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Chief Inspector Max Cámara #4
Blood Med
Spain is corrupt and on the brink of collapse.The king is ill, banks are closing, hospitals are in chaos, homes are lost, demonstrators riot and rightwing thugs patrol the street. The tunnels beneath the streets are at once a refuge and a source of anger. And as the blood flows Cámara roars in on his motorbike...
Cámara is back in Valencia, with his partner Alicia and his anarchist, marijuana-growing grandfather Hilario. In the old police headquarters, the mood is tense, as the chief hunts for cuts – who will go, Cámara or his friend Torres? The two men are flung into action investigating the suicide of an ex- bank clerk and the brutal murder of a young American woman. As the city erupts around them, their case takes them into the heart of the trouble.
This dazzling new Cámara novel – constantly surprising, full of vivid characters – exposes the dark underside of today’s Spain. A powerful, gripping page-turner, it confirms Max Cámara as the detective to watch, feeling the pulse of the moment.
Cámara is back in Valencia, with his partner Alicia and his anarchist, marijuana-growing grandfather Hilario. In the old police headquarters, the mood is tense, as the chief hunts for cuts – who will go, Cámara or his friend Torres? The two men are flung into action investigating the suicide of an ex- bank clerk and the brutal murder of a young American woman. As the city erupts around them, their case takes them into the heart of the trouble.
This dazzling new Cámara novel – constantly surprising, full of vivid characters – exposes the dark underside of today’s Spain. A powerful, gripping page-turner, it confirms Max Cámara as the detective to watch, feeling the pulse of the moment.
368 pages, Paperback
First published June 5, 2014
7 people are currently reading
142 people want to read
About the author
Jason Webster
29 books97 followersJason Webster is a highly acclaimed Anglo-American author and authority on Spain whose work ranges from biography to travel, crime fiction and history. His books have sold in over a dozen countries, including the US, the UK and China, and have been nominated both for the Guardian First Book Award and the Crime Writers’ Association New Blood Dagger Award. He has been favourably compared with writers such as Bruce Chatwin (The Daily Mail), Gerald Brenan (El País) and Ernest Hemingway (Sunday Telegraph).
Webster was born near San Francisco and brought up in the UK, Germany and Italy. After finishing a degree in Arabic and Islamic History at the University of Oxford, he worked as an editor at the BBC World Service for several years before becoming a full-time writer and moving to Spain. He is married to the flamenco dancer Salud and they have two sons. They currently divide their time between Valencia and the UK.
Webster was born near San Francisco and brought up in the UK, Germany and Italy. After finishing a degree in Arabic and Islamic History at the University of Oxford, he worked as an editor at the BBC World Service for several years before becoming a full-time writer and moving to Spain. He is married to the flamenco dancer Salud and they have two sons. They currently divide their time between Valencia and the UK.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
April 24, 2018
Typically, I started on book 7 or 8 of this series, but I really enjoyed it. I'm going to start at the beginning and follow it through. I haven't read anything set in Spain before, and Webster writes well on the political tensions that tear apart the lives of ordinary people, as the hero, Max Camara, attempts to solve a murder that has repercussions up to the top of local government. I enjoyed reading about the underground support given to the poor as wages are left unpaid and people struggle, and the bringing down of the corruption that has left people in such a terrible state is satisfying. We don't see much of this world as tourists. This was an intelligent, gripping read.
December 12, 2014
The 4th book in the Max Cámara series, which means if, like this reader, you've missed the first three, there's something to look forward to.
Set in post financial meltdown Spain, BLOOD MED is part crime fiction, part police procedural, part analysis of a society that's bottomed out. The King's illness seems to have provided yet more impetus for riots and thugs roaming the streets. Against this backdrop the brutal murder of a young American woman, and the suspect suicide of an ex-bank clerk seem oddly dwarfed. Not helped by the Machiavellian games being played by Cámara's boss setting him and his partner and friend Torres off against each other - budget cuts meaning one of them is going to lose their job.
Add to the tensions in the police, the health service is rapidly falling apart, with insufficient drugs for patient treatment, banks are foreclosing and leaving properties empty all over the place, and some people have been forced to live in the tunnels of the ridiculously expensive, and unfinished underground rail system. Needless to say, official corruption is at the heart of so much that's wrong.
