Literary enigmas and sinister plots

Of the current varieties of the mystery genre, one of the most striking is the metaliterary: those thrillers crafted from the history and memories of great authors. This has recently become a popular field, and successful series have emerged in Spain, such as Luis García Jambrina's series about Fernando de Rojas, creator of La Celestina.

The American Francis Scott Fitzgerald is considered one of the greatest writers of the 20th century, and his novel The Great Gatsby , which was published one hundred years ago, is considered by many to be the best novel of the past century. John Grisham already used his character in The Fitzgerald Identity , where the character of Bruce Cable, a bookseller on Camino Island, is involved in the theft of several originals valued at twenty-five million dollars kept at Princeton University.

⁄ Actress Lila Crayne promotes a feminist film adaptation of 'Tender Is the Night'

Now, playwright and theater director Sash Bishoff debuts as a novelist with Tender Is the Fury (Alfaguara), where she takes Scottmania to the next level. Its protagonist, actress Lila Crayne, is promoting a feminist film adaptation of Tender Is the Night , Scott Fitzgerald's novel that tells the story of a successful psychiatrist married to a traumatized heiress who ends up consumed by la dolce vita in interwar France.

The version starring Lila and directed by her husband, Kurt Royall, emphasizes the role of the heiress, Rosemary, so that she "runs the scene" to the detriment of Dick. At the same time, the actress begins treatment with a therapist who delves into her secrets with ulterior motives while closely guarding her own. Bischoff, a former student of Joyce Carol Oates, adds various twists and beautifully wraps up the story, full of nods for lovers of American literature.

And as we head into the holidays, we must celebrate the return in top form of two mystery novel authors who had shown signs of weariness in their previous works. In both cases, they cultivate a unique blend of crime fiction and the world of the paranormal.

Irishman John Connolly has already published more than twenty novels featuring detective Charlie Parker, set in the US state of Maine, where he resides and researches for several months a year. Surrounded by a handful of interesting supporting characters—the murderous couple Louis and Angel; the fearsome Fulci brothers—Parker confronts the forces of evil in a sinister atmosphere, simultaneously with meticulous notes on the most extreme everyday life.

If in titles like The Old Blood Connolly went overboard and seemed to be exhausting his character's range, despite his always razor-sharp dialogue, the recent The Messengers of Darkness (Tusquets) brings him back to us with full vigor defending a woman accused of having murdered her daughter.

Also abundant in sinister notes, but with a stronger sense of humor, is the Aloysius Pendergast series by the duo of Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. They also have around twenty titles following their brilliant start with The Lost Idol , exemplarily capped by The Manhattan Murders .

Now, in The Cabinet of Dr. Leng (Plaza & Janés), the authors propose a vengeful time travel of Constance Greene, the protagonist's protégé who has been unable to age. Pendergast, a millionaire and insubordinate FBI agent, doesn't hesitate to follow her as she travels through the cobblestone streets, fetid dives, and sinister psychiatric hospitals of 1880s New York. And how well Preston & Child reconstruct all these environments!

The plot remains open, awaiting a new volume that we won't miss.