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Romilia Chacon #1
Home Killings
The award-winning Home Killings, Marcos M. Villatoro’s first Romilia Chacón novel, won dazzling acclaim for its fusion of character, suspense, and a gripping police procedural swirling around a fiery Latina detective. Now, in a new novel filled with the same remarkable precision and power, Romilia Chacón turns back to the reason she became a cop in the first place: to hunt for the sadist who took her sister’s life–and has kept on killing ever since.
He is known as the Whisperer for the cryptic messages he leaves at his horrific crime scenes. But Detective Romilia Chacón can hear him loud and clear. Still haunted by the death of her beloved sister, Romilia begins to dig into the case on her own time and soon finds help she doesn’t want. A seductive international drug lord is obsessed with her and seems to know more about the case than anyone inside law enforcement. But neither an outlaw’s unbridled power nor a cop’s persistence can untangle the web of illusion surrounding the man they seek. For this killer is living at the center of his own brilliant hell–and he’s already decided who will join him next.…
He is known as the Whisperer for the cryptic messages he leaves at his horrific crime scenes. But Detective Romilia Chacón can hear him loud and clear. Still haunted by the death of her beloved sister, Romilia begins to dig into the case on her own time and soon finds help she doesn’t want. A seductive international drug lord is obsessed with her and seems to know more about the case than anyone inside law enforcement. But neither an outlaw’s unbridled power nor a cop’s persistence can untangle the web of illusion surrounding the man they seek. For this killer is living at the center of his own brilliant hell–and he’s already decided who will join him next.…
- GenresMystery
368 pages, Paperback
First published August 31, 2004
1 person is currently reading
45 people want to read
About the author
Marcos M. Villatoro
11 books12 followersMarcos M. Villatoro is the author of the Romilia Chacon crime novels. The Los Angeles Times Book Review listed his Home Killings as a Best Book of 2001. It won the Silver Medal from Foreword Magazine and First Prize in the Latino Literary Hall of Fame. The other Romilia novels include Minos and A Venom Beneath the Skin.
Random House publishes the Romilia Chacon crime fiction novels in mass-market paperback (under Dell). Germany, Japan, Russia and Brazil have acquired foreign rights of all the Romilia books. Cypress Productions of Los Angeles has bought the film rights for Minos.
His autobiographical novel The Holy Spirit of My Uncle's Cojones was an Independent Publishers Book Award Finalist and nominated for the Pushcart Prize.
His other books include They Say that I am Two (poems), On Tuesday, When the Homeless Disappeared (poems), A Fire in the Earth (novel), and the memoir Walking to La Milpa: Living in Guatemala with Armies, Demons, Abrazos, and Death. In the 80s and early 90s, Villatoro lived in Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Alabama, doing grassroots community work in Central America and with migrant farm workers. After graduating from the Iowa Writers� Workshop in 1998, he and his family moved to California, where he holds the Fletcher Jones Endowed Chair in Writing at Mount St. Mary's College. He's also a regular commentator for NPR.
Villatoro lives with his wife and four children in Los Angeles.
Random House publishes the Romilia Chacon crime fiction novels in mass-market paperback (under Dell). Germany, Japan, Russia and Brazil have acquired foreign rights of all the Romilia books. Cypress Productions of Los Angeles has bought the film rights for Minos.
His autobiographical novel The Holy Spirit of My Uncle's Cojones was an Independent Publishers Book Award Finalist and nominated for the Pushcart Prize.
His other books include They Say that I am Two (poems), On Tuesday, When the Homeless Disappeared (poems), A Fire in the Earth (novel), and the memoir Walking to La Milpa: Living in Guatemala with Armies, Demons, Abrazos, and Death. In the 80s and early 90s, Villatoro lived in Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Alabama, doing grassroots community work in Central America and with migrant farm workers. After graduating from the Iowa Writers� Workshop in 1998, he and his family moved to California, where he holds the Fletcher Jones Endowed Chair in Writing at Mount St. Mary's College. He's also a regular commentator for NPR.
