Customer Reviews
Historically good - By: Simon Wells, 12 Oct 2008 
I picked this book up while on tour & read it within a couple of weeks. At first I thought it had potential with the prologue showing the Civil war & focusing on one of the communist soldiers Bernie & then the air raids on London & how the people of London coped with this. However once the character goes to Madrid the plot slows right down & then doesn't seem to pick up again until the end & the plot twist, which I won't ruin for you.
I think the book is worth a read just for the historical value. It does show how bad the civil war wasin Spain & if like me you don't know much about that part of history it does explain a lot.
By far not the best book I have read but still enjoyable
An almost-brilliant novel - By: Neil French, 09 Oct 2008 
I only bought this because of the title & the subject (I'm interestedin the Spanish Civil War), & it sat, unread, on my bookshelf for a year. Only when I'd read Sansom's Shardlake novels did I give it a go. The first thing that struck me is how different it is this from those others. Although I'm blown away by the Shardlake series, & want more, this is a marvellous read on its own. A bit predictable, maybe, & the end seems a bit hurried, but well worth reading.
stodgy and disappointing - By: wordparty, 18 Aug 2008 
Having an interestin the Spanish civil war & liking crime novels, i thought this would be just right, but found it all wrong.Yet another book that relies,in the plot, on improbable coincidences that feel like a deception, an easy way out. Lifein postwar Madrid does not seem real, although it may be well-researched. The writing is overblown - too many adjectives, too many unnecessary awkward details: (his eyes went flickering over the desk...)and the characters talkin a kind of brief-encounter-speak, which soon palls. Worst of all, there is no real pacein the book, or drive to find out what is going to happen next to the uninteresting characters. The reviews quoted on the cover are baffling, & just show that you shouldn't believe everything you readin the newspapers...
Magnificent and moving - By: P. Riggall, 31 Jul 2008 
After two days of compulsive reading I have just finished this book, one of the best I have readin a long time. Sansom's clever portrail of his main characters during a difficult & bloody timein Madrid is gritty, thoughy-provoking & utterly believable. He manages to weave together an exceptional plotline with brilliant narrative & credible characters, setin the run up to & also during the second world war, with great flair & ease. His account of conditionsin Madrid is historically accurate & really draws the reader in, whilst the strong characters guide you thorugh the intriguing story. At times I simply could not put this book down, & having finished it, my mind it still reeling at the outcome & thinking about the characters. Allin all this was a great read, thrilling, romantic, historical & tear-jerking. I cannot recommend it enough.
Gripping from start to finish! - By: L. H. Healy, 19 Jun 2008 A superb thriller, I have been absolutely riveted by it, totally gripped & intrigued throughout this story.
Would highly recommend it if you're after an interesting, moving & suspenseful tale.
Set against the backdrop of the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War, Sansom tells a brilliant tale of three former school acquaintances, Sandy & Bernie & Harry, & what has happened to them during & after the SC War.
The action takes place mainlyin Madrid, which has been devastated by the conflict & the aftermath, many of the people destitute & cities ravaged. Harry is recruited by the British government to find out more about the current activitiesin Spain of Sandy, who is now with Barbara, Bernie's former love. Bernie is now missing presumed killedin fighting during the War as part of the International Brigades.
There are many fascinating & believable characters whose fates I grew to really care about, not only the lead ones but also those depicted working at the British Embassyin Madrid at the time, & I felt that the story was really fitted neatly into the historical context by Sansom. It evokes a tangible feeling of place & time that the reader can enter. The novel stirs many emotions, pain & anger, love, hate, horror & hope. It is thrilling right until the final page of the epilogue as we discover the fate of each character. Look forward to reading more by Sansom.
