No Happy Ending [Paperback]

Paco Ignacio Taibo II (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 30, 2003

The third English language case for Mexico City independent detective Hector Belascoaran Shayne, No Happy Ending, is Paco Ignacio Taibo II at his subversive, darkly comic best. First, Hector discovers the body of a dead actor, dressed like a Roman in full breastplate and regalia, propped up on the toilet in his office. Shortly thereafter, he receives a threatening letter and a snapshot of another murdered corpse. As Hector investigates the killings, he discovers that both share a connection to a dead stuntman named Zorak who apparently perished while training a government-backed paramilitary group. Once again, the one-eyed anarchist detective finds himself up against the very institutions which persecute the downtrodden and oppress the masses. In typical Taibo fashion, Hector appears destined to lose: the ending to this remarkable absurdist tale shows his bullet-ridden body lying face down in the gutter during a rainstorm.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The body discovered in the bathroom of the Mexico City office of Hector Belascoaran Shayne is dressed as a Roman soldier but the history that Taibo's "independent detective" probes in this dark, indelible tale is considerably more recent and local. A photo of another corpse, a one-way ticket to New York City and a warning note--"Don't get involved"--draw Shayne into a case he knows nothing about, at first. He determines that the two dead men once assisted a deceased stunt artist named Zorak, who was rumored to be associated with Los Halcones, a secret government paramilitary organization responsible for many deaths during a demonstration of university students in l970. Aided by his office mates, an upholsterer, a plumber and a sewer engineer, and by his lover, "the woman with the pony tail," Shayne hews to his investigative line even as he is relentlessly pursued himself. The body count mounts as the one-eyed detective, in a continuing course of car chases, shootings and close escapes (even in a commandeered bus), closes in on the politics behind the puzzle of who is after whom and why. Originally published in 1981 and seamlessly translated by Neuman, this existential tale shows off Taibo's ruminative and melancholy detective at his rawest and most surprising. Other Shayne books available in the U.S. are Some Clouds , Shadow of the Shadow and An Easy Thing . Author tour.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

What are the Halcones--that shadowy paramilitary group behind the violent government repression of student demonstrations back in 1970- -up to now? First, they plant a corpse in Roman soldier's dress--an assistant to the late magician/bodybuilder Zorak, who trained the Halcones--in the bathroom of Mexico City p.i. H‚ctor Belascoar n Shayne; next, they spirit it away again, warning him to keep out of the murder case and enclosing the photo of a second dead Zorak associate and a plane ticket to New York; then, in response to H‚ctor's inevitable inquiries, they hunt him down with rifles and, when he shoots back, swear to avenge their dead. Not bad for a state organization that hasn't exited officially for years--and whose members are now dispersed among bodyguards, subway cops, the army, and everywhere else people have a right to carry guns. Despite H‚ctor's characteristically waggish interludes to buy zarzuela records and plan his wedding, this is much tighter and darker than The Shadow of the Shadow (1991) or Some Clouds (1992). A huge (400,000) printing is planned for Russia, where Taibo's manic antiestablishment paranoia should sell very well indeed. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 171 pages
• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press (June 30, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590580389
• ISBN-13: 978-1590580387
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #776,986 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great!!!!!!, February 22, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: No Happy Ending (Paperback)

Manuel Hugo Porras Ortega ([e-mail]) México city. 02/22/98 The first time I started reading it, I found it kind of disturbing. However, when I finished it, I actually felt the despair of living in México, as I do. I couldn't believe that "although the story and the characters are fictitious, the country, however, is real". I read it first in Spanish, and later on I had the chance to bought it in the English version. What I didin't like of it, was that some names where changed, (like Sara Montiel for John Travolta). Anyway, I became a fan of PIT II from the moment i read that book, and i would like to get all translations that have been made to it.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Hope amidst total corruption, August 5, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: No Happy Ending (Hardcover)

Taibo's mystery moves to uncover layers of distrust and fear ofthe secret workings of government officials. The feelings ofhopelessness descend with frightening clarity as the truth of how deeply the system fails to protect the rights of the citizens while fighting viciously against any presumed violation are revealed. Taibo has placed his hero, Hector, in an unbeatable reality. But Hector's fight displays hope.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is Real World there will be no happy ending, May 24, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: No Happy Ending (Paperback)

There is something I appreciate about PIT II's books, they talk about reality. It's ok Hector does not exist but the country does. You should fight hard and to the limit, but you have to know that there can be a no happy ending.