The Hidden Assassins

by: Robert Wilson

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Pursuit

Pursuit is the American title for Perseguido, the original South American title of the book. The author, Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza, is a psychiatrist in Rio de Janeiro, and his fictional works, primarily featuring the policeman Espinosa, have been translated into six languages, of which this English version is one. Writing from his in-depth acquaintance with mental aberration, Mr. Garcia-Roza presents a skillful and unusual portrait of the murderer. We are deeply grateful to Benjamin Moser for his expert translation of this book.

Doctor Nesse, a psychiatrist in Rio de Janeiro, takes on a young man patient who calls himself Jonas Cruz, even though his birth name is Isidoro. Perhaps one of the reasons author Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza has yet to make a bigger splash in this country is the fact that nowhere in the book is the reader told either the why of Isidoro's preference for the name Jonas, or what the original mental difficulty was (the reason for seeing Dr. Nesse in the first place). At any rate, Jonas becomes involved with Leticia, Dr. Nesse' oldest (seventeen) of his two daughters. When Leticia disappears, Dr. Nesse is certain that Jonas/Isidoro has kidnapped her.

Leticia re-appears after spending a night with Jonas, claiming that he is far from being the mentally unstable individual her father perceives. Dr. Nesse, naturally protective of his kin, stages an attack on himself by Jonas and sedates him – eventually sending him off to a regular hospital for treatment – from which hospital Jonas disappears and is presumed dead (although no body has ever been found). Leticia is also placed on sedatives by her father.

Then things happen in rapid succession – the younger daughter, Roberta, also goes missing, followed by the murder of Dr. Nesse' own wife. Espinosa and his cohorts have their hands full – especially when the doctor himself is murdered. At last, of course, the disappearances and murders are solved, and even though evidence points to not one but two murderers, the last one can be not only understood but understood with some sympathy.

When and if Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza remembers to tie all his loose ends together, he will no doubt become the Ruth Rendell of South America. Mr. Garcia-Roza's conception of the psychological murder is both refreshing and outstanding, and his presentation – in three separate sections – unusual. Once more we salute Benjamin Moser for his fine translation of this novel.

Alan Paul Curtis

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The Hidden Assassins

Pursuit

by Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza

Alan Paul Curtis