Pistaco: A Tale of Love in the Andes

Disclaimer Any kind of political or religious comments will be deleted at once. If you want to create trouble, go to political forums. Or bloody Facebook.

“Hundreds of beacons from burning dummies flickered in front of houses and hovels, like watchtowers flaring in the night. High up the mountainsides they were but faint twinkles, shrinking embers of the past, burning to ash to make room for the future, an annual rite of renewal, an assertion of hope that things had to be better this year, especially if the past one could be incinerated. Lingering troubles and misfortunes were dispatched in fires that lit up walls and doorways.”

We are in Peru, this beautiful country in western South America and the year is 1985. The people live in extremely turbulent times. They face the daily tug-of-war between the government which uses the army to terrify the villagers into submission and the rebels submission of the Shining Path who use violence to impose their own beliefs. None of these two oppressors -who are so much more alike than they think - understand that the people want to be left in peace. The two sides of the same coin are thirsty for more power, more blood and the results of this battle are experienced by innocent bystanders in a horrendous way. In the midst of this nightmare, we meet Cori, a young Peruvian teacher and Steven, a young American priest, who want to use love as a weapon against oppression and injustice. The love towards the communities they've chosen to serve and the love between each other. But we all know who's the winner in such battles...

Undoubtedly, the most striking feature of the story is the foreboding presence of the Pistaco legend. This is a nightly demon that feeds off people's fat instead of blood. The villagers use this folk tale to justify the health deterioration of the population, the army to terrify and threaten into submission, the rebels to accuse the “white man” of prospering by exploiting the people of the country. In the story, it is very clear that the last two are the worst kind of monsters....

There are much to praise in this book. I have done a little research and I learnt that it is based on true events that took place in Ayacucho and as far as I can tell, the writer stayed close to the actual facts. Of course, interpretation is subjective and it's not up to me to pass judgment on this issue. The beauty of the Andes, the exciting customs of the country, the history, the various aspects of religion, the human relationships are communicated in a beautiful way, through vivid writing and bold imagery. Throughout the course of the action, many questions were raised in my mind, though I'm not sure of the answers seemingly provided by the author.

“They are afraid of the souls of their murdered relatives. They heard the cries of the dead last night.”

The greatest strength of the novel is the haunting atmosphere. There is a tense feeling of mystery, a foreboding cloud of menace and danger, and if we know a few things about Peru and the particular region of South America, we will experience this almost claustrophobic feeling from the first pages of the book. The chapters are short, the action is fast-paced and the two main characters are beautiful human beings, interesting and extremely sympathetic. However, I found them too “perfect”, too “proper”, almost unrealistic. I thought the end was a little anticlimactic, the closure a bit too convenient and rushed, hence the four stars.

Be warned. This beautiful novel will seriously tear your heart apart. Isn't it fascinating, my fellow readers, that after so many books we have read, so many characters we have “met”, we still pause and try to brace ourselves when we suspect that something awful is about to happen?

“We didn't come here to talk. We came here to kill.”

Because “humans” have always wanted to murder what they don't accept as true, what they don't believe how in, what they fail to understand, what prevents them from harvesting more wealth and power for themselves....It has always been thus and it goes on....

“You can never tell who listens in the dark. Only know this: Evil wanders this land at night.”

...if only evil only walked at night, though.....

Many thanks to In Extenso Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.