Saint Death - Hardcover

Sedgwick, Marcus

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1444000527 ISBN 13: 9781444000528

Publisher: Orion Children's Books, 2016

Synopsis

A potent, powerful and timely thriller about migrants, drug lords and gang warfare set on the US/Mexican border by PRINTZ MEDAL winning and CARNEGIE MEDAL, COSTA BOOK AWARD and GUARDIAN CHILDREN'S FICTION PRIZE shortlisted novelist, Marcus Sedgwick. Anapra is one of the poorest neighbourhoods in the Mexican city of Juarez. Twenty metres outside of town lies a fence, and beyond it, America - the dangerous goal of many a migrant. Faustino is one of them, trying desperately to escape from the gang he's been working for. He's dipped into a pile of dollars he was supposed to be hiding, and now he's on the run. He and his friend, Arturo, have only 36 hours to replace the missing money, or they're as good as dead. Watching over them all the while is Saint Death. Santissima Muerte. She of pure bone and charcoal-black eye, she of absolute loyalty and neutral morality, holy patron to rich and poor, to prostitute and narco-lord, criminal and police-chief. A folk saint, a rebel angel, a sinister guardian.

About this title

Review:

I really enjoyed Marcus Sedgwick's strange and intriguing tale, told in rhythmical and compelling prose. (David Almond)

I read it in one glorious gulp [...] this isn't a larky read, although the heavy subject matter could not slow down the pace if it tried. [...] Sedgwick writes like a dream (Alex O'Connell The Times)

Bleak, choppy, switching freely between perspectives and languages, Sedgwick's book pulls no punches, and will leave the reader reeling (THE GUARDIAN)

A very powerful book [...] I believe it will easily raise awareness and inspire empathy because Arturo's story is so tragic. (Tilly Lavenįs Amnesty International's Country Coordinator for Mexico)

...an incredibly powerful thriller, tautly written and timely, exploring a world of drug lords and gang warfare, migration and capitalism, and what it means to live in poverty. (Fiona Noble The Bookseller)

It's beautifully-written with a real sense of atmosphere, menace and tension (The Bookbag)

Saint Death is perhaps the first great anti-capitalist YA novel of the 21st Century. (Teen Librarian)

Exploring themes of migration, capitalism and social mobility this taut thriller, laced with Mexican folklore, will have you holding your breath until the shocking climax. (South Wales Evening Post)

A tightly plotted, dark and thrilling tale of crime, poverty and desperation, Saint Death pulls no punches in painting a horribly accurate picture of life for the poorest young people in Mexico, where savage criminality may be the only choice (Book Trust)

I think this is probably the most important book to be released this decade. (Mandy Southgate Addicted to Media)

Book Description:

A potent, powerful and timely thriller about migrants, drug lords and gang warfare set on the US/Mexican border by prize-winning novelist, Marcus Sedgwick.

About this edition

• Publisher: Orion Children's Books
• Publication date: 2016
• ISBN 10: 1444000527
• ISBN 13: 9781444000528
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 272