The Secret in Their Eyes

Last week I got so excited about a fantasy series that I stayed up way too late to finish 3 books in a little over a week. By the time I finally remembered about the tendency of time to keep going no matter how engrossed we are in a story it was Sunday and I was nowhere near ready to write the review for The Secret In Their Eyes, especially since I had mixed feelings about the book. The mixed feelings persisted until the very end and in a way I feel like I've read two different books about the same characters. One is set in the present day and tells about a retired court employee struggling with writing a book and with his love for a woman he believes is out of his reach. The other is the actual book Chaparro is writing and it is set in show more the 60s and tells about Chaparro's investigation into the rape and murder of a young woman and how it ties people together for decades and affects the course of their lives. The past and present alternated and I really enjoyed the "past" parts. The voice was direct and strong, although not invulnerable, the events unfolded at a good pace and I really liked the characters, sympathized with them and hoped they would succeed. The present was more difficult. Half the time it read like a stream-of-consciousness rant about how much Chaparro is in love with Irene and how he can't live without thinking about her all the time. These parts were much less enjoyable, to me they were in the way of the real story and it was tiring reading about Benjamin's lovesickness over and over, how he couldn't sleep for days after every meeting with Irene, remembering the way she smiled and looked at him and smelled. It was more like reading about a teenager living through his first crush than about a 60-year-old man and whenever these chapters started I wished the author would go back to telling us about the investigation.
If someone asked me to quickly name one thing that sets the writing of this book apart from the others I've read this year I'd say it's the vocabulary. There were more SAT words in this one novel than I recall seeing in all the rest of them combined and the best part is that it felt natural, like that's just the way the author talks and it was thrilling to read a book where words you don't see every day, let alone use, don't feel forced. The sentence structure and the way the sentences fit together was unusual, I'm just not sure whether that's because the novel is translated or that's the way it was meant to be. It took some getting used to but eventually it became charming in a way and I almost stopped noticing it.
Reading The Secrets In Their Eyes made me think about justice. There are so many crime TV shows these days and at the end of almost every episode the guilty get what they deserve but here things aren't so simple and I keep thinking about how more often than not the scum of the earth keep going, adding one wrongdoing after another to the scorecard they feel no remorse about while the honest and the righteous suffer at their hands, make sacrifices to ensure that the guilty get punished and even then there are no guarantees that it'll actually happen. I guess that's the reason we have the superheroes and the TV shows - we want justice to prevail and for the good guys to come out on top. And here they do. Eventually.

My rating: 4 out of 5 stars

P. S. In 2010 a movie by the same name won an Oscar as the best foreign film and in case you've seen it and are wondering whether it would spoil the story for you I can say that both yes and no. The general direction of the plot is the same but the film-makers took quite a few liberties with the story so regardless of whether you watch the movie after reading the book or the other way around there are still plenty of surprises. show less

I wasn't even born when the dirty war took place in Argentina. I was born during the Guatemalan Civil war and could relate to a whole lot of what was described in the book simply because of the atmosphere that even as a child, was quite palpable. The atmosphere of fear and that you might see people disappear.

I saw the movie first and it haunted me deeply and the book did the same, in a different manner. Of course there were a few things that were changed, but the story was still the same sad and haunting one that had captivated me years before.

It doesn't need to be a fast book and I loved how it unravelled slowly to show how an unsolvable mystery gets resolved. But also how there is no happy ending and how damaged everyone was by the show more crime that occurred.

It was a good book that left me thinking about it for days after. show less

Esse ano a famosa versão cinematográfica do Campanella para O Segredo dos Seus Olhos está completando 15 anos e apesar de ter o blu-ray do filme, até hoje não o vi, por isso aproveitei para ler o livro antes de vê-lo.
Enfim, soube que os finais são diferentes e não sei como fazer para melhorar o final do livro, o último, derradeiro parágrafo é uma perfeição narrativa porque não é definitivo, não é em aberto, mas também não é fechado, é um momento de suspensão e coroa um livro muito bom de cabo a rabo.

