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Thriller
1938
Spain
Jack Telford Series Book #1
Jack Telford Series Book #1
'September 1938. Spain's Civil War has been raging for two years, the outcome still in the balance. But rebel General Franco is so confident of winning that he has opened up battlefield tourism along the country's north coast.
Jack Telford, a left-wing reporter, finds himself with an eccentric group of tourists on one of the War Route's yellow Chrysler buses. Driven by his passion for peace, Telford attempts to uncover the hidden truths beneath the conflict.
But Jack must contend first with his own gullibility, the tragic death of a fellow passenger, capture by Republican guerrilleros, a final showdown at Spain's most holy shrine and the possibility that he has been badly betrayed. Betrayed and in serious danger.'
This is
a very well plotted and very readable historical thriller. A slightly
left-leaning journalist joins a group of nationalist-leaning tourists on their
way to civil-war-torn Spain. Their aim is to learn about the conflict and see
the effects of the Civil War, but the story takes a different turn as they are captured soon into their journey.
Ebsworth has created a wide range of brilliant characters for this novel, all bringing slightly different aspects of the war to the story and to the complex and competent portrayal of the political situation in Spain and wider Europe. Set over a period of only two weeks in 1938, as the fate of Czechoslovakia is being decided as well, this is a really gripping and informative read, containing a lot of suspense and delivering some stunning surprises.
I particularly enjoyed the skillful portrayal of the complexity of the conflict in Spain, the manifold vested interests by different groups and their effects.
I never knew there was so much to learn about the Spanish Civil War and I hugely enjoyed this novel. Very accomplished.
© Christoph Fischer
A truly magnificent read!
ReplyDeleteThanks Christoph. Glad you enjoyed it - though the sequel, due out next month (May 2017) is a bit pacier, I reckon. It follows Telford's story through to the last days of the Spanish Civil War and I've called this one, "Until the Curtain Falls"
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