It all feels like a very current day, and one can't help thinking very realistic, scenario. And there is a lot of concentration on those societal aspects in BLOOD MED. Whilst the investigation of the murders does continue, often times it definitely does feel like the society dysfunction is all encompassing. And very personal.
Alongside Cámara there are a number of other main characters - Torres his colleague, his girlfriend Alicia and his much loved grandfather Hilario. All the main characters play reasonably high profile parts in the investigation and in the way that society is viewed, analysed and highlighted.
For a book that's 4th in a series it's quite easy to get into, there's enough background on the characters to give you a good understanding of how everyone fits together. It actually makes you want to go back and read the earlier 3 books.
BLOOD MED is crime fiction that uses the setting of the murders as a way of taking a long, hard, detailed look at the society in which they occurred. This is less crime fiction for fans of investigations and closure as it is for those who are looking for the why, and how things can get to the extremes of murder.
Set in post financial meltdown Spain, BLOOD MED is part crime fiction, part police procedural, part analysis of a society that's bottomed out. The King's illness seems to have provided yet more impetus for riots and thugs roaming the streets. Against this backdrop the brutal murder of a young American woman, and the suspect suicide of an ex-bank clerk seem oddly dwarfed. Not helped by the Machiavellian games being played by Cámara's boss setting him and his partner and friend Torres off against each other - budget cuts meaning one of them is going to lose their job.
Add to the tensions in the police, the health service is rapidly falling apart, with insufficient drugs for patient treatment, banks are foreclosing and leaving properties empty all over the place, and some people have been forced to live in the tunnels of the ridiculously expensive, and unfinished underground rail system. Needless to say, official corruption is at the heart of so much that's wrong.
It all feels like a very current day, and one can't help thinking very realistic, scenario. And there is a lot of concentration on those societal aspects in BLOOD MED. Whilst the investigation of the murders does continue, often times it definitely does feel like the society dysfunction is all encompassing. And very personal.
Alongside Cámara there are a number of other main characters - Torres his colleague, his girlfriend Alicia and his much loved grandfather Hilario. All the main characters play reasonably high profile parts in the investigation and in the way that society is viewed, analysed and highlighted.
For a book that's 4th in a series it's quite easy to get into, there's enough background on the characters to give you a good understanding of how everyone fits together. It actually makes you want to go back and read the earlier 3 books.
BLOOD MED is crime fiction that uses the setting of the murders as a way of taking a long, hard, detailed look at the society in which they occurred. This is less crime fiction for fans of investigations and closure as it is for those who are looking for the why, and how things can get to the extremes of murder.
April 16, 2014
This is the fourth outing for Chief Inspector Max Camara and I must say it is the darkest book to date. Following on from The Anarchist Detective, Max is back in Valencia and his grandfather Hilario is now living with him. Set a backdrop of the meltdown of the banking system in Spain causing panic and the uprise of fascism, Max finds himself involved in an investigation which pits him against his friend and partner Torres, an investigation which puts him and his friends at risk.
With each Camara novel, Jason Webster shows his love of Spain, his fascination with its people and it's violent past. His skill as an author just keeps growing, and he is producing a must read series. I can't recommend him enough.”
With each Camara novel, Jason Webster shows his love of Spain, his fascination with its people and it's violent past. His skill as an author just keeps growing, and he is producing a must read series. I can't recommend him enough.”
June 9, 2014
The very best in the Cámara series so far, I really couldn't put it down, read it within 24 hours and it left me craving for more, more, more, Jason, please...
March 12, 2023
#4 in the series sees Chief Inspector Max Cámara back in Valencia at the time of the financial crash wrecking havoc across most of Spain.
Are a suicide of an unemployed financial consultant and the brutal slaying of an American blogger connected? Cámara gets drawn in to a plot which sees him pitted against a corrupt bank, a shady political party with paramilitary inclinations and also his own colleagues.
Disaster strikes at home as well, causing Cámara to question carrying on, especially as it may come with a further risk to his own family.
Usually Webster's book are rich in the culture of Spain, especially the food and the part it plays in Spanish life but this time the focus is on the political struggles in Spain from the often embarrassed experimentation with the far right, to the general more natural leaning to the left. Mix in financial corruption and a plot to stop a house of cards bank from failing and you have an interesting book, not quite on a par withe the rest of the series, but good nonetheless.
