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Book Summary and Reviews of The Adventures of Juan Planchard by Jonathan Jakubowicz

The Adventures of Juan Planchard by Jonathan Jakubowicz

The Adventures of Juan Planchard

by Jonathan Jakubowicz

  • Critics' Consensus (14):
  • Readers' Rating (2):
  • Published:
  • Jun 2026, 288 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

The bestselling wild, fast-paced ride through sex, drugs, revolution, and the morally gray hustle of a man who dares to game the system that destroyed his country—it's The Wolf of Wall Street meets Scarface.

"My name is Juan Planchard. I'm twenty-nine years old, and I have five million dollars in my account. I own a house in Caracas, another in Madrid, and a high-rise apartment in New York. I run a sportsbook at the Palms Hotel in Las Vegas. I share a private jet with a friend's frontman. And I'm convinced—down to my bones—that every decision I made during the revolution was the right one. My descendants will thank me."   

So begins The Adventures of Juan Planchard, the story of a middle-class nobody turned millionaire by weaponizing the very corruption that swallowed Venezuela. He dines with oligarchs, sleeps with models, and navigates a world where power is the only currency—and morality is a luxury no one can afford. 

But in the middle of the chaos, greed, and blood money, Juan falls hard for Scarlet, a sharp, seductive American beauty who just might be his way out—or his ultimate downfall.     

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"The historical setting, adept plotting, and use of Planchard as cynical guide to the underworld who is transformed by love, make this an intriguing read." —Booklist (starred review)

"The supercharged book sometimes recalls the scorched-earth jottings of Hunter S. Thompson...a brazenly entertaining tale with government corruption in its sights." —Kirkus Reviews

"Steamy sex scenes, ripe plot twists, and a deliciously over-the-top climax make this a top-notch contender for beach reading." —Publishers Weekly

"The Adventures of Juan Planchard is a smart, well written, twisty, shocking, and darkly funny journey through the Venezuelan criminal underbelly; it's also a startling portrait of a corrupt, authoritarian regime. It's a wild and unforgettable thrill ride with a sharp social conscience and I urge you to buy it and read it as soon as you can. This is a fantastic book." ―Don Winslow, #1 internationally bestselling author of The Cartel and The Border

"Jonathan Jakubowicz has crafted a novel that will remind you why you fell in love with reading to begin with. The Adventures of Juan Planchard is an electrifying ride through the colliding gray zones of politics, revolution, relationships, greed and the criminal enterprises that connect them all.  A triumph of storytelling that explores the dark side of human nature and exposes its ultimate toll.  Unforgettable!" ―Jack Carr, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Cry Havoc

This information about The Adventures of Juan Planchard was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.

Reader Reviews

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Janine_S

Venezuelan adventure
A political thriller centered around a Venezuelan playboy. It's a wild and crazy ride through a morally grey world where a man dares to game the system that destroyed his country. Juan is a middle class nobody. He has a charm that allows him entry to the world of oligarchs and corrupt politicians. He's willing to do what it takes to make money at the expense of his personal morality.

Quitting his job at Proctor & Gamble, Juan takes advantage of the currency control system set up by Hugo Chavez. He's the ultimate anti-hero until he falls in love with Scarlet. When he takes her to Caracas to meet his parents, everything changes for Juan.
Published in 2016 in Venezuela, this book became a "viral phenomenon among the Venezuelan community in exile" (Al Día). It's part political thriller and crime fiction. It takes us into the corrupt and totalitarian Venezuelan world begun in 1998 and those who live and suffer there.

Juan may be an engaging character but his choice of lifestyles is fraught with darkness and morally grey decisions. He has no scruples; he just wants money and fun. The author is quite honest in his storytelling, hiding nothing and being painfully honest - "In the land of cannibals there's no reason to be honest." While there are flaws in the book, the story holds your attention.

I'd like to thank NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for allowing me access to this ARC.

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Author Information

Jonathan Jakubowicz

Jonathan Jakubowicz is an acclaimed Venezuelan filmmaker and writer. His breakthrough film, Secuestro Express, was recognized as a "Critics' Pick" by The New York Times in 2005. He has since directed the films Hands of Stone (starring Edgar Ramirez, Ana de Armas, and Robert DeNiro) and Resistance (starring Jesse Eisenberg, Ed Harris, and Bella Ramsey). In 2016, Jakubowicz's debut novel Las Aventuras de Juan Planchard became a bestseller in the Spanish-language market, and one of the bestselling books from a Venezuelan author of all time. 

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