In 2010 The Secret in their Eyes (El secreto de sus ojos) starring Ricardo Darin, directed by Juan José Campanella, won the American Academy Award for the Best Foreign Language Film, which brought it to my attention. The film was an excellent, cohesive, yet haunting, story. So compelling, in fact, that I bought the film for my personal collection. Then I learned it came from a book ... and a book available in English. Which I also bought.

I was delighted that the film follows the book quite well. The romance, the sorrow, the mystery, even the horror. Not Stephen King horror but the kind of horror we see in real life murders and unexpected and unfathomable justice system outcomes. I was not disappointed. Once I've read a book and doubt show more I'll want to read it again, I donate it to my public library. I am keeping this one. I know I want to read it again just as I re-read Jane Eyre, Moby Dick, Lord of the Rings, Ender's Game, Harry Potter and The Wheel of Time and now The Secret will join that esteemed ranking.

If you have not seen the Argentine film, find a copy and watch it. Oh! You've seen Julia Roberts in the Hollywood version? It's OK, but a pasty, pale rendition by comparison. I will say changing the main character from male to female actually worked so that's not the problem. Its more that you see the original on your large home theater (come on, you can imagine it!) system. Then you see the Roberts version on a the small screen of cell phone being watched by someone sitting near you at the park while you also watch your children play. Afterward, you aren't particularly interested in seeking out the Roberts version because you've already seen the masterwork. show less

Deadly obsession makes a pretty good murder mystery but there are other events moving this story. Like, there are several layers and more than one story -- how cool is that. Meanwhile, my mind is maybe wandering as I read, so I start to wonder, for example, what is a shade shy of obsession? Is it less dangerous or just slightly less persistent when a different character embodies an unrequited preoccupation?

I became aware of this novel after watching the Oscar winning (Best Foreign Film) "El secreto de sus ojos." You know sometimes, after a movie is over, you just want a little more. Luckily, the film is based on this book so there is more to enjoy. Sadly, this English translation -- which is a bit clunky at times, especially in the show more first hundred plus pages -- is less resonant and sometimes awkward. But the book-translation gets better over time (or I got used to the style.) With minor reservations the book is a good read which allows the film to be complimentary rather than simply repetitive.

One example of difference in the film adaptation is the lovable but supporting character, Sandoval; Sandoval's character is much more developed in the book. His death in the movie is horrific and generates anger. In the novel his character is more humorous while his death produces a melancholy of longing and sympathy. Similarly the book explores wider dimensional aspects of romance, love and obsession.

Obsession, crush, romance, murder, injustice, revenge, justice, psychological [punishment? | penitence?], love. What's not to like? show less

From the book cover:

A retired detective revisits the most wrenching murder investigation of his career, and discovers not only the tenacious grip of revenge but also the enduring power of love.

What is Benjamín Chaparro going to do with his retirement? How will life have any meaning for him now? He finds that he will do what almost every retired cop does... obsess about the case that wasn't solved...the perpetrator that was never brought to justice. In Chaparro's case it was the brutal, rape and murder of a young woman that took place i 1968 in her bedroom only minutes after her husband had left for work. His attempts to write a book about the case, causes him to revisits every gory, frustrating details of the investigation. Reaching show more into the past, gives him cause to also remember all the beginnings. What was accomplished and on what had been long missing in the case as well as his secret love for Irene, then just an intern, now a high ranking and greatly respected judge. Past and present come together as this decades old mystery explores the dim lines between justice and revenge and makes a good man and a dedicated detective explore just how far he would be willing to go to right a wrong.

Eduardo Sacheri has created some great characters and has produced a story that is so close to real life that I had to check to see if this was based on a true story. Can't wait to see the movie. 4.5 stars. show less

I think it's probably true that our ratings of books tells more about us than the books we review. I think that's certainly true of my evaluation of "The Secret in Their Eyes". I not only enjoyed the book but also, for lack of a better word, I felt very comfortable with the book. It's not high literature (it seems it was made into a movie) but it was a very enjoyable read. It isn't a simple book nor are the characters simply stereotypes. Both the plot and the characters develop in an interesting and engaging manner. Again, this may say more about me than the book but if you enjoy a good detective/crime novel, this is a good choice.