⭐⭐⭐ from me. Not the best, but don't let it put you off a normally very good writer.
Are a suicide of an unemployed financial consultant and the brutal slaying of an American blogger connected? Cámara gets drawn in to a plot which sees him pitted against a corrupt bank, a shady political party with paramilitary inclinations and also his own colleagues.
Disaster strikes at home as well, causing Cámara to question carrying on, especially as it may come with a further risk to his own family.
Usually Webster's book are rich in the culture of Spain, especially the food and the part it plays in Spanish life but this time the focus is on the political struggles in Spain from the often embarrassed experimentation with the far right, to the general more natural leaning to the left. Mix in financial corruption and a plot to stop a house of cards bank from failing and you have an interesting book, not quite on a par withe the rest of the series, but good nonetheless.
⭐⭐⭐ from me. Not the best, but don't let it put you off a normally very good writer.
September 6, 2017
This is the Max Cámara that I've most enjoyed. I was looking for some light reading but found more than a "who dunnit" with the story taking place against the backdrop of economic crisis, corruption and citizen unrest. While the action part is at its best James Bondish (interesting motorcycle sequence) there is some extreme violence. However, for me, the portrayal of Max Cámara's relationships with his grandfather, his partner Alicia and his colleagues is much more sensitive and he explores many issues affecting contemporary Spain (not just Valencia).
February 10, 2018
Another great Max Cámara story, even better than the earlier ones, with an interesting and mysterious plot, political extremism, corruption in high places, economic crisis and its effects, and the always engaging police inspector and a host of believable and varied smaller part players. The simply terrific storytelling makes it a real page-turner - very hard to put down, even though I tried. Someone should make a TV series of these books, surely?
August 7, 2017
Brilliant!
I first came across Jason Webster when I read Duende which I can't recommend enough. Since then I've read the Max Camara novels and they get better and better. This is certainly the best of them. A gripping crime novel set in a period I knew little about, it excellently depicts the tumultuous and fascinating nature of Spain's politics. A really gripping read.
I first came across Jason Webster when I read Duende which I can't recommend enough. Since then I've read the Max Camara novels and they get better and better. This is certainly the best of them. A gripping crime novel set in a period I knew little about, it excellently depicts the tumultuous and fascinating nature of Spain's politics. A really gripping read.
November 19, 2018
A great crime mystery...
Almost 5 stars as it was very hard to put down...great murder mystery and absorbing taste of Valencia...super characters and our hero is a man among men! All written in a winning style...just enough cliff hanger chapter endings without being annoying about it.
Almost 5 stars as it was very hard to put down...great murder mystery and absorbing taste of Valencia...super characters and our hero is a man among men! All written in a winning style...just enough cliff hanger chapter endings without being annoying about it.
April 2, 2020
A classic Camara. I like them.
April 19, 2021
Politics, family, corruption and murder form a heady brew
September 29, 2017
The Valencia series just gets better and better. This, despite the fast action and occasional tumultuous violence, is a thoughtful book, and what remains with me are the impressions of the interiority of the people, their relationships and responses to life crises (not to give anything away)
August 25, 2015
Page one, Spain waits, the king lies dying. There is the feeling of a nation on the edge. In Valencia, there are homeless on the street, immigrants are being harassed, the police department faces cutbacks despite rumblings of public unrest, and there are not enough drugs for the sick.
Blood Med is the fourth in the Cámara Valencia-based detective series by Jason Webster [below]. There are two deaths and Cámara and his colleague Torres are given one case each, the hidden agenda is that one of the two men must be made redundant. One death is suspected suicide, the other a brutal murder. In the way of crime fiction, you know there will be a connection but that connection is of course invisible at the beginning.
The detective, orphaned young and raised by his grandfather, now lives in Valencia with elderly Hilario plus Max’s girlfriend, journalist Alicia. Both Hilario and Alicia have key roles in this story. Hilario is a huge influence on Max’s approach to life, and he often recalls his grandfather’s fondness for proverbs when he finds himself in a sticky situation. ‘Visteme despacio que tengo prisa’ he tells himself when he feels the investigation is being rushed. It translates as ‘Dress me slowly, I’m in a rush’. He feels the investigation has tunnel vision; that it is being rushed and would benefit from a step back. “If he could have his way he would send everyone home for the rest of the day to switch off. Go to the beach, go wherever. And have sex – with someone else if possible. If not, whatever. If helped clear the mind.”
This is the most accomplished Cámara novel so far, the setting in Valencia [above] is so strong and the political background feels very real. The ‘corralito’ described [the government decree to close the banks] feels very real. There are a lot more stories to come in Max Cámara’s Valencia.
Blood Med is the fourth in the Cámara Valencia-based detective series by Jason Webster [below]. There are two deaths and Cámara and his colleague Torres are given one case each, the hidden agenda is that one of the two men must be made redundant. One death is suspected suicide, the other a brutal murder. In the way of crime fiction, you know there will be a connection but that connection is of course invisible at the beginning.
The detective, orphaned young and raised by his grandfather, now lives in Valencia with elderly Hilario plus Max’s girlfriend, journalist Alicia. Both Hilario and Alicia have key roles in this story. Hilario is a huge influence on Max’s approach to life, and he often recalls his grandfather’s fondness for proverbs when he finds himself in a sticky situation. ‘Visteme despacio que tengo prisa’ he tells himself when he feels the investigation is being rushed. It translates as ‘Dress me slowly, I’m in a rush’. He feels the investigation has tunnel vision; that it is being rushed and would benefit from a step back. “If he could have his way he would send everyone home for the rest of the day to switch off. Go to the beach, go wherever. And have sex – with someone else if possible. If not, whatever. If helped clear the mind.”
This is the most accomplished Cámara novel so far, the setting in Valencia [above] is so strong and the political background feels very real. The ‘corralito’ described [the government decree to close the banks] feels very real. There are a lot more stories to come in Max Cámara’s Valencia.
June 5, 2020
Blood Med by Jason Webster is the fourth in his series of books featuring Max Camara, an unconventional detective working for the Policia Nacional in Valencia. The city and country are alarmed when they learn King Juan Carlos is critically ill. The reader enters into a Spain filled with political and social chaos. Unemployment is on the rise, people have now become homeless, and banks are blamed and hated. Corruption further embitters a society which is polarized between rich and poor, left and right, and regional separatism.
Camara's case involves the vicious killing of young American blogger Amy, married to a local pharmaceutical salesman. Camara's new partner, Laura, with a background in investigating sex crimes and domestic violence, is convinced that Amy was killed by her husband, but Camara isn't so sure. Camara meets official opposition to his investigation, and has to deal with major suffering in his personal life, as he travels through institutional corruption to solve his case. As always, Camara's relationships and life outside of his detective work come into play, including his involvement with an anarchist refuge for immigrants and the homeless hiding down in the tunnels of the new metro, failed due to financial collapse. Televisions are always tuned to the King's health crisis and the political implications that will follow if he dies.
Blood Med is an absorbing crime thriller, full of suspense and excitement. The characters are richly drawn and quite original. I believe this series looks at more than just a crime investigation, but also explores how murder can happen in a corrupt society. I think this was a perfect choice to blend Spanish culture with the October tag of crime fiction. I can't wait to read the next book of the series.
889
Camara's case involves the vicious killing of young American blogger Amy, married to a local pharmaceutical salesman. Camara's new partner, Laura, with a background in investigating sex crimes and domestic violence, is convinced that Amy was killed by her husband, but Camara isn't so sure. Camara meets official opposition to his investigation, and has to deal with major suffering in his personal life, as he travels through institutional corruption to solve his case. As always, Camara's relationships and life outside of his detective work come into play, including his involvement with an anarchist refuge for immigrants and the homeless hiding down in the tunnels of the new metro, failed due to financial collapse. Televisions are always tuned to the King's health crisis and the political implications that will follow if he dies.
Blood Med is an absorbing crime thriller, full of suspense and excitement. The characters are richly drawn and quite original. I believe this series looks at more than just a crime investigation, but also explores how murder can happen in a corrupt society. I think this was a perfect choice to blend Spanish culture with the October tag of crime fiction. I can't wait to read the next book of the series.
