2010/2009

What's About to Hit the Shelves and What You May Have Missed

If you cannot find it on the shelves, order it through us.

AUGUST 2010

IT has been a long time coming but Breaking Dawn, the fourth and final part of Stephenie Meyer’s ‘Twilight’ series of teen vampire novels will be out in paperback in mid month. Meyer devotees who could not wait and so bought in hardback have already moved on to The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner, a story about a vampire first introduced in Eclipse, and the darker side of the world she inhabits. The novella chronicles the journey of members of the newborn vampire army from their preparations to close in on Bella Swan and the Cullen family to its unforgettable conclusion

Finch, by Jeff Vandermeer, is one of this year’s cult novels. In a deserted tenement in an occupied city, two dead bodies lie on a dusty floor as if they have fallen out of the air itself. The city of Ambergris is half ruined, rotten, its population controlled by narcotics, internment camps and acts of terror. But its new masters want the case closed quickly. Detective John Finch has one week to solve it or be sent to the camps himself. With no ID for the victims, no clues, no leads and precious little hope, his prospects look bleak. But there is more to the case than first meets the eye.

The Lost Symbol, Dan Brown’s latest blockbuster conspiracy novel, is motoring along well now that it is available in paperback. Love his stuff or hate it – and few people seem to fall in between – there is no doubting his ability to work up plots that capture the imagination of millions.

Other crime and thriller novels due during August include: Tigerlily’s Orchids (h) and The Monster in the Box (p), both by Ruth Rendell; Bad Boy (h), by Peter Robinson; Desire (p), by Louise Bagshawe; The Mayan Codex (p), by Mario Reading; A Room Swept White (p), by Sophie Hannah; From the Dead (h), by Mark Billingham; Potsdam Station (p), by David Downing; The Complaints (p), by Ian Rankin; U is for Undertow (p), by Sue Grafton; Present Danger (p), by Stella Rimington; Don’t Blink (h) and Swimsuit (p), both by James Patterson; and Water’s Edge (p), by Karin Fossum.

The Appointment (lp), by Herta Müller, winner of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Literature, will this month be available in English translation from the original German. A young Romanian factory worker under Ceauşescu’s regime is summoned to explain why she has been sewing messages into men’s clothes destined for Italy. It leads her to discover treachery in the most intimate reaches of her life. A fierce and finely wrought novel that is a reminder of the nightmare that Romania is still recovering from.

Other general fiction titles coming your way include: The Good Parents (p), by Joan London; The Golden Mean (p), by Annabel Lyon; Kehua (h), by Fay Weldon; The Fame Factor (p), by Polly Courtney; Personally, I Blame My Fairy Godmother (p), from Claudia Carroll; The Bed I Made (p), by Lucie Whitehouse; Pictures of Lily (p), by Matthew Yorke; The Queen of New Beginnings (p), by Erica James; Adrian Mole & The Prostrate Years (p), by Sue Townsend; and The Thief of Time (p), by John Boyne.

In the Sagas and Historical Fiction genre, look out for The Red Queen (lp), the latest in Philippa Gregory’s magnificent series of tales about prominent characters in English history – this time it is about the bride of Edmund Tudor whose son Henry founded a new royal dynasty. Prow Beast (p), the fourth in Robert Low’s superb series of Oathsworn novels follows the continuing fortunes of a group of Vikings.

Sci-Fi fans can look forward to Technician (h), a standalone novel from the mighty Neal Asher of ‘Polity’ renown, while Fantasy Fiction devotees may devour Traitor’s Gate (p), the third in Kate Elliott’s epic. Black Prism (h), by Brent Weeks, is the start of a new trilogy from the New York Times’ bestselling author of the Way of the Shadows series.

Nerja’s favourite author, based on sales of her books locally, has been celebrating 40 years of bringing hope to star-crossed lovers.

Joan Lingard, an annual winter resident, is best known on the Costa for her adult novel Encarnita’s Journey, which is set in Nerja, Almuñécar and Las Alpujarras. However, the Scottish author is hailed internationally for the Kevin and Sadie series of teenage novels

July marked Kevin and Sadie’s 40^th consecutive year in print, during which time the saga has racked up sales of more than 1.3 million individual books worldwide and in dozens of languages. Read more about this in our Blog.

