Review of White Jaguar by Preben Orman

White Jaguar is a crime and mystery novel written by Preben Orman. Set in Merida, in the Yucatan state of Mexico, Inspector Marco Nayal of the Federal Police was called in to investigate a crime scene. A man was found dead in the mangrove swamp, and he, together with his partner and friend Chuy, follow the trail to lead them to the body’s identity and assailant. When they determined that the victim was the founder of a nanotechnology company and that his prototype is missing, the federal police find that the crime is complex and deceiving as they dig deeper into the mystery.

Marco was trained as a shaman and is also part Maya. The white jaguar, as his animal guide, helps him during dire situations. The book is an interesting story, mixing mystery with culture, tradition, and modern technology. I would recommend this to anyone who likes crime and thriller stories that are easy to follow, and that explores other countries and culture.

Being set in Yucatan, the book feels refreshing compared to other the stories that take place in big and well-known cities and the usual troubled protagonists. The characters are complex and have their own personalities. It was also easy to like Marco Nayal and to root for him as he solves the case. Even though the mystery has many layers to it, the story was easy to follow. The mix of the spirit guides and the practices of the Maya culture were very interesting and doesn’t feel out of place. I like that the author uses some Spanish words and phrases in the book. However, while I appreciate that some phrases are translated into English, they feel redundant because they are used in the same dialogue. For examples: “Don Jose. Buenos Dias, good morning, ” and “A usted Marco, to you, too. ”

I think was better to exclude the English translations and leave the interpretation to the context of the scene for the reader to understand. I feel that the Spanish language here and there already adds character to the book, and the redundancy was a break out of it. The writing also took some time to get used to. It was a little unusual and didn’t feel fluid at the start, but it doesn’t get in the way of storytelling.

Overall, I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I found some punctuation errors but none that compromises the story. I enjoyed this book and I would read another story of Inspector Marco Nayal when a sequel comes out.