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From Publishers Weekly
International bestseller Pérez-Reverte (The Club Dumas) offers a winning swashbuckler set in 17th-century Spain. Hooded figures, apparently acting on the behalf of Fray Emilio Bocanegra, "president of the Holy Tribunal of the Inquisition," hire famed soldier Capt. Diego Alatriste to murder two Englishmen who have come to Madrid. One of the hooded figures, however, begs Alatriste (out of earshot of the others) only to wound the pair. When Alatriste and his fellow assassin, an ill-humored Italian, surprise the British, the captain is impressed by the fighting spirit they show, and he prevents the assassination from taking place. (The Italian, infuriated, swears eternal revenge.) When the Englishmen turn out to be on an important mission, Alatriste suddenly finds himself caught between a number of warring factions, Spanish and otherwise. Splendidly paced and filled with a breathtaking but not overwhelming sense of the history and spirit of the age, this is popular entertainment at its best: the characters have weight and depth, the dialogue illuminates the action as it furthers the story and the film-worthy plot is believable throughout. Agent, Howard Morhaim. (May 5)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Booklist
Spanish writer Perez-Reverte already has generated an eager readership for his historical thrillers; the latest is The Queen of the South (2004). Now, his earlier five-novel sequence (each title a phenomenal best-seller in Spain) featuring swordsman-for-hire Diego Alatriste, set in Spain's quickly tarnishing seventeenth-century golden age, is being published in the U.S. for the first time. The individual volumes will appear over the course of the next few years, beginning with this first installment. The Alatriste series defines the term swashbuckling. Captain Alatriste, a veteran of Spain's Flemish wars, deploys his sword for anyone who will pay, which inevitably leads him into some dicey situations; the one detailed here is a commission to assassinate, under the cover of darkness, two Englishmen on a visit to Madrid. At the last moment, Alatriste decides against running them through and spares their lives--which turns out to be fortunate on a diplomatic level, since his intended victims are revealed to be the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Buckingham, in Spain to attempt to arrange a marriage between the prince and the Spanish king's daughter. From first word to last, this novel, sure to be a hit in this country as well, fairly drips adventure off every page. Brad Hooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most helpful customer reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Hard to put down,
By A Customer
This review is from: Captain Alatriste (Hardcover)
In the tradition of Emilio Salgari and Walter Scott, Arturo Perez-Reverte provides us with the benefit of his pen. I got this first series book one year after I received "Limpieza de sangre" and "El oro del rey" as Christmas presents. Fortunately, I kept them on my bookshelf's long waiting list before I decided to read "Las aventuras del capitan Alatriste". A piece of advice: read these books sequentially even though each story is a different adventure. Such characters as Gualterio Mallatesta and Luis de Alquezar get hopscotched in key episodes and knowking their backgrounds is necessary in not getting out of track. The writing is exquisite, melodic, fun, rich and succint. I view the sociological psyche of the average character as the most interesting aspect, specifically the mindsets of 17th century Spanish swashbuckling fortune-hunters, Inquisition officers, mercenaries and poets. The inclusion of renowned Spanish dramatist and poet Francisco de Quevedo is tantamount to sprinkling saphron to paella. It colorizes the story line with necessary chunks of humor. Mr Perez-Reverte's prose is laden with an enviable lexicon that approximates the reader to the reign of Phillip IV without completely abandoning that one of Juan Carlos I.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Viva Alatriste,
By
This review is from: Captain Alatriste (Paperback)
The mood, the place, the characters and most importantly the action are all first rate. (and didn't we all know a heartbreaker like Angelica de Alquezar when we were young) I loved this book.
5.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent and memorable story,
By Ralph Doh (London, UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Captain Alatriste (Paperback)
Captain Alatriste is a fast-paced seventeenth century historical thriller set just when the glorious days of imperial Spain began to fade away. Superbly written and action-packed, this thriller gives a vivid picture of the world of the hero and the forces that influenced shaped his destiny. ZORRO,TRIPLE AGENT DOUBLE CROSS, THE QUEEN OF THE SOUTH, UNION MOUJIK also stand out as historical fictions that grip our imaginations and produced memorable heroes.
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