August also sees the launch of The Chancery Lane Conspiracy, Joan’s latest children’s book, which is set in London. It is a sequel to the much praised novel, The Eleventh Orphan, which was shortlisted for a number of leading awards last year.

JULY 2010

A trio of crime and thriller novels with Spanish connections tops this month’s titles, some new, some in standard paperback for the first time.

First up is The Business (p), by Michael Booker. Frankie is a young lad on the run from the high-rise ghettos of South London. He is headed for a new life on the Costa del Sol with nothing but a tin stuffed full of cash in his hand baggage. He has no idea that delivering the cash to super-suave playboy and ex-con Charlie will change his life forever. He soon becomes one of the gang and finds himself drawn to the flamboyant but violent world of organised crime. The Business is expected in mid July.

The Aztec (p), by Bill Vidal, is an intricately plotted international thriller about missing Spanish gold. As General Franco’s nationalist rebels march on Madrid in the early stages of the Spanish Civil War, the Republic government authorises the evacuation of the country’s gold reserves. 7900 crates of gold leave Cartagena for Russia, but only 7800 arrive. The 100 missing boxes, if found today, would be worth around 160 million euros. Full of double agents and deception, this one will have you guessing who is really pulling the strings, and why? Aztec is expected in mid-July.

Blood Wedding (p), penned by P J Brooke, the pseudonym of a husband and wife writing team, is an intriguing mystery set in Granada and the mountains of the Sierra Nevada. Sub-inspector Max Romero is asked for help to investigate the death of Leila, a beautiful Muslim postgraduate student researching the impact of the Spanish Civil War on Max’s home village in the Sierra. Hassan, the prime suspect, has links to a supposed terror group, but the police’s insensitive handling of the case leads to a tragic suicide. Consequently, Max becomes involved in an anti-terrorist operation that is about to go badly wrong. Blood Wedding is expected in late July or early August.

Other murder and mayhem titles worth looking out for include: Pretty Little Things (p), by Jilliane Hoffman; Reginald Hill’s The Woodcutter (h or lp); Burning Wire (h), from Jeffery Deaver; Rough Justice (lp), by Stephen Leather; Deliver Us From Evil (h or lp), and True Blue (p), both from David Baldacci; Dexter is Delicious (h), by Jeff Lindsay; Linwood Barclay’s Fear The Worst (p); Even Money (p), by Dick Francis; Pursuit of Honour (p), by Vince Flynn; Truth (p), by Peter Temple; The Professional (p), by Robert B Parker; Broken (h),from Karin Slaughter; Black Water Rising (p), by Attica Locke; and Jezebel (p), a dramatic tale of murder and passion in 1930s France by Irene Nemirovsky, the late author of Suite Française.

The Brightest Star in the Sky (h or lp) by Marian Keyes, looks a good bet for best beach read of the month. At 66 Star Street in Dublin, someone is watching over the lives of its flatdwellers. But no-one is aware of it…yet. One of them is ready to take the plunge, to fall in love. Another is torn between two very different lovers. For some, secrets they want to stay buried will come to light. For others, the unveiling of those secrets will have tragic consequences. Fate is on its way to Star Street, bringing with it love and heartbreak, and the power to change lives in the most unexpected of ways.

Edward Rutherfurd has made his mark through a series of epic novels: Sarum, London, The Forest, Russka, and Dublin. In New York (p), he continues the tradition with a sweeping drama of the city from its beginnings to modern times. The lives of a cast of fictional and real characters intertwine over four centuries, highlighting the story of the City and, obliquely, the USA in a tour de force that puts us in mind of the late, great James Michener, but with better story telling. New York is expected in mid July.

Lustrum (p), continues the fictionalised story of Cicero, the great Roman statesman and orator, which author Robert Harris started in Imperium, though both books can be read individually. It is 63 BC and Cicero stands supreme as the senior consul of the republic. Jealous rivals wish to destroy him. To thwart them will take all his guile and will lead him and Rome to the brink of destruction. Lustrum is expected in mid July.

