With this sentence, Paz Castello makes you think about revenge, wounds, and forgiveness. Do we know the value of forgiveness? Forgiveness is one of the most difficult values to bring into reality. It is a personal decision that requires courage and effort, as it contradicts the discomfort we experience when someone hurts us. Forgiveness may even lead to feelings of understanding, empathy and compassion towards the person who hurt you. Forgiving does not mean forgetting or excusing for the damage that has been done to you or making amends with the person causing it. Forgiveness brings the kind of peace that helps us continue with our lives. Buddhism sees forgiveness as a practice to prevent hurtful thoughts that might unsettle our mental health. Buddhism upholds that feelings of hate and resentment leave a long-lasting effect on our karma. In fact, Buddhism promotes the nurture of thoughts that leave a healthy feeling. The Dalai Lama said: «The essence of Christianity and Buddhism is the same: the practice of love, which requires an emphasis on forgiveness and sharing the suffering of others». But what happens when you cannot forgive?

In Paz Castelló’s novel, published by Ediciones B, NONE OF US WILL HAVE MERCY brings out the moment when someone reaches their limit and can’t keep forgiving.

Paz manages two extraordinary female characters, Camila and Nora, two very different women with something in common: they have been used by men and are now unafraid to confront them. Camila used to be that kind of woman that doesn’t know how strong she is until she tests herself. But her life changes when she decides to leave her husband and receives a favorable divorce agreement. While trying to find out her ex-fiancé’s hidden intentions, she will meet Nora, a young student who has kept a terrible secret for years and will turn her world upside down. The special relationship that is born between them will shake their lives. This is their moment: this time around, they won’t forgive. Life tends to offer a second chance for women like Camila to start over. One day, the cage opens and faces a new dilemma: getting out or staying in.

Beyond the genre called «domestic noir», Paz makes us fall in love with two strong female characters who face extreme situations but come out stronger, and new opportunities arise, which would not have happened without their courage to face the difficulties.

The writer Blas Ruiz Grau said about her: “With this novel, Paz Castelló shows she is one of the best noir writers in our country”. To me, Paz is among the authors in the agency who most deserve this step forward since, after a long career of effort and hard work as a writer, she has brought this novel which is a giant step towards gaining more readers than she already has, and to escalate amongst the most consolidated authors of this genre.