Villatoro lives with his wife and four children in Los Angeles.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
February 4, 2023
It took three quarters of an hour and two shots of whiskey from a dust gathering bottle before [my mother] would speak. During that time she just sat at the kitchen table. Sergio stood and stared at his grandmother while she rocked slightly back and forth in the immobile chair. I got him to bed, promising him that everything was fine, that his abuela would be all right. I kissed him and sang a very quick version of Dormite ninito sounding like a record placed on the wrong rpm.
~~Detective Romila Chacon's mother is described in the opening passage. Romila's parents immigrated from El Salvador before she was born, escaping widespread violence in their region. Now several murders have occurred in their new home of Nashville, and Romila's investigation has re-opened psychological wounds for her mother. One bright spot in the investigation is Dona Marina, the owner of a Latino food market. I picture her looking similar to the image above, preparing dishes. Romila feels so at home in her store that she returns with her mother to introduce the ladies.
First two sentences: My first thought that night: I hate gunshot wounds to the head. I leaned forward, placing my right foot ahead of the other and bending my right knee so as to hover over the dead man's face.
Romilia and her family have recently moved from Atlanta to Nashville. She's been hired as rookie detective as part of a program to improve diversity. She'll also provide much needed translation services between the growing Latino population and the police force. Her mettle will be tested early when a dead body is found. The apparent suicide turns out to be a veiled homicide, with disturbing similarities to a supposedly solved series of murders. Is the serial killer still at large? And what exactly in the meaning of jade pyramids found on the bodies of the deceased? Is this a reference to the death squads active in Guatemala and the surrounding areas during the 1980's? What's certain is that Romilia must tamp down her inner demons, and solve the puzzle before another of Nashville's citizens is murdered.
My two cents: Villatoro has given us a compelling, likable protagonist to root for in Romilia. We are given enough of a backstory to make her interesting, while not bogging down the thrilling story arc. I enjoyed the setting, and our immersion into Latino-American culture. Villatoro really shown in her creation of an antagonist though. It's hard to get this right in the first book of a series, but Villatoro pulls it off with flying colors. She provides genuine tension, resolution of the conflict for *this* book, while also providing sufficient foreshadowing of possible future tension. The red herrings are also excellent. One final point--the novel was written in 2001.
I liked the detective work centered around computer technology from the turn of the millennium. It made me a little nostalgic. :) Given 3.5 stars or a rating of "Very Good". Recommended as a library checkout, or a bookstore find if you are looking for a new author in this genre.
Further Reading: An article from The Jesuit Review on death squads in El Salvador's past, and continued presence to this day. https://www.americamagazine.org/polit...
~~Detective Romila Chacon's mother is described in the opening passage. Romila's parents immigrated from El Salvador before she was born, escaping widespread violence in their region. Now several murders have occurred in their new home of Nashville, and Romila's investigation has re-opened psychological wounds for her mother. One bright spot in the investigation is Dona Marina, the owner of a Latino food market. I picture her looking similar to the image above, preparing dishes. Romila feels so at home in her store that she returns with her mother to introduce the ladies.
First two sentences: My first thought that night: I hate gunshot wounds to the head. I leaned forward, placing my right foot ahead of the other and bending my right knee so as to hover over the dead man's face.
Romilia and her family have recently moved from Atlanta to Nashville. She's been hired as rookie detective as part of a program to improve diversity. She'll also provide much needed translation services between the growing Latino population and the police force. Her mettle will be tested early when a dead body is found. The apparent suicide turns out to be a veiled homicide, with disturbing similarities to a supposedly solved series of murders. Is the serial killer still at large? And what exactly in the meaning of jade pyramids found on the bodies of the deceased? Is this a reference to the death squads active in Guatemala and the surrounding areas during the 1980's? What's certain is that Romilia must tamp down her inner demons, and solve the puzzle before another of Nashville's citizens is murdered.
