondo into an author best sellers. With more than 700.000 copies sold and translations into more than fifteen languages. It consists of The invisible guardian (January 2013), Legacy in bones (November 2013) and Offering to the storm (November 2014).
Dolores Redondo's black novel
The site Ravot Arts (May 2015), highlights “the ability of the author to make the investigations and the life of the inspector go hand in hand, but not in a parallel way but interwoven ”. Which, together with a fluid, consistent narrative style, abundant in literary resources and seamless in the plot, constitutes the unique style of crime novel developed by Dolores Redondo.
In the Baztán Trilogy, the antagonists confuse the researchers through mythological figures known in the Basque country: Basajaun, Tarttalo and Inguma. Whereas in The north face of the heart Dolores Redondo creates a serial killer undercover for a real weather "monster" (Hurricane Katrina). This phenomenon became one of the worst known catastrophes of the beginning of the new millennium.
The context of The north face of the heart, according to Dolores Redondo
In an interview given to Pilar Sanz (for the web page mundodelibros.com, November 19, 2015), Redondo explained the context of his most recent publication. In this regard, he stated:
“… The trilogy is full of clues that lead to New Orleans. Many characters had already been introduced to readers in small strokes. The intention of writing about that specific moment, after the passage of Hurricane Katrina (2005), I had it a long time ago, it was my personal debt to the city ”.
And I add:
“A hurricane is a relatively common natural phenomenon. What is unusual is what happened later, the abandonment suffered by the population was insane. The help did not arrive after 24 or 48 hours. It took four days and by then thousands of people had died of thirst, heat, illness. The main hospital collapsed. Babies died in incubators! A disaster of exaggerated human misery ”.
Plot, analysis and characters of The north face of the heart
From the prologue, the author marks the passage of constant analepsis and prolepsis, which are key in the development of the argument.
“When Amaia Salazar was twelve years old, she was lost in the forest for sixteen hours. It was early morning when they found her twenty miles north of the place where she had lost track of the trail.
“Faded in the heavy rain, the clothes blackened and scorched like that of a medieval witch rescued from a bonfire and, in contrast, the white skin, clean and icy as if it had just emerged from the ice. Amaia always maintained that she hardly remembered anything of all that. Once he had left the trail, the clip in his memory lasted only a few seconds of images repeated over and over again. "
The Forensic Methods and Criminology Course
Phrase by Dolores Redondo.
The beginning of the novel takes the reader to 2005, specifically to the city of New Orleans. In a forensic techniques course taught by Aloisius Dupree, head of the FBI's investigative body, Amaia Salazar excels as an assistant. Consequently, she ends up accompanying the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit, where the writer demonstrates all her knowledge of police investigation.
The composer
He is an unknown character dedicated to murdering entire family groups under a rather particular and rugged modus operandi. The record shows that it attacks under extreme weather conditions with the aim of setting up ghoulish crime scenes due to its accuracy. For this reason, Chief Dupree - who has become aware of Amaia's mysterious gifts - recruits Salazar as part of his investigation team.
Aunt Engrasi
Aunt Engrasi's call from Elizondo is a key element in the story, as it relives all the traumas of Amaia's childhood. They are passages that serve to confirm the —almost— supernatural qualities of the sub-inspector (much appreciated by Dupree). Likewise, important details that formed Salazar's personality are explained, including a problematic relationship with his father.
However, the main element in the disturbed psyche of the protagonist is the almost irrational fear of her mother. In these lines, the reader is surprised by the degree of abuse suffered by Amaia during her childhood and part of her adolescence. An abuse largely overcome due to the unconditional love and support of her Aunt Engrasi.
Friendship with Aloisius Dupree
As events unfold, the head of the investigation understands the unconventional nature of the case. In other words, in this apparent confrontation between good and evil, common criminalistic methodologies fall short. Accordingly, Amaia's intervention is crucial to finding the murderer.
Thanks to her "intuition", Amaia begins to perceive very correct deductive ideas and feelings in the middle of a crime scene. However, Salazar must not only deal with an extremely intelligent psychopath and extreme weather conditions. He must also face the animosity of some members of the FBI team, especially the disloyalty of a very envious federal agent.
Dolores Round.
Setting
Dolores Redondo has been highly praised in literary reviews for the setting created for her novel. According to the portal How Beautiful it is to Read! (November 2019), “It is incredible how he manages to create that closed, cold and threatening atmosphere with the use of incessant rain”. Likewise, the parallelism between the murderer and Hurricane Katrina in order to demonstrate equivalent brutality, is masterfully achieved.
Especially poignant are the segments detailing the destruction in New Orleans. As well as the suffocating heat and the atmosphere permeated with the scent of death. On the whole, The north face of the heart is a novel that lives up to the expectations created by the Baztán trilogy. It is a highly recommended book for fans of the black novel and with all the characteristic elements of Dolores Redondo's narrative.