The Conspiracy

by Israel Centeno, Guillermo Parra (Translation)

The Conspiracy was published in 2002, shortly after the alleged coup against Hugo Chavez. The novel was interpreted by Chavez and his revolutionary party as an affront to their myth of origin. They launched a campaign against Israel Centeno that escalated from harassment and threats to violence, ultimately forcing him into exile.

"A rare voice from Venezuela. In this fever dream of a novel shot through with dark humor, Centeno grapples with the fallout from generations of violence and corruption." -Natasha Wimmer, translator of Roberto Bolano's 2666.

Genres: Novels

279 pages, Paperback

First published April 17, 2014

Reviews

[Barbara McEwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars - An interesting combination of political thriller and the ruminations of a revolutionary. Makes you curious about the details of what got Chavez and his party to force the author into exile. I am guessing knowing more of this history would have made it even more intriguing to me. Another reminder I need to learn more about the countries I read about.

On a side note, there are lots of hyper-sexualized women described by their body parts (which is starting to feel like a trend in South American literature I have picked up, but please give me other suggestions if you have them) HOWEVER... the women had a lot of going for them too. They were, for the most part, strong, motivated, and self-assured, so I didn't really feel as insulted and icky as I do reading some books (looking at you Hopscotch!).

[John Pappano · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a book about killing the President of Venezuela there was a considerable amount of hanky-panky.

I don’t read spy thrillers but I imagine this would appeal the most to fans of that genre. But it’s definitely more of a think piece than, let’s say, Patriot Games.

[Miguel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Parra does a great job in translating Centeno's original work. The story is not specific to Venezuela but any rebellion that offers the world. The reality is that once they've achieved their goals, it quickly starts to fall apart. When you've been taught your whole life to fight, its difficult to stop. The book can be summed up for me as "If you play with fire, you're bound to get burned"

[Linda Ramirez · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Venezuelan thriller very well done, all the voices converge in an intelligent denouement. The women come to the forefront and play an even more decisive role than the main character.

[Alejandro Teruel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una novela de pesadilla densa, oscura, viscosa de violencia y miseria que retrata no sólo la incertidumbre y el asalto al poder en cámara lenta de la época de los primeros años de Hugo Chávez, sino la maraña de revolucionarios, militares y grupúsculos de izquierda en un grotesco juego de fintas, simulaciones y traiciones donde un atentado fallido al entonces Presidente encaminado a una democracia militar da el punto de partida para una huida épica, maniobras de ex-guerrilleros, ex-camaradas repletos de una retórica de ministros, asesores, marxismo retorcido, anillos de seguridad y atracos:

Resentí su muerte pero aguanté callado, había una razón de revolución, me dijeron entonces; comprender las razones de la revolución es postergar la propia muerte, me doy cuenta ahora, moriré por una de esas razones, me imagino que Manuel Roca tiene buenos argumentos, todos dentro de una lógica revolucionaria, ahora de Estado[...]

El mejor capítulo del libro fue el primero el del atentado fallido y la huida inicial, el peor el segundo con su fortuito enconchamiento en un sexo confuso e incesante en una casa abandonada en Puerto Píritu donde recuerda el narrador principal:

Yo me sentía seguro en la casa grande, había perdido la noción del tiempo y no pretendía sino permanecer, atrapado entre la resolana y la oscuridad en la calidez de un abrazo inmortal con aquellas sombras que se reunían bajo el cerezo yla parra mustia [...] La vida no se vive sujeta a una cadena de hechos fortuitos. O si.

La novela es una crítica despiadada a quienes aspiran a hacer historia, o creen hacerla

...comprendes que eres tan sólo una brizna de paja en el viento, recuerdas al presidente y lo comprendes y sabes que no se actúa a voluntad, que se está sujeto a fuerzas ocultas y misteriosas, el repetía aquella frase de Bolívar, por demagogia, él era una roca de lava en el bochinche de la política nacional, se comprendía a si mismo voluntarioso, arbitrario, capaz de hacerse de las riendas de la historia, lo comprendes ya tarde...

Lamentablemente la novela se refocila cansonamente en una sobreabundancia de sexo obsesivo de poco valor. Sin embargo, Israel Centeno ha escrito un thriller noire, bien urdido a partir de algunos hilos oscuros de la historia venezolana, centrado en una violencia que es arma del cinismo político. Retrata sin piedad los sentimientos de incertidumbre, corrupción, componendas y sospechas de la época, por lo que no extraña la persecución que el regimen hizo del autor, obligándolo a huir a Estados Unidos en 2010.

[Owen P · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun, but I think missed the mark for what it was going for.

[ElenaSquareEyes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading The Conspiracy is an experience. You follow multiple characters point of views throughout the story, giving you a wider understanding of the events unfolding after the failed assassination attempt than the majority of the characters. The sections from Sergio’s point of view are in the first person and there are often very long paragraphs and run on sentences. His mind is frantic and that comes across in the words on the page. There are times when he doesn’t believe what he’s seeing or doing and sees threats from everyone, making his narrative even more jumbled up and like a stream of consciousness.

The other characters point of views are written in the third person and while there’s still often long paragraphs, they tend to come across more measured and in control than Sergio, highlighting how his grip on reality is loosening.

The women in The Conspiracy are often described in a sexual manner with greater attention paid to their physical appearance – especially when it’s from Sergio’s point of view. It can be uncomfortable and eyeroll inducing due to the overtly sexual and lewd language used to describe them. But, with Lourdes especially, these women aren’t just there to be visually pleasing to the men. Lourdes is smart and capable and can tell when the walls are closing in and will go down all guns blazing if she sees no other choice.

There are a lot of twists and turns in The Conspiracy and while you as the reader tend to have more of an overview as to what’s going on than Sergio, there’s still surprises and people turn on one another or reveal secret plans. It makes it difficult to tell who to trust and while you learn more of Loudres’ backstory, the way the story is written means that like Sergio, you don’t always know if you can trust her motives.

The Conspiracy is full of backstabbing and political intrigue, but the writing style won’t be for everyone though with its manic energy and an unreliable narrator in Sergio. But at just over 200 pages, it’s a story that goes by at a steady pace and is an engaging read.