Look out for Let the Great World Spin (p), by Colum McCann. 1974 – New York. A man is walking in the sky between the newly built Twin Towers. He twirls through the air. Far below, the lives of strangers spin towards each other: Corrigan, a radical Irish monk working in The Bronx; Claire, a delicate Upper East Side housewife reeling from the death of her son; Lara, a drug addled young artist; and more. In the shadow of the high-wire walker’s reckless and beautiful act, these lives will collide and be transformed for ever.

Other great reads include: Matters of the Heart (p), by Danielle Steel; Ice Cream Girls (p), from Dorothy Koomson; Her Fearful Symmetry (p), by Audrey Niffenegger; A Bad Day in Blackrock (p), by Kevin Power; Dead Hand (p). from Paul Theroux; Search (h or lp) by Nora Roberts; Faking It (p), from Charlotte Kymberely; Stolen (p), by :Lesley Pearce; The News Where You Are (lp), by Catherine O’Flynn; The Soldier’s Song (p), by Alex Monaghan; Mersey View (p), by Ruth Hamilton; Transition (p), by Iain Banks; Men I’ve Loved Before (lp or h), by Adele Parks; Invsisible (p), by Paul Auster; Pilgrims (p), by Garrison Keillor; Meltdown (p), by Ben Elton; and Sex in the City – New York (p), edited by Maxim E Jakubowski, is the latest in a new series of passionate stories with a city based theme.

JUNE 2010

IF you are looking for a good holiday read that combines enjoyment with a little learning and romance, look no further than The Book of the Alchemist, Adam Williams’ novel. Due in mid month, it harks back to two pasts when religious, cultural or political tensions were evident in Spain but where the outcomes were markedly different.

In eleventh century Al-Andalus, while Europe slumbers in the dark ages, Southern Spain is a beacon of enlightenment that draws artists, scientists and philosophers of all faiths. In this haven of relative tolerance, three boys meet by chance under a fig tree on a hot summer's day. An alchemist, a mason and a prince, they establish a secret brotherhood that will construct a great monument to astonish the world.

In Andalucía, 1938, the Spanish Civil War is struggling to a close. A group of desperate Republican solders have kidnapped a former government minister and his grandson, and are holding hostages in a cathedral. They intend to sacrifice themselves and everyone else for their cause, in a final act of wanton death and destruction.

The discovery of an ancient book in a hidden space beneath the cathedral means nothing to the Republican soldiers. But to the hostages, the secrets it contains could offer their only escape. Connecting two ideologically-torn worlds a thousand years apart, the author’s new novel is another masterful adventure and a moving portrayal of love and friendship.

Look out too for: Long time Coming (lp), by Robert Goddard; Storm Prey (lp), by John Sandford; Villain’s Daughter (lp), from Roberta Kray; Blood’s a Rover (p), by James Ellroy; John Harvey’s A Darker Shade of Blue (p); Medusa (p) and Spy (lp), both by Clive Cussler; Play Dead (p), by Harlan Coben; Nightfall (p), by Stephen Leather; Dead Like You (lp), from Peter James; A Rush of Blood (lp), by Quintin Jardine; Buried Alive (p), from Jack Kerley; and The Five Greatest Warriors (lp), by Matthew Reilly.

Beatrice and Virgil (h) is the latest masterpiece from Yann Martel, who won the Booker Prize with Life of Pi. Fate takes many forms, and when a letter from an elderly taxidermist drops onto Henry’s doormat it poses a puzzle that he cannot resist. As he is pulled closer into the world of a strange and calculating man, Henry becomes increasingly involved with the lives of a donkey and a howler monkey – Betarice and Virgil – and the epic journey that they take together. With all the charm and spirit that brought over seven million readers worldwide to Life of Pi, this novel takes readers on a similarly imaginative odyssey.

Ghost Light (h) is an exhilirating, passionate and uplifting adventure from Joseph O’Connor, the award-winning author of Star of the Sea. It is loosely based on real events in the lives of John Synge, the greatest Irish playwright of the 20^th century, and Molly Allgood, the younger woman who was his fiancee at the time of his tragically early death.

