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Winter in Madrid

Author: C. J. Sansom
Publisher: Viking Adult
Category: Book

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Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

18 reviews
Sales Rank: 40733

Media: Hardcover
Pages: 544
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.7
Dimensions (in): 8.9 x 6.3 x 2.1

ISBN: 0670018481
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.92
EAN: 9780670018482
ASIN: 0670018481

Publication Date: January 24, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Location e67,lr==no dc

Also Available In:

•	Paperback - Winter in Madrid: A Novel
•	Hardcover - Winter in Madrid
•	Paperback - Sansom Novel 3(Tpb)
•	Paperback - Winter in Madrid
•	Paperback - Winter in Madrid
•	Audio Download - Winter in Madrid
•	Kindle Edition - Winter in Madrid
•	Hardcover - Winter in Madrid

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
A compelling thriller and love story set in postCivil War Spain

Fans of Carlos Ruiz Zafons The Shadow of the Wind and Sebastian Faulkss Birdsong will fall in love with Winter in Madrid, the arresting new novel from C. J. Sansom. In September 1940, the Spanish Civil War is over and Madrid lies in ruins while the Germans continue their march through Europe. Britain stands alone as General Franco considers whether to abandon neutrality and enter the war.

Into this uncertain world comes Harry Brett, a privileged young man who was recently traumatized by his experience in Dunkirk and is now a reluctant spy for the British Secret Service. Sent to gain the confidence of Sandy Forsyth, an old school friend turned shadowy Madrid businessman, Brett finds himself involved in a dangerous game and surrounded by memories.

Meanwhile, Sandys girlfriend, ex-Red Cross nurse Barbara Clare, is engaged in a secret mission of her ownto find her former lover Bernie Piper, whose passion for the Communist cause led him into the International Brigades and who vanished on the bloody battlefields of the Jarama.

In a vivid and haunting depiction of wartime Spain, Winter in Madrid is an intimate and riveting tale that offers a remarkable sense of history unfolding and the profound impact of impossible choices.

Customer Reviews: Read 13 more reviews...

3 out of 5 stars

It had potential November 24, 2008
Lori A. Miller (Colorado)
Winter in Madrid is a story of a spy, Harry, out of his depth against a malicious former classmate and, later, the Spanish government. The author describes conditions and politics of Spain of the late 1930s and early 1940s without becoming tedious. The characters are a little extreme--Barbara is an utter doormat, Bernie is a flaming communist, Sandy is a heartless villain--apparently, the Civil War brought out the worst in everyone. The plot was what intrigued me, though, and I very much enjoyed the first two-thirds of this book.

SPOILER AHEAD
Alas, the plot fails in the last third of the book. After hundreds of pages of good writing (I thought), the author uses cliched plot devices and unlikely scenarios. Barbara tells Harry of a harebrained scheme to spring Bernie out of prison, where he is held illegally. Rather than using his position to get Bernie released through diplomatic channels, he inserts himself into the harebrained scheme. Diplomacy is never even discussed. During a hurried getaway, Sofia hears a noise and decides to check it out. Bang--she dies. At least the car starts on the first crank.

The copyediting could have been a more thorough. After dumping Barbara without a word, unsentimental Sandy turns into Barbara's stalker. It adds nothing to the plot and should have been snipped. At one point, Barbara is referred to as Senora Brett (not her name). And technically, the story takes place in autumn, not winter. Winter in Madrid started out well, but it seemed to be hurried up at the end.

5 out of 5 stars

Winter in Madrid October 24, 2008
Inez J. Austin
This was one of the best books I have read in the last three years. Very interesting not only for the plot, which was intricate, but for the images of Franco's Spain in the late 1930s. The ending was not a give away, you had to read the whole thing, and you wanted to. It made me want to know more.

5 out of 5 stars

Really good all the way through September 26, 2008
Stephen McHenry (Olney, MD USA)
Well written characters and plot, believable and interesting; two stories with a common thread alternate chapters until they combine into one neatly done unexpected finish. At no point in the 500 some pages did my interest slacken. Not necessarily a thriller or a mystery, maybe both set in a historical fiction: The end of the Spanish Civil War, during the Second World War before the US enters, when England is alone and hanging on for dear life, in this case by hook or crook via the English embassy in Madrid. There is politics involved in the story but the author does not take time out to lecture about political philosophy or to take sides other than to say there is good and bad on both sides, and that it is always human and personal.
I would suggest reading the Wikipedia article on the Spanish Civil War before starting just to get oriented; the author is British and I imagine this stuff is more widely known to Europeans as part of their recent history.
I enjoyed this book very much and am going to try another by this author.

5 out of 5 stars

Another Good Eve of WWII Read September 6, 2008
Richard Kurtz (NYC<P>NYC, NY United States)
I am always thrilled when I discover a book and author that cover one of my favorite reading genres --that area that Alan Furst so nobly patrols along with David Downing's two recent books on pre-war Berlin --Zoo Station and Silesian Station, and now I can add C.J Sansom's wonderful Winter in Madrid as well.

I found this book, in spite of its considerable length at over 500 pages to be a wonderful and compelling read. The characterizations of the three highly diverse public school mates at an English boarding school and how they are fated to meet again in Madrid following the end of the Spanish Civil War made for a real page turning experience.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys being brought back to that period of utter turmoil, divided loyalties and questionable political alliances and intrigue.

3 out of 5 stars

Winter in Madrid left me cold August 25, 2008
JJ Johnson (Urbana, Illinois USA)
I wanted to love this book set in Madrid between the Civil War and World War II, but it was more romance than stimulating historical fiction. Too much of the plot was predictable. I won't pass it along to friends to read.

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