From internationally acclaimed author Santiago Roncagliolo comes a crime story laced with drama that delves into the most powerful bond of all: that between a mother and her children—and what happens when something as dark as crime threatens to tear it apart. A gripping novel full of action, suspense, and twists, but also deeply rooted in character development.
Maritza Fontana has it all: prestige, a brilliant legal career in Lima, two charming daughters, and a marriage others envy. Until the house of cards collapses.
On the day of the opening of her first independent business venture—a luxury boutique hotel she believed would cement her place at the top of Lima’s elite—her teenage daughter Patricia, with whom she has a difficult relationship, is involved in a drunk-driving accident. The scandal threatens to destroy the family’s reputation, especially when rumors emerge that it may not have been an accident at all: Patricia’s violent ex-boyfriend, Iván, might have been chasing her that night. Maritza is consumed with guilt for not having protected her better.
While Patricia lies in a coma, Maritza meets Reinaldo Jáuregui at the hospital—a charismatic man with dangerous connections. He offers unconditional support and steps in when she is at her most vulnerable.
Emotionally shattered and against her instincts, Maritza agrees to represent one of Reinaldo’s associates, Percy Cuadrado, in what seems to be a harmless legal case. But it quickly spirals out of control. Maritza becomes entangled in the criminal underworld, caught between questionable loyalties, power struggles, and a desperate need to redeem herself as a mother. Each decision she makes in the name of protecting her daughters only drags her deeper, until she finds herself in the crosshairs of law enforcement.
When Maritza learns she’s about to be arrested, she attempts to flee with her daughters. After a dramatic chase, she is captured. The media eviscerates her reputation, branding her as a mobster’s lover, a pimp exploiting her own daughters, a would-be crime queen. While the real culprits vanish unscathed, Maritza takes the full blame and is sent to prison.
And yet, behind bars—where she tells her story—something is rebuilt. She finds genuine love with another inmate. Most importantly, before going to prison, she manages to recover what she values most: her daughters’ love and trust.
KEY FACTS: El accidente is a novel by Santiago Roncagliolo that explores how and why someone entirely outside the world of organized crime can become fully absorbed into it. The story evokes the atmosphere of films like Sicario or the Spanish Marshland (La isla mínima), while adding the emotional complexity of a mother-daughter relationship.
With hundreds of thousands of copies sold, Santiago Roncagliolo is one of the most important contemporary voices in Spanish-language literature. His books have been translated into more than twenty languages, and several have been adapted for the screen. He has received the Alfaguara Prize for Best Novel, the El Barco de Vapor Prize for Children’s Literature, the Luces Prize, among others. As a translator, he was a finalist for the prestigious Independent Foreign Fiction Prize.
What critics and rewiews say:
“A book that shows us the thin line between good and evil.” – Goodreads
“A fast-paced and compelling read […] revealing a murky reality shaped by legal and moral decay—the bitter daily bread of our society.” – CuentaArtes
“Roncagliolo constructs a sharp thriller from the heart of the upper class, probing into the desperate urge to be, to preserve, and to perform one’s social status at any cost.” – El Comercio Perú
AUDIOVISUAL POTENTIAL: TV Series, Miniseries, Feature Film, TV Movie
AVAILABLE LANGUAGES: Spanish
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