Other eyecatchers in the general fiction lists include: Take a Chance on Me (p), by Jill Mansell; Picture perfect (p), by Jodi Picoult; Blind Fury (h), from Lynda La Plante; Amulet (p), from Roberto Bolano; Pygmy (p), Chuck Palahniuk’s finest, most ambitious novel since ‘Fight Club’, and Tell All (h), the same author’s hilarious assault on celebrity and the Golden Age of Hollywood; The Swan Thieves (p), by Elizabeth Kostova; The Gropes (p), the hilarious new novel from Tom Sharpe, author of the Wilt series; The Mistress of Nothing (p), by Kate Pullinger; Scandalous (p), from Tilly Bagshawe; The Death of Bunny Munro (p), by Nick Cave; Pretty Boys All in a Row (p), Andrew Kay’s tale of gay love and more on the hedonistic island of Ibiza in 1981; Day After Night (p), by Anita Diamant; Love Verb (h), by Jane Green; Black Hills (p), from Nora Roberts; The Queen of New Beginnings (lp), by Erica James; and Envy (p), a sexy, funny read by UK daytime TV celebrity Coleen Nolan, one of the hosts of the Loose Women show.

Two old favourites have been given a makeover. Published posthumously in 1964, ‘A Moveable Feast’ remains one of Ernest Hemingway’s best loved works. Since his personal papers were released in 1979, scholars have examined and debated the changes made to the text before publication. A new, specially restored edition (h) from Random House Hardbacks now presents the original manuscript as Hem prepared it to be published.

And A J Cronin’s delightful collection of episodic stories of Dr Finlay and his life as a doctor in the fictional Scottish village of Tannochbrae during the years between the first and second world wars is available in a new, omnibus edition of Dr Finlay’s Casebook. These wry, funny and tragic stories based on Cronin’s own experiences as a doctor inspired much loved BBC television and radio series in the 1960s and 70s. We can vouch personally for the inspirational effect that they also had on the scones at the Tannochbrae Tearooms in Auchtermuchty, the small village in the Scottish county of Fife that was the setting for a later television adaptation.

Death Cloud, the first in the series of Young Sherlock Holmes novels by Andrew Lane, goes into paperback. Aimed at age 11 and over, the series reimagines the iconic sleuth as a brilliant, troubled and engaging teenager. The year is 1868, and Holmes is 14. His life is that of an ordinary army officer’s son, but all is about to change. His father is posted to India, his mother is ‘unwell’, and Sherlock is sent to stay with an eccentric uncle and aunt. It is a summer that leads to his first uncovering of a murder, a kidnap, corruption and a brilliantly sinister villain of malign intent.

MAY 2010

APRIL 2010

PHILIP Pullman, the outspoken British author best known for His Dark Materials trilogy for children, is never far from controversy. Good Man Jesus & The Scoundrel Christ (h), his subversive fictionalised retelling of the life of Jesus, promises to be the highest profile yet in Canongate’s brilliant Myths series, which asks well known modern authors to reimagine classical stories and events.

There are signs of a new crime wave on the eastern Costa del Sol. First there was Deadly Secrets, Robert Tenison’s thriller set in a thinly disguised La Herradura and other locations. Now comes Death & Deceit (p), staged between Maro and the UK and the first oeuvre from Val Wingrove, who has lived on the Costa for some years now and has burst into print in this self-published novel.

A young woman discovers she has only a few months left to live. She decides to leave her home, business and friends to face whatever comes along. At the same time a young man is found dead, murdered in a hotel room. Investigating the crime, Inspector Tim Walters and Sergeant Clarke stumble upon a serious fraud; at first it would seem one has no connection with the other but the artistic and economic worlds collided with tragic results.