My two cents: Villatoro has given us a compelling, likable protagonist to root for in Romilia. We are given enough of a backstory to make her interesting, while not bogging down the thrilling story arc. I enjoyed the setting, and our immersion into Latino-American culture. Villatoro really shown in her creation of an antagonist though. It's hard to get this right in the first book of a series, but Villatoro pulls it off with flying colors. She provides genuine tension, resolution of the conflict for *this* book, while also providing sufficient foreshadowing of possible future tension. The red herrings are also excellent. One final point--the novel was written in 2001.
I liked the detective work centered around computer technology from the turn of the millennium. It made me a little nostalgic. :) Given 3.5 stars or a rating of "Very Good". Recommended as a library checkout, or a bookstore find if you are looking for a new author in this genre.
Further Reading: An article from The Jesuit Review on death squads in El Salvador's past, and continued presence to this day. https://www.americamagazine.org/polit...
April 23, 2018
Home Killings is a lively example of the detective fiction genre, with a likeable protagonist and a carefully-woven mystery. Set in Nashville, detective Romilia Chacon is called on to help solve the homicide of a local Latino journalist, who writes for the Spanish section of the paper. Romilia, who has just moved to Nashville from Atlanta, lives with her young son Sergio and her mother. In the course of her investigation, she runs into a potential drug mogul who's creepy enough to hit on her and manipulate her by speaking about his love for Gabriel Garcia-Marquez over the phone to Romilia's mother, who is none the wiser. But the really vibrant conflict comes into play when Romilia discovers a connection between the homicide and a case for which a man is already in jail, put there by her partner Jerry Smith.
The plot of Home Killings never slowed down. Twisting between telling moments of characterization of Romilia (her snuggling with her son, her confrontation with Tekun, working long hours on the case, and discovering a thin piece of plastic wrapping with blood on it at the scene of the crime) and hard and fast events of solving the crime, readers got a clear view of the volatile and unbridled passion with which Romilia does her work. She becomes more than a Latina detective, shining in the spotlight as a strong career woman who loves her family too.
Home Killings was great because it was enjoyable, successfully plotted, and focused on a bad-apple protagonist-- but it was also great because it was set in the city I presently live in. It was so interesting to think about the Nashville of then as compared with the Nashville of now, and how the Latino/a population of our city has changed in the past 20 years. This is a good one, and I would recommend it to anyone who likes a solid, unique but no-nonsense police procedural.
The plot of Home Killings never slowed down. Twisting between telling moments of characterization of Romilia (her snuggling with her son, her confrontation with Tekun, working long hours on the case, and discovering a thin piece of plastic wrapping with blood on it at the scene of the crime) and hard and fast events of solving the crime, readers got a clear view of the volatile and unbridled passion with which Romilia does her work. She becomes more than a Latina detective, shining in the spotlight as a strong career woman who loves her family too.
Home Killings was great because it was enjoyable, successfully plotted, and focused on a bad-apple protagonist-- but it was also great because it was set in the city I presently live in. It was so interesting to think about the Nashville of then as compared with the Nashville of now, and how the Latino/a population of our city has changed in the past 20 years. This is a good one, and I would recommend it to anyone who likes a solid, unique but no-nonsense police procedural.
July 19, 2019
excellent. I am going to read the rest of the books in this series!
October 31, 2015
Not At All What I Expected!
BySherrie Miranda
Format: Mass Market Paperback
I had never read a detective/crime novel and hadn't planned on ever reading one.
But my ex-sis-in-law passed this on to me because the author is Salvadoran and I authored a novel about El Salvador.
At first, I wasn't happy as I thought it was going to take place in ES. I stopped reading it once, but when I finally got back to it, I started getting interested in the protagonist and the antagonist, both Central American. The complexity of the case Chacon was trying to solve kept me reading. The fact that the likely killer was romantically interested in her made me want to read late into the night when I should have been sleeping.
