Diego's Brooklyn

Fiction - Crime
167 Pages
Reviewed on 08/23/2019
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    Book Review

Reviewed by Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite

Diego's Brooklyn by Adrian Del Valle is the story of a young boy and how his life turned upside down because of other people. Diego never had an easy life. He is a 14-year-old boy who lives with his handicapped mother on welfare. What little money they have can’t buy everything so Diego makes up for it by hustling on the streets. He finds comfort in the smallest of things, but his biggest comfort is in his elderly friends Bill and Beulah. However, when a man living in his building is murdered by the Irish mob for not returning their money, Diego’s already troubled life is turned upside down. The police and the mob all want the money that is hidden somewhere and they will do whatever it takes to get their hands on it. Somehow, young Diego finds himself in the middle of it all and there is no way out. What will he do?

The moment I started reading this novel, I knew I wouldn’t be able to put it down. From the suspense behind Bill’s borrowing money to Diego’s struggle to make ends meet, the story had me hooked and wasn’t letting me go. What I loved most about this novel was how consistent the narrative was. There was a steady flow and the author kept the momentum going, allowed the suspense to simmer and ensured that the reader had plenty to think about. There was never a dull moment in the story; I wanted to know more about the mob, why certain police members were involved and why all of that impacted on Diego as it did. He already had to grow up long before he was supposed to. By the end of this novel, he had a mature air about him that just made him a favorite of mine. The solid storyline, details, well-developed characters and plenty of action made this novel a favorite of mine. Very entertaining and impressive!