Eva García Sáenz de Urturi's The Lords of Time is the final volume in the Trilogy of the White City that began with Silence of the White City. I dove into The Lords of Time eagerly, then had my doubts because it's a two-timeline narrative, with one narrative in the present, the other at the turn of the 13th Century. I generally find this kind of structure unsatisfying because it always seems as if one narrative is much stronger than the other, and the weaker narrative interrupts the experience of reading the stronger narrative. But I know Eva García Sáenz de Urturi's plotting is impeccable, so I stuck with the novel and am very glad I did so.

Readers who are familiar with the other volumes in this trilogy will welcome back many familiar characters, but this truly is a book that can be read as a stand-alone. Eva García Sáenz de Urturi writes complex, quirky characters, many of them strong women, and is able to introduce them to readers in ways that avoid awkward lapses into backstory. The three central characters here are "Kraken," a criminal profiler; his wife, a detective inspector; and his work partner, a detective, who also happens to be a woman. One of the joys of this series is that it offers relationships between men and women that are respectful, not burdened with gender stereotyping or predictable sexual tension.

In this novel, Kraken (who is beginning to question this moniker) is swept into an investigation of a series of murders that parallel the plot of a recent best-seller with an unknown author, a pice of historical fiction also titled The Lords of Time. Eva García Sáenz de Urturi moves readers between the present day murders and the text of the novel that clearly lies at the heart of these murders. The novel-within-a-novel reads a bit stiffly at first, but quickly becomes as engaging as the present-day mystery, making the switches between timelines welcome. The two narratives are similar, but have crucial differences that keep the structure from becoming repetitive.

If you like complex, detailed mysteries—whether historical or present-day—this is a title to look out for and to read as soon as it's released this July (2021). You have several hours of deeply satisfying reading ahead of you.

I received a free electronic review copy of this title from the publisher; the opinions are my own. ( )

Libro para mayores de 16 años