I doubt that I would ever read those formulaic detective novels that have been popular for many, many years in the U.S., but I did find this one entertaining because the detective was different (female, Salvadoran) and the criminals were different, as was the setting.
I will definitely pick up another Romilia Chacon novel and any other novels this author writes.
BySherrie Miranda
Format: Mass Market Paperback
I had never read a detective/crime novel and hadn't planned on ever reading one.
But my ex-sis-in-law passed this on to me because the author is Salvadoran and I authored a novel about El Salvador.
At first, I wasn't happy as I thought it was going to take place in ES. I stopped reading it once, but when I finally got back to it, I started getting interested in the protagonist and the antagonist, both Central American. The complexity of the case Chacon was trying to solve kept me reading. The fact that the likely killer was romantically interested in her made me want to read late into the night when I should have been sleeping.
I doubt that I would ever read those formulaic detective novels that have been popular for many, many years in the U.S., but I did find this one entertaining because the detective was different (female, Salvadoran) and the criminals were different, as was the setting.
I will definitely pick up another Romilia Chacon novel and any other novels this author writes.
September 3, 2007
HOME KILLINGS (Police Procedural-Nashville-Cont) – G
Villatoro, Marcos M. – 1st in series
Dell, 2001- Paperback
Detective Romilia Chacon is called to the crime scene of an apparent suicide and identifies it as a murder. Because she discovers a piece of evidence linking the murder to serial killings, which they believed had been solved, Romilia is assigned to partner with the officer of the serial murders. The trail involves a young man viscously beaten, illegal immigrants and a possible drug lord.
*** While I found the plot a little weak, I very much enjoyed the character of Romilia, a rookie detective and Latina living with her son and mother. She's smart, interesting and fully dimensional. The writing is solid and I enjoyed the aspects of Latin culture incorporated into the characters and the story. All in all, it's a good first effort.
Villatoro, Marcos M. – 1st in series
Dell, 2001- Paperback
Detective Romilia Chacon is called to the crime scene of an apparent suicide and identifies it as a murder. Because she discovers a piece of evidence linking the murder to serial killings, which they believed had been solved, Romilia is assigned to partner with the officer of the serial murders. The trail involves a young man viscously beaten, illegal immigrants and a possible drug lord.
*** While I found the plot a little weak, I very much enjoyed the character of Romilia, a rookie detective and Latina living with her son and mother. She's smart, interesting and fully dimensional. The writing is solid and I enjoyed the aspects of Latin culture incorporated into the characters and the story. All in all, it's a good first effort.
May 4, 2012
Started this book one day and finished it the next. I can see why it won a number of awards. The protagonist is a very interesting character and seeing and experiencing the Latino point of view, for me at least, was new and very thought provoking. I've obtained a copy of the "sequel" to this book (Minos) and plan to read it soon with much anticipation.
December 26, 2010
I met Marcos Villatoro at the Puerto Vallarta Writers Conference in February. He writes and speeks with passion about his Latin heritage. The protagonist, Romilia Chacon, is one fascinating lady. Makes me want to read more.
December 17, 2012
cruel - to read...
don't know if the translator or the writer is awful, but it's a pity - the ideas of the plot and a few dialogs are really good, but in common it's written so bad (in German), that it's really exhausting to read... :-(
don't know if the translator or the writer is awful, but it's a pity - the ideas of the plot and a few dialogs are really good, but in common it's written so bad (in German), that it's really exhausting to read... :-(
January 21, 2014
This is an enjoyable mystery with multiculturalism at its core. Unfortunately, the writing is a bit clunky. It feels like a novel written in Spanish and translated into English, which may be intentional, but leads to inelegant prose. I enjoyed it nonetheless.
March 26, 2008
Really well written. Received tons of acclaim, and has some deftly written gems...
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews