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Max Tomlinson
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Sendero Kindle Edition

by Max Tomlinson (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 395 ratings
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Named one of the top 100 Indie novels of 2012 by Kirkus Reviews

"A vividly described journey through Peru’s underbelly as the narrative gains momentum, hurtling toward a dramatic climax."...Kirkus Reviews

The Truth Can Be Deadly

In 1987, the dirty war that will last twelve years and kill thirty thousand Peruvians finally reaches up through the Andean cloud forest for Nina and her family. Nina’s father is shot by soldiers, her mother raped, and her brother lost to the shadowy ranks of Shining Path guerrillas. And when Agustín Malqui, the village pastor, files a legal complaint against the military, it’s no surprise when he disappears in the middle of the night—just another casualty of the military regime.

Twenty-odd years later, Nina, now an officer in Cuzco’s tourist police, comes across a familiar name on the police printer that she scans daily for any trace of her long-lost brother. Agustín Malqui is alive. After spending years in a political prison, the broken pastor has been wandering the country, saving souls and drowning his demons in pisco. Nina tracks him down, only to lose him yet again in a police sweep of political malcontents. But before Malqui disappears, he tells her a drunken tale she can scarcely believe: that her brother Miguel is still alive.

Despite warnings and threats from her chief and the pleadings of her lover, an officer in Peru’s anti-terrorist branch, Nina presses on to find Malqui. Her search takes her through Peru’s underworld, from remote villages high in the Andes to the steaming jungle haunts of the narcotraficantes, and ultimately to a secret political prison in the altiplano, where she learns the truth about Malqui and her own vanished brother.

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  1. Book 1 of 2
    Who Sings to the Dead?
  2. Print length
    371 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  5. Publication date
    August 26, 2014
  6. File size
    2574 KB
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Editorial Reviews

Review

Named one of the top 100 Indie novels of 2012 by Kirkus Reviews

"A vividly described journey through Peru's underbelly as the narrative gains momentum, hurtling toward a dramatic climax."...Kirkus Reviews

About the Author

Born in the wilds of San Francisco, with its rich literary history and public transport system teeming with potential characters suitable for crime novels, it was inevitable that Max Tomlinson would become a writer.  See maxtomlinson-author.com for more about his work and to sign up for his newsletter which is sent almost never.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B006466CCE
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Sendero Press (August 26, 2014)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ August 26, 2014
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 2574 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 371 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 395 ratings

About the author

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Max Tomlinson

Max Tomlinson

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Born in the wilds of San Francisco, with its rich literary history and public transport system teeming with characters suitable for crime novels, the stage was set for Max Tomlinson to become a mystery writer. His novels include SENDERO (listed as one of the top 100 Indie novels of 2012 by Kirkus), WHO SINGS TO THE DEAD, LETHAL DISPATCH, THE CAIN FILE (selected by Amazon's Kindle Scout program), and the follow-up, THE DARKNET FILE. Max's Colleen Hayes Mysteries of the '70s, published by Oceanview, include VANISHING IN THE HAIGHT (a USA Today Bestseller), TIE DIE, BAD SCENE, LINE OF DARKNESS, and NIGHT CANDY which released 7/25/2023.

Max's alter ego, Max Radin, is also known to pen the odd humorous effort. Check out "Rock 'n' Roll Vampire" for a shocking exposé on vampirism in the music industry. Shocking.

Visit Max's blog, sign up for his email list, or send comments, which he always enjoys: https://maxtomlinson.wordpress.com/

Customer reviews

4.1 out of 5 stars
4.1 out of 5
395 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

F.M. Kahren
5.0 out of 5 stars Drama, Adventure, and Insightful Wit
Reviewed in the United States on October 19, 2012
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Sendero succeeds on so many levels. As a Mystery/Thriller, Sendero maintains both pace and dramatic tension as the reader and the characters advance through the story. As human drama, Max Tomlinson presents vivid characters who are not simply flawed as a convenient dramatic device, but appear to the reader as genuine souls struggling to satisfy their senses of honor and justice and, in some cases, service to their God all while treading a dangerous path, a sendero, which could cost them their lives at any point in the journey. Sendero also serves very, very well as a parable of the people of a modern nation moving from their heart-wrenching past into a nobler future.

Personally, when I read something that is really well written, I read it aloud. Max Tomlinson's prose is clever, and stylish, and apt and still intimately human. Reading Tomlinson's smooth prose made me feel clever and insightful as I made my way through the story alongside the characters.

If I had to gauge, Mr. Tomlinson's formidable talent, I would say that his work reminds me of the best of Martin Cruz Smith (Gorky Park and the Arkady Renko adventures) and Tony Hillerman (and his fictional tales of the Navajo Tribal Police).

Sendero is one of the best, most satisfying reads that I have had in quite some time.
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C. M. Briggs
4.0 out of 5 stars Strong, superbly researched and well written, mystery/action story
Reviewed in the United States on July 20, 2012
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This is a solid adventure/mystery story made memorable by 1.) a detailed, well-researched look at contemporary Peru 2.) original, convincingly drawn characters 3.) clean, clear but sufficiently detailed - very good, really - prose that keeps you turning the pages.

Looking at the novel with the detailed scrutiny it deserves, perhaps the plot itself is a trifle familiar - a jailbreak yarn with a couple of twists, and maybe the structure is a tad wobbly and the sudden shift in viewpoint a little annoying - but these are very, very minor quibbles. Again, the novel is so thoroughly researched, the setting itself so fresh, the characters so interesting and the background so vividly brought to life, "Sendero" is worth reading.

On the plus side, I found Tomlinson's revelation of how the drug culture has corrupted every single aspect of Peruvian society, even derailing the attempted revolution, the "Dirty War," of a few years back to be particularly chilling. All in all, "Sendero" is a stinging expose of both "New" and "Old" Peru -- with the "Gringo" backers of the military government and chief consumers of Cocaine, the United States, getting its just share of criticism. An entertaining novel with substance.

Recommended - and I'm looking forward to the next one.
3 people found this helpful
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DVE
5.0 out of 5 stars A compelling must read
Reviewed in the United States on November 24, 2011
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With Sendero Max Tomlinson delivers a story that vibrates with tension and danger. Nina, a young Peruvian peasant girl, is drawn into her country's violence during the early 1980s through a series of losses. Government forces wantonly killing peasants, murder Nina's father, and the village pastor is imprisoned as an agitator for requesting an official government inquiry into the murder. With the brutal killing of her husband, Nina's mother loses her mind. After the murder of their father, Nina's older brother, Miguel, whom she adores, disappears to join the revolutionary guerrilla group, the Shining Path. Years later, Nina, now a young woman employed in Lima's tourist police bureau, becomes involved in a dangerous quest when she attempts to find and protect her old village pastor who has possible news of her brother, Miguel. Sendero immerses the reader in a pivotal period in the turbulent recent history of Peru by combining politics and police procedural with mystery and suspense. But Sendero is more than a vividly drawn history lesson. It's a story about love and courage and commitment during perilous times. Sendero is a beautifully written and compelling must read.
One person found this helpful
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grammy
3.0 out of 5 stars Interesting read
Reviewed in the United States on August 15, 2018
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Learned a lot about the political climate in Peru from reading this story. Unlike any book I’ve read previously and I read a lot! Good characterization and s storyline with a number of twists.
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John Byrne Barry
4.0 out of 5 stars Politics and Love in Peru
Reviewed in the United States on April 25, 2013
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This book kept my turning the pages and the description and drama were pretty good, though more could have been done with it.

The story, that of a brother and sister who saw their father killed by soldiers who were fighting the Shining Path, and then grew up following vastly different paths -- one as a Shining Path member, the other as a member of the Cuzco tourist polices (and an amateur detective) has a great deal of promise, and the setting is very ecocative. (I've been to Cuzco, so that was part of the pleasure.

But there were times when the realism and depth of the characters were sacrificed for the plot. In one instance -- spoiiler alert -- Nina falls in love with a young man who becomes her ally and when he is killed, she doesn't even seem to stop to grieve.

The politics were handled relatively well. The Shining Path were portrayed with some level of sympathy, but they certainly weren't romanticized. There was more nuance with the politics in some respects than with the characters.

It was an enjoyable read, however, and it was well-written, but it suffered from the same flatness of character that I see in many thrillers.

-- John Byrne Barry, author of  Bones in the Wash: Politics is Tough. Family is Tougher.
7 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Barbara Tsipouras
4.0 out of 5 stars Consequences of Civil War
Reviewed in Germany on November 3, 2019
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What does Civil war do to a country? What if revolution gets mixed up with crime? What if you can't trust anybody, the lines are clear and there's no life in between? Corruption, torture and lost morals are the all too often deadly consequences.
The example in this novel is Peru, a country most of us don't know much about. A country where the original habitants have been suppressed for centuries, where corrupt and brutal government brought parts of the people to seek revolution. A unique history? Not at all. Injustice will bear rebellion at some point.

The story of Nina and Miguel is believable although somehow extreme. It's full of suspense and action without lecturing or moralizing, but with an unsatisfying end.
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laura
5.0 out of 5 stars avvincente
Reviewed in Italy on June 15, 2017
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una storia ricca di emozioni ambientata in Perù. Polizia corrotta, trafficanti di droga e una protagonista che lotta per salvae il suo vecchio sacersote.
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DustBowl
5.0 out of 5 stars Perfecto!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 13, 2014
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Really enjoyed this book, set in a part of the world I travelled and worked in for many yearss. The author paints a good picture of the trials and tribulations from Peru's dark times which many people outside Peru have no idea about.

Loved the story, loved the characters and couldn't put it down!

Recommended!
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Belle
5.0 out of 5 stars Teresa
Reviewed in France on March 13, 2013
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I ignored this book for many weeks, thinking that a story set in Peru would be long and boring and very political. However, what a wonderful surprise. I loved this book. The characters were very well drawn and I immediately felt a sense of rapport with them - all of them good and bad. It is an intelligent story with just enough of the political background so one can understand the rationale behind the thinking of the people. I recommend this book to any one who likes, a thrilling but intelligent read.
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Well researched and a good read
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 7, 2014
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It may be a novel but it's well researched and gives a glimpse of the reality of Peru's 'dirty war'.
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