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raven88's review
5.0
Federales, a slim and precise novella with a control of narrative that Irvin so regularly exhibits in his short story output. Focusing on Marcos, a veteran of Mexico’s notoriously corrupt and violent federal police, or federales, Irvin paints a picture of a man adrift in the moral abyss of those who hold themselves up as the defenders of this torn and violent society. Marcos is defined by his moral integrity in an organisation functioning immorally with bribes and pay-offs and the leaking of information, but comes to a crisis point where he can stomach the illegality rife in his department no longer, and cannot sink to the depths of his colleagues’ actions. He takes a job as a personal bodyguard to Eva Santos, the former mayor of a small town on the Mexican coast, who has proved herself to be a vociferous and outspoken challenger to the powerful drug cartels, based on the real life political figure of Maria Santos Gorrostieta, who was assassinated in Mexico, through her condemnation of the cartels. What follows is a poignant, but ultimately tragic portrayal of Marcos’ endeavours to protect Eva and her daughter Clara, from the the insidious reach of the most corrupt sphere of Mexican society.
The writing is defined by its sparsity, and leaves more said by what is evidently unsaid, in the chosen narrative style, and is made all the more powerful and vital for it. It is a moral tale without being preachy, and a fitting tribute to those who seek to buck the status quo that the corruption and influence of the cartels wreaks on Mexican life. A short but satisfying and emotive read.
The writing is defined by its sparsity, and leaves more said by what is evidently unsaid, in the chosen narrative style, and is made all the more powerful and vital for it. It is a moral tale without being preachy, and a fitting tribute to those who seek to buck the status quo that the corruption and influence of the cartels wreaks on Mexican life. A short but satisfying and emotive read.
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