889
July 20, 2014
There was much that we enjoyed about the fourth Max Camara murder mystery – the writing, always good, sometimes intensely vivid; the development of characters from previous books, not least that of Max Camara; the personalising of the consequences of Spain’s financial crisis. I can’t, however, say this was the best story I ever read, and I think my husband, to whom I read it aloud, would agree. There were long digressions where politics came to the fore and the story retreated into the background. We were left with a very strong impression of the physical appearance of the corpse of Amy, the murdered American girl, of her flat, and of her postmortem; but we found out very little about her life; and the motive for her killing became evident early on in the book.
We might have found ourselves more involved if we had a sense of people, other than Camara and his lover Alicia, being in danger. What happened to Alicia was shocking (I’m not going to reveal whether she survived her ordeal, or not). Camara, now the owner and daring rider of a motorbike is, of course, invincible. It is impossible to take his danger seriously. Whenever he is in imminent danger of losing his life, a miraculous rescue is inevitable. Camara Five has, after all, been scheduled for publication next year.
We might have found ourselves more involved if we had a sense of people, other than Camara and his lover Alicia, being in danger. What happened to Alicia was shocking (I’m not going to reveal whether she survived her ordeal, or not). Camara, now the owner and daring rider of a motorbike is, of course, invincible. It is impossible to take his danger seriously. Whenever he is in imminent danger of losing his life, a miraculous rescue is inevitable. Camara Five has, after all, been scheduled for publication next year.
September 5, 2014
Blood Med by Jason Webster
is his fourth book about police detective Max Cámara. It is topical and takes us to the reality behind dry and distanced news about Spain´s high unemployment and we meet corrupt politicians in symbiosis with the bank world. An underground movement has emerged in Valencia where Max lives. Literally underground as they use a newly built but never used underground station for homeless people to get shelter for the night. Alternative ways to muddle through are created, as far out of sight from the establishment as possible. Max Cámara´s anarchist grandfather, Hilario plays a leading role.
An accurate portrait of an incompetent and politically assigned chief is the description of Cámara’s boss, I´m sure many are familiar with the type, and it´s also interesting to read about what happens to people in groups led by such persons.
Cámara doesn´t care what other people thinks, that is so refreshing, and it´s a pleasure as well as exciting to be in his company.
is his fourth book about police detective Max Cámara. It is topical and takes us to the reality behind dry and distanced news about Spain´s high unemployment and we meet corrupt politicians in symbiosis with the bank world. An underground movement has emerged in Valencia where Max lives. Literally underground as they use a newly built but never used underground station for homeless people to get shelter for the night. Alternative ways to muddle through are created, as far out of sight from the establishment as possible. Max Cámara´s anarchist grandfather, Hilario plays a leading role.
An accurate portrait of an incompetent and politically assigned chief is the description of Cámara’s boss, I´m sure many are familiar with the type, and it´s also interesting to read about what happens to people in groups led by such persons.
Cámara doesn´t care what other people thinks, that is so refreshing, and it´s a pleasure as well as exciting to be in his company.
December 1, 2014
I received this book from Goodreads First Reads Giveaway. It is written on a background of Spanish political unrest and although there are many books about corruption of local government and police, this brought something different with the underground (literally) movement. Well drawn characters move the story forward at pace, all done on an undercurrent of sadness and perhaps to me that was the book's strong achievement. Excellent main character, I can't wait to see how the author develops him further.
August 27, 2016
Leaving a copy of list in the gym is too unlikely.........plus Camara and Alicia captured would never have survived. A good read nevertheless and in times of Brexit an insight into the very worst that can happen in a financially broke country.
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May 7, 2016
2.5 stars really for personal reasons
"the characters talk politics almost more than they speak of the murder. "
read more: http://likeiamfeasting.blogspot.gr/20...
"the characters talk politics almost more than they speak of the murder. "
read more: http://likeiamfeasting.blogspot.gr/20...
January 12, 2015
I came in mid-series. Not quite a procedural, not quite anarchic, but definitely a conspiracy. A fast, fun read, but I suspect I need the earlier works for a bit of back story.
June 28, 2015
Took a few chapters before the narrative fully developed. As always, Cámara is almost a one-man operation, facing his adversaries in some perilous situations.
January 27, 2016
Really enjoyed this book a lot. The mystery, the corruption and the Valencian touch. Fenomenal!
April 6, 2016
I'm a committed Jason Webster fan. I love his writing about Valencia, Spanish history and politics as well his capacity to create a good old fashioned police procedural.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews