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jhbandcats's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
War ruins everything. It's seen over and over again. This excellent novel, written by the author of the Tudor-era Matthew Shardlake series, takes place a year after the Spanish Civil War has ended. The country is in ruins, the victors still doing everything possible to eradicate the vanquished, ordinary people starving and freezing to death.
Into this hell steps Harry Brett, recently invalided out of the army after the disaster at Dunkirk, now hired to spy on Sandy, a fellow Brit who's a dodgy businessman. Harry and Sandy were in boarding school together with Bernie, a Communist who came to fight Franco's Fascists and is missing, assumed dead. In a bizarre coincidence, Bernie's girlfriend Barbara has, since Bernie's disappearance on the battlefield, become Sandy's lover.
The story follows these four as they intertwine around each other, Bernie doing his best to survive in a concentration camp, Barbara disillusioned with Sandy, Sandy with his business dealings quickly fizzling out, and Harry trying to hide his ongoing PTSD.
Post-war Madrid, an apocalyptic nightmare, is as much a character as any of the people. Relying on contemporary memoirs, Sansom recreates the despair and desperation of the Madrilenos as they pick through garbage bins, hope their cracked shoes will survive another winter, hide from the Nationalists, and protect children from the grasp
of the harsh Catholic orphanages.
A superb book, so well-written. I thought of the Ukrainians most of the time I was reading it.
Into this hell steps Harry Brett, recently invalided out of the army after the disaster at Dunkirk, now hired to spy on Sandy, a fellow Brit who's a dodgy businessman. Harry and Sandy were in boarding school together with Bernie, a Communist who came to fight Franco's Fascists and is missing, assumed dead. In a bizarre coincidence, Bernie's girlfriend Barbara has, since Bernie's disappearance on the battlefield, become Sandy's lover.
The story follows these four as they intertwine around each other, Bernie doing his best to survive in a concentration camp, Barbara disillusioned with Sandy, Sandy with his business dealings quickly fizzling out, and Harry trying to hide his ongoing PTSD.
Post-war Madrid, an apocalyptic nightmare, is as much a character as any of the people. Relying on contemporary memoirs, Sansom recreates the despair and desperation of the Madrilenos as they pick through garbage bins, hope their cracked shoes will survive another winter, hide from the Nationalists, and protect children from the grasp
of the harsh Catholic orphanages.
A superb book, so well-written. I thought of the Ukrainians most of the time I was reading it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Religious bigotry, War, Blood, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Bullying, Classism, Death, Grief, Gun violence, and Violence
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