Red Water (Crvena voda, 2017) is a story about a 17 year-old girl who went missing after the local fishermen’s fair in a small Dalmatian town in September 1989. During the following months and years, due to social upheavals (the fall of communism, political changes, war…), the missing girl’s case is forgotten, and her family (mother, father, and twin brother) is left alone in their pursuit to find her. The novel follows a timespan of 27 years and observes the destinies of the people involved in the case - family members, suspects, a communist-era policeman, and others.

Red Water has won widespread acclaim, receiving some of the most prestigious literary awards in Croatia and Europe. In Croatia, it earned the Gjalski Award and the Fric Award for best prose. It has been translated into French, German, Italian, Macedonian, Ukrainian, Latvian, Slovak, English, Slovenian, and Polish. Following the release of the French edition, the novel received the Prix Les Points, Transfuge Award, Prix Mystère de la critique, Michel Witta‑813 Award, and the Grand Prix de la Littérature Policière for the best international crime novel published in France. The English edition was recognized as one of the best crime and thriller novels of 2025 by the Financial Times and included in The Sunday Times Best Books of 2025 list. 

“One of the best novels I’ve read in ages." - Joan Smith, Sunday Times

“This finely engineered, haunting novel has been deservedly garlanded with awards.” - Adam LeBor, Financial Times

Jurica Pavičić is a Croatian novelist, screenwriter, short story writer and journalist, born in 1965 in Split, where he still lives. He gained literary reputation with his unorthodox thrillers and crime novels that combine social analysis with deep insights into morally complex human situations. The Guardian called him "one of Europe’s leading crime writers." Celebrated for his insightful analyses and commentary, he has contributed to leading Croatian newspapers, including Jutarnji list, Slobodna Dalmacija, and Feral Tribune. His essays and columns have been collected in several volumes. 

Jurica Pavičić has received numerous awards for his journalism, film criticism, and literary work including the Vladimir Vuković Award for film criticism, the Marija Jurić Zagorka Award, the Veselko Tenžera Award, and the Miljenko Smoje Award. In literature, his debut novel Ovce od gipsa was nominated for the Gjalski Award, and its adaptation, the film Witnesses, earned him a screenplay award at the Pula Film Festival. His TV miniseries Patrola na cesti also won several festival accolades. His fiction has been widely translated and recognized internationally, highlighting his significant contribution to contemporary Croatian literature.

Pavičić’s novel Žigice and the essay collection Knjiga o Jugu are also available in the book&zvook library as Croatian-language audiobooks.