“Gamboa is one of the most interesting Latin American writers… [and Necropolis] is his most ambitious novel yet.”— La Nácion
“Gamboa is, along with García Márquez, the most important Colombian writer.”—Manuel Vázquez Montalbán
“[With Necropolis] Gamboa proves once again that perhaps no other contemporary Colombian author more perfectly captures the rhythm of storytelling…A formidable writer who deserves hearty praise for uniquely lively, lucid and passionate prose.”—El Espectador (Colombia)
“[Necropolis exhibits a] magnificent use of language, accomplishing the difficult task of bringing so many different voices to life whilst making each one authentic and unique.”— La Otra Orilla Jury
And here is what Siobhan Murphy had to say in a recent Metro review of the book – click here
“I operate according to Julio Cortázar’s maxim: funny is not the opposite of serious, but the opposite of boring.” — Santiago Gamboa
An unnamed author is invited to the International Congress of Biography and Memory in Jerusalem. Surprised and flattered, he accepts only to find the event a most unusual affair. In the conference rooms of a luxury hotel, he listens to a series of extraordinary life stories: the saga of a chess-playing duo, the tale of an Italian porn star with liberal affectations, the drama of a Colombian industrialist who has been waging a longstanding battle with local paramilitaries, and many more. But it is José Maturana—evangelical pastor, recovering drug addict, ex-con—with his captivating story of redemption at the hands of a charismatic tattooed messiah from Miami, who fascinates the author more than any other.
Hours after his stirring presentation to a rapt audience, Maturana is found dead in his hotel room. At first it seems likely that he has taken his own life, but there are a few loose ends that don’t support the suicide hypothesis. The narrator, moved by Maturana’s life story to discover the truth about his death, will lead an investigation that turns the entire plot of this chimerical novel on its end.