Customer Reviews

Limpieza De Sangre/ Purity of Blood (Spanish Edition)

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This is the second book in the Capitán Alatriste series, a sequel to "El Capitán Alatriste" (a.k.a. "Un asunto de honor") and preceding "El sol de Breda". It tells of Alatriste's new adventure in XVII century Spain. Whereas the first book in the series was relatively light-hearted, this second book dwelves on one of the darkest episodes of Spanish history, the Inquisition, and is a deep but very entertaining exploration of the darkest corners in Spanish character. However, this is only a part of what goes on in this book. There's also quite a bit of swashbuckling adventure, romance, and mistery. The action is tightly plotted, and some historical figures make brief cameos. The author has put a lot of care in using a language that's not too modern for the story but that isn't academic, either. No wonder Arturo Pérez Reverte is the best selling writting in contemporary Spain. His flair for intelligent and entertaining novels makes him a sure winner.

Cuando termié de leer esta libro descubrí que era el segundo de una serie. Sin perder tiempo busqué el primero (Las aventuras del Capitán Alatriste) y me lo devoré en cuestión de horas. Si bien es cierto que se puede leer sin haber leído el primero, es mucho más sabroso leerlo con la información entregada en la primera parte. Iñigo Balboa,un jovencito que llegará a ser escudero de Alatriste, será quien nos narre lo que pasa: con su óptica de niño que se hace hombre, de cómplice de un extraordinario soldado que no tiene pares con la espada, pero que por honor desafía a un hombre de poder, a inquisidores. Iñigo se verá en un fuerte aprieto del cual sólo Alatriste es capaz de salvarlo.

Each book builds more suspense than the previous one read. "Limpieza de sangre" depicts milestone features about life in Spain in the first quarter of the 17th century. Without digressing too much into the social and political quagmires affecting the court of Phillip IV and his infamous, yet resourceful, prime minister Conde Duque de Olivares, Mr. Perez-Reverte's pen takes us to another nail-biting plot involving the Spanish Inquisition. His narrative is once again meticulously labored and his characters are produced quite graphically. His sense of detail is both powerful and realistic.

This book is riveting! It depicts XVII Century Spain with so much detail and imagination. Capitan Alatriste, an anti-hero sword-for-hire with a code of Honor so true of the Spaniards, is spectacular. And his friend, the Legendary Don Francisco Quevedo, one of Spain's greatest writers, collaborates with him through the story. The book is sprinkled with Quevedo's verses as well as those of Don Luis De Gongora. Inigo, the Captain's 13 year old protegee, relates the story, a la "Lazarillo de Tormes." Simply delicious!

"Captain" Diego Alatriste is a sword-for-hire in seventeenth century Spain--a difficult occupation in a difficult time, a time of outward glory and inward corruption in a country dominated by an out-of-control theocratic machine--The Inquisition. Sure enough the old soldier Alatriste is soon involved in another dangerous adventure, but this one ends in disaster. His young ward, Inigo Balboa, thirteen years old, falls into the hands of the Inquisition, and finds himself interrogated, week after week, in a secret prison, somewhere in Toledo.

Of course, there's much more to the story. A murder mystery. Historical figures from the arts and literature of the time. Alatriste's friends and deadly enemies. A horrifying auto de fe. And the haunting theme of the title--purity of bloodlines, meaning freedom from any taint of the hated (even though converted) Jews.

So, what do you suppose will happen? Will Inigo be burned at the stake? Will Alatriste find any way to save him? Will the murder mystery ever be solved? You'll just have to read the book to find out. Let me just say that Inigo, who is also the narrator, is a remarkable lad indeed.

Author Perez-Reverte writes with profound depth and wisdom, giving his characters depth and complexity, and the action moves along, dragging the reader with it. Yes, the vocabulary is somewhat intimidating, with a number of archaic words I couldn't find in my Spanish dictionary, but usually I could figure out what was going on from the context. This is the second book in the Alatriste series and a fitting sequel to the previous title. I recommend this book highly. Reviewed by Louis N. Gruber.

A punto de incorporarse a su antiguo tercio en Flandes, Diego Alatriste se ve envuelto por mediación de su amigo don Franscisco de Quevedo en otra peligrosa aventura. Una mujer ha aparecido estrangulada en una silla de manos frente a la iglesia de San Ginés, con una bolsa de dinero y una nota manuscrita: Para misas por su alma.