Other crime and thriller novels coming during April and early May include: The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest (p), by Stieg Larsson; The Angel’s Game (p), by Carlos Ruiz Zafon;  A Question of Belief (h), by Donna Leon; 9^th Judgement (lp), by James Patterson; Executor (p), from Jesse Kellerman; Blueeyedboy (h), by Joanne Harris; Darkest Room (p), by Johan Theorin; Last Supper (p) by Charles McCarry; Pirate Latitudes (p), from Michael Crichton; Dark Blood (lp), by Stuart MacBride; Desire (lp), by Louise Bagshawe; Strain (p), by Guillermo del Toro, the film director; Cult of Osiris (p), from Andy McDermott; This Body of Death (h), by Elizabeth George; Collaborator (p), by Gerald Seymour; My Soul to Take (p), by Yrsa Sigurdardottir; Dandy Gilver & the Proper Treatment of Bloodstains (p), by Catriona McPherson, set in Scotland after the Great War, a kind of No 1 Ladies Detective Agency meets Gosford Park; Anniversary Man (p), by R J Ellory; Caught (lp), by Harlan Coben; Still Midnight (p), from Denise Mina; Woman With Birthmark (p), more Swedish crime by Hakan Nesser; and Bleed a River Deep (p), by Brian McGilloway;

Templar Magician (p), by Paul Doherty, involves murder and mayhem set at the time of the secretive Templar Order. The year is 1152, and Jerusalem is still in the hands of the Crusaders, although the lofty ideals of before have now been replaced by subtle power-play. Meanwhile, in England, King Stephen is waging bloody war against Henry Fitzempress. The Templar Order, now fifty years old, is a wealthy power, glittering with tempting riches. Against this background of bloodshed, Robert de Payens, grandson of Eleanor, one of the co-founders of the Temple, and Englishman Edward Sendal find themselves caught up in a murder mystery when Raymond, Count of Tripoli, is brutally assassinated. Who would have wanted to murder Raymond, and is it possible that the answer may lie within the hallowed ranks of the Templar order itself?

Tapas may be little dishes but Simone & Ines Ortega’s The Book of Tapas (h) is a mammoth collection of 250 mini-snacks from Spain. Publisher Phaidon, which makes exceedingly beautiful books of high design quality,  scored an unexpected success a couple of years back with an English translation of the Ortegas’ 1080 Recipes, one of the ‘bibles’ of Spanish cooking.

They are now trying to repeat the trick with this huge, hardback volume of  simple and authentic recipes for all the best-loved tapas dishes. It reinforces how tasty, versatile and appetizing tapas can be, the perfect food for sharing, and explains everything you need to know about this quintessentially Spanish way of eating, and the importance of tapas bar culture in Spain.

It would make an ideal gift for the serious cook in your life, or for anyone running a restaurant or bar that features or plans to introduce tapas. Business association surveys show consistently that one of the things visitors and locals value highly from being in Spain is being able to find a good selection of tapas. The only people who will be crying over The Book of Tapas are booksellers. Frankly, if you buy this for yourself, you will not need to buy another tapas book in your entire life. Look out for it in stores from late April or early May.

Christopher Carnrick and Arthur Knighton are the creative duo behind Dinner for Six at 8:00 (lp), an eclectic cookbook that makes entertaining fun, easy and enjoyable. The twelve themed dinners are the most popular from Casa Cebadillas, the pair’s unique dining experience in Torrox Pueblo. They are also well known as the owners of Marin Property Management Services and broadcast for a while as Cristobal & Arturo on RSAFM, the community radio station.

If you love cooking and entertaining friends for an evening of fine dining, but you don’t have the time, energy or money to host elaborate, time-consuming social affairs, then this is for you.

Dinner for Six at 8:00 contains delectable dishes that are sure to please the most sophisticated or simple palate. The mouth-watering complete dinners are range from innovative international cuisine found in the Caribbean, Spain, France, Italy, Greece, Asia, Morocco, Polynesia and Arabia to even the heartland of their native America!

All recipes are written to accommodate six guests with readily available ingredients and are easy to prepare. The special-occasion and ethnic themed dinner parties include complete menus, easy-to-follow recipes, and dozens of ideas for invitations, decorations, table settings, music, and beverages: everything you need to have a great party, except the guest list.

