A story of evil, greed, and hidden pasts. This one is more of a crime thriller than a horror. Famous for the character Hannibal Lecter, Harris is usually putting his readers through gore and hopeless risky battles with a killer.
Caridad “Cari” Mora is a refugee. She has escaped Colombia, and her history of involvement in FARC [Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia] as a teenager has her trying to evade the authorities and ICE’s radar. Cari now lives in Miami Beach under temporary protected status. Working odd jobs, her favourite being wildlife rehabilitation at Pelican Harbor Seabird Station. Cari is housesitting a house once owned by the notorious Pablo Escobar. Two crime gangs are looking for the $25 million hidden somewhere in that house.
A plot line anchored in contemporary pop culture from a legendary writer should be a recipe for success. However, the story doesn’t feel fully fleshed out. (no pun intended) so much more was going on that Harris seems to have edited out. The story is more like an episode of Cari Mora than the film. This is a massive shame as Cari is a strong female character who I absolutely love; she is a skilled and triumphant survivor. The villain is great ‘bad guy’ material. He has that mindset of a ‘born criminal’ and sadistic psychopath whose dark obsession becomes his cause of death, almost poetic. But I was left wanting more information.
For folks not so familiar with Harris, this is a great book to wet your pallet with and give you the feel for the type of story Harris is most famous for. But for ‘Silence of the Lambs’ and ‘Red Dragon’ fans, this just isn’t enough…
…(Well, maybe the salt-water crocodile moment is)
Oak Tree and Stars by BlueFalcon1983 