Under dry ground
by César Pérez Gellida
Synopsis:
Extremadura, early 20th century. Antonia Monterroso, better known as the Widow, is the owner of one of the largest estates in the region; He tries to keep it afloat at a time when the famine that affects rural areas never seems to end. But a fire destroys everything she has managed to build with so much effort and, after it, she disappears without a trace. Lieutenant Martín Gallardo travels to the place together with Sergeant Pacheco to investigate what happened. Five days ago, the woman filed a complaint against Jacinto Padilla, foreman of her farm and former lover, who was detained at the Zafra station with a bag full of money and jewelry. He claims that he started the fire on Antonia’s orders and that she gave him the bag because they were going to start a new life far away from there. During the interrogation, Padilla confesses a series of macabre facts that cause a radical turn in an investigation that will end up stained with blood. Gallardo, like everyone who lives in the area, has heard about the enigmatic Widow, but what he still does not know is that he is facing a case from which he will not emerge unscathed. During the interrogation, Padilla confesses a series of macabre facts that They cause a radical turn in an investigation that will end up stained with blood. Gallardo, like everyone who lives in the area, has heard about the enigmatic Widow, but what he still does not know is that he is facing a case from which he will not emerge unscathed.
Author biography:
César Pérez Gellida (Valladolid, 1974) is a writer. He has published thirteen novels, including those that make up the trilogies “Verses, songs and bits of meat” (Memento mori, Dies irae, Consummatum est) and “Sayings, songs and traces of blood” (Sarna con gusto, Cuchillo de palo, To great evils); and others like All the best and All the worst. Among the most recent, Dwarfs Grow Up, Splinters in the Skin and The Dwarf’s Luck. In 2023, the television series adaptation of Memento mori will be released. He is one of the greatest references in crime novels, with more than 300,000 readers, and together with Dolores Redondo he directs the Blacklladolid literary festival. Under dry land he wins the 2024 Nadal Prize.
Source: https://algunoslibrosbuenos.com/bajo-tierra-seca