Novel, SEIX BARRAL (April 2018)
Built around suicide, which Camus considered the only truly serious philosophical problem, Clara Usón has written a novel based on her own history, full of humour, philosophy, and devastating revelations.
Clara Usón explores Sandra Mozarowski’s turbulent career as an actress in Spanish nude films in the 70s, and draws parallels with her own life. The actress died at the age of 18 after throwing herself off the balcony of her home, although rumour has it she was murdered by Spain’s intelligence services after being impregnated by King Juan Carlos. The author finds tragicomic resonances with her own process of self-destruction, and the complex relationship she maintained with her mother from childhood.
This is the true story of two women, two generations who come into conflict when the country’s reality changes with the advent of democracy, bringing down the curtain on the dark decades of Francoism. The mother is an alcoholic, cloistered in spite of herself in the domestic role assigned to women during the years of dictatorship. The daughter, like Sandra Mozarowski, is caught up in the years of liberation and excess, convinced the future belongs to her, never realizing it might be taken away.
"Novela pop donde hilos misteriosos unen a la narradora con Mozarovski, Pavese o Wittgenstein para explicar que nada hay más coherente que el delirio." Marta Sanz
"No hay duda de que estamos ante una novela que merece ser degustada por un buen número de lectores." Ovidio Paredes, Huffington Post
"Porque El asesino tímido es indudablemente uno de sus libros más brillantes, escrito con una prosa que logra atrapar al lector desde la primera página. … El asesino tímido nos ratifica a Usón como una de las mejores autoras actuales, pero también nos hace mirar en nosotros mismos, aunque para ello tengamos que buscar un reflejo, una imagen que puede ser demasiado real. Víctor Fernández, La Razón.
"Un libro que se reivindica en la tradición cervantina de la "escritura desatada." Ana Rodríguez Fischer, Babelia
"El secreto de estas digresiones lo resuelve la maestría de Usón, una de las grandes prosistas de los últimos años." Babelia
"Plagada de reflexiones de calado, entre la tragedia y la comedia, el libro revela una factura madura." El Mundo. Tendències
Blog de Clara Usón: Algunas claves de mi última novela. Huff Post. 12/04/2018