Christopher is the former owner of two Seattle, USA, restaurants. Arthur shares nineteen years’ fine dining experience serving customers from the Marriott Fine Dining and the famous Seattle Pike Street Market.

Key: Hardback (h); Large Paperback (lp); Standard paperback (p)

MARCH 2010

The commercial success of Spanish civil war novels by English language novelists such as Victoria Hislop and Dave Boling appears to have given impetus to translations of similarly themed Spanish books. March sees the publication of the English version of The Frozen Heart, by the Madrid author Almudena Grandes. Publishers Orion are billing it as ‘a sweeping epic saga about the Spanish Civil War - the Spanish Dr Zhivago’.

After an unknown young woman turns up at the funeral of his father Julio, Alvaro's family inherits a huge sum that mystifies them. Alvaro discovers letters sent to his father in Russia between 1941 and 1943, faded photos of strangers, and a locked box. The woman is Raquel Fernández Perea, the daughter of Spaniards who fled during the Civil War. Her fate, and that of the family, now hangs on the secrets of Julio's past. From the heartlands of Spain to the battlefields of Russia, The Frozen Heart is a journey through a war that tore families apart, and pitted fathers against sons, brothers against brothers, wives against husbands. Against such a past, where do faith and loyalty lie?              

If you find yourself enjoying Almudena Grandes’ writing, try The Wind from the East, and The Ages of Lulu, which are available in English in paperback.

Other top tips in the general fiction list include: the mass paperback edition of Brooklyn, by the always impressive and relevant Colm Toibin; In the Company of Angels, from Thomas E Kennedy; The Strange Case of the Composer & His Judge, a metaphysical mystery by Patricia Duncker; Spy Game, from Georgina Harding; T C Boyle’s The Women; Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict, from Laurie Viera Rigler; The Very Thought of You, by Rosie Alison; Silver Hearted, David McConnell’s exotic tale of gay love, deception and treasure; The Elephant Keeper, by C Nicholson; Dancing Backwards, by Salley Vickers, best known for Miss Garnet’s Angel; Croc Attack, Asaf Gavron’s darkly comic novel about the bizarre realities of life in Israel today; Florence & Giles, by John Harding; Trespass, by Rose Tremain; Infinities, by John Banville; A Serving of Scandal, by Prue Leith; Einstein Girl, by Phillip Sington; The Best of Times, by Penny Vincenzi; and The Double Comfort Safari Club, Alexander McCall Smith’s latest instalment in the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency series.

We are expecting big things for Relics of the Dead, Ariana Franklin’s medieval murder mystery involving the monks of Glastonbury, Arthurian legend, and an insecure English king bent on ridding his Welsh foes of the notion that Arthur will arise to lead them to victory against the old enemy.

Other stunners from the crime and thrillers list include: mass paperback releases in late March or April of The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest, by Stieg Larsson. Also look out for: 61 Hours, by Lee Child; Preacher, and Stone Cutter, both of them by Swedish crime writer Camilla Läckberg; Reckless, by Andrew Gross; Deception, and Evidence, both by Jonathan Kellerman;  London Bridges, the tenth book in the Alex Cross series by James Patterson, and 8^th Confession, another Women’s Murder Club tale from the same author; Bloodline, by Mark Billingham; Room Swept White, by Sophie Hannah; Fatal Last Words, by Quintin Jardine; Hell Gate, by Linda Fairstein; Tess Gerritsen’s Keeper of the Bride; Dark Matter, from Peter Straub; Snowman, the latest inspector Harry Hole thriller set in Oslo by Jo Nesbø; Neighbour, by Lisa Gardner; Complicit, and What to do When Someone Dies, both from Nicci French; Donna Leon’s About Face.

As we noted last month, Tony Allen, whose perambulations in the Axarquía have filled many a page in local magazines in the past, has now published a series of leaflets. They are available from Smiffs in Nerja. The first batch covers walks from Nerja, Maro and Frigiliana as well as some in the higher Axarquía around villages such as Periana. More are planned. Each leaflet features colour photographs of decision points along the way, and GPS waypoint references are included for those that are into techno-trickery. Together with Elma Thompson’s walks from Nerja/Maro and Frigiliana, it brings the grand total of walking leaflets available to 48, and the total number of walks to 78 if you include the 30 in the Walk Axarquía! guide book. There is some overlap between the three authors of course, but from famine a few years ago, walkers in the area now have a feast set before them, and that is without including publications in Spanish. Tony Allen is now working on some more leaflets and Elma is planning to publish a series of walks from Torrox Costa later this year. 

Local author Else Byskov’s new book is called The Art of Attraction. Read more about it at smalldogma.com, her publisher’s website. Suffice to say here that Else argues that due to laws of physics, just thinking about something simply attracts that very thing, feeling or event to us. Consequently, she recommends doing ‘some weeding in your thought sphere’ and that you should ‘only think positive and happy thoughts’. The book has been released initially in Florida, USA, but it can also be found at Smiffs. Else’s previous work, Death is an Illusion, was a local bestseller in the body, mind, spirit genre.  

We recently bumped into Lorraine Cavanagh, the Costa’s best known gardening expert, who is busy writing columns hither and thither while keeping her garden centre and nursery going near Cómpeta. It was good to hear that her admirable book, Mediterranean Garden Plants, has enjoyed a new lease of life and deserved sales after publishers Santana picked it up. It is still comfortably the top selling book of its kind locally and well worth a first or second look as thoughts turn to the garden at this time of year.

2010 - THE STORY SO FAR: BOOKS ABOUT SPAIN & BY LOCAL AUTHORS + A FEW OTHERS THAT MAY APPEAL

Books Burn Badly is a brilliant evocation of the Spanish Civil War by the Galician author Mañuel Rivas, who is widely acknowledged to be one of Europe’s literary greats. Now available in English translation in hardback, it begins on August 19, 1936. Hercules, a boxer, stands on a quayside at A Coruña and watches nationalist soldiers setting alight a pile of books. It is a moment that transforms a group of young friends into a broken generation. Out of this incident during the early months of the war, Rivas weaves a colourful tapestry of stories and unforgettable characters to create a panorama of twentieth century Spanish history. It is a lyrical recalling of Rivas’ native province and its collective memory.

Sam Taylor, Nerja connected through his parents Keith and Pat of GINS and Capistrano repute, sees the paperback release this month of The Island at the End of the World, a chilling, atmospheric and darkly beautiful tale that sits somewhere between a Cormac McCarthy novel and a Nick Cave song.

Now or Never, Anthony Sharp’s latest tome, received a passing mention last month. Better known to locals in Nerja and Frigiliana as Tony, his wicked wit is leaven to…what? A political thriller? A satire? A polemic? All three actually, and none the worse for it. Starring Barack Obama, Prince Charles, Lewis Hamilton and Osama Bin Laden, it revisits the theme of his first novel, The Guv’nor, in which God walked the earth as a purposeful meddler in human affairs.

This time, the Guv’nor is more of witness to the patching up of Arab-American relations than a string-puller. Whether pie in the sky or devoutly to be wished, the dream is becoming reality when someone attempts to wreck it all. Rambunctious and satirical, this should please readers who are at least vaguely versed in current affairs, who enjoy a good chuckle at the expense of authority, and who are optimists at heart.

Traditional Spanish Cooking; Sweet Recipes is a nicely illustrated, budget priced collection of favourites that will be familiar from many a Spanish café or restaurant menu and from the kitchen at home. Compiled by Ana González, is describes very simply how to make 22 of these delights. They feature pleasers such as churros, crema catalana, flan, marzipan, nougat, pestiños, tarta de Santiago, natillas, pears in red wine, and so on through a litany of the everyday and one or two treats for special days, such as Roscón de Reyes which would have been wolfed down in many homes on January 6^. Ana has thoughtfully provided an additional tip for each recipe – did you know that you should always stir in the same direction when making crema catalana to stop the mixture from separating? At under 5 euros, this looks like a sure-fire winner in the ‘little cookery books for gifts’ category.

Daughters of Spain is a gripping account of the hard won changes within society that the women of Spain have achieved, seen through the eyes and experiences of the women