Mixed3am MagazineYbarra does not take the expected steps afforded by this authorial freedom. There is no attempt to dive into the interiority of those involved, no imagined experience of her grandfather’s time in captivity, no characterization of the kidnappers, or, for that matter, of anyone. If there is any emotion prevalent in the section on the kidnapping, it is disorientation; information is given to the reader without pause ... Whereas the first section was devoid of the political, the second is blind to anything resembling class structure ... Ybarra’s tendency to let things like death, politics, and wealth speak for themselves seems to have the aim of inviting reflection on part of the reader. The sparceness of the prose and swift movement between topics certainly aid this argument, yet those same two elements also rob the novel of a much needed density ... What exactly these politics are and how Ybarra intends to act on them is left unclear. If a reader is prepared for it—and perhaps if they are also scions of a powerful family—such a revelation may prove explosive. If they are not, if they are still hoping for the novel to dig its heels into one of the many territories it flies over, they may be left scratching their heads.
