Book Review of Red Water by Jurica Pavicic (trans Matt Robinson)

 

Name of Book: Red Water 

Author: Jurica Pavicic (trans Matt Robinson) 

ISBN: 9781916725157

Publisher: Bitter Lemon Press

Type of book: Croatia, Dalmatian Coast, 1989-2017, mystery, disappearance, secret, small life, the war, breaking communism, siblings, determination, affects of disappearance 

Year it was published: 2017 (2025)

Summary:

A woman disappears after a beach party, and the search for her reveals Croatia's complex history well beyond the fall of Communism.

Silva is beautiful and cheeky, she has many admirers; but the police investigation reveals a more complex young woman than her family knew—a  high school student who dabbles in drugs and deals in heroin. But Silva’s brother loves her and stubbornly continues the search for her amid the upheavals of Croatian society. The following years will see the fall of communism and five long years of war. It will be almost 30 years till Silva’s fate is revealed. 

"This finely engineered, haunting novel has been deservedly garlanded with awards.” ---Financial Times

“A brilliant cocktail of mystery and recent history, compellingly told."--Kirkus

“Listed among the best crime fiction of 2025 so far: Outstanding novel."--- Times/Sunday Times

Winner in Croatia of the Ksaver Šandor Gjalski Prize and the Fric Prize. In France, the Grand prix de la literature policière, the Prix Mystère de la critique, and the Prix Le Point.

 

Characters:

There are a ton of characters, but most important one is Mate, Silvas twin brother. Silva, from glimpses we get of her through memories and testimonies is loyal, secretive, a rebel and dreams big. Mate is also very loyal and determined, but he also tends to sacrifice his happiness and dreams for his parents. Other characters weren't written as well as Mate. 

Theme:

Things are not what they seem

Plot:

The story is in third person narrative from a ton of characters points of view, although the chapters are helpfully titled as to who is talking. The primary storyteller is Mate, Silvas twin brother who becomes determined to find out what happened to his sister. The tale also begins in 1989, on Dalmatian Coast in Croatia when 17 year old Silva left the house for a party and mysteriously vanished, the mystery lasting until about 2017. Some sections and years were a lot longer than others and some years were skipped, although there is assumption that there was nothing new to report. And yes the readers also get updates about Silvas family and the witnesses tied to her mysterious disappearance. 

Author Information:
(From bitter lemon press)

Jurica Pavičić (born 1965) is a Croatian novelist, screenwriter, short story writer and journalist. Author of ten novels and two short story collections, he gained literary reputation with his unorthodox thrillers and crime novels which mix social analysis with deep insights into morally complex situations and human destinies. His novels won several Croatian literary awards. His crime novel Red Water (published in Croatian in 2017) won ‘Le Point’ award and ‘Grand prix de la littérature policière’’ for the best European crime novel in 2021. His fiction books are translated in English, French, German, Italian, Macedonian, Slovakian, Slovenian, Ukrainian, Polish and Latvian, and published in Serbia.

Opinion:

This was a lot like Journey Under the Midnight Sun by Keigo Higashino in terms of atmosphere and the plot that lasted for years instead of the mystery lasting a short time. What is also unique is that the focus on characters who were or are tied to the disappearance and it isn't until the end that it's finally revealed. So the mystery is an affect it had on one family as well as witnesses tied to it. And yes, I would definitely recommend the mystery. 

This was given for review 

4 out of 5
(0: Stay away unless a masochist 1: Good for insomnia 2: Horrible but readable; 3: Readable and quickly forgettable, 4: Good, enjoyable 5: Buy it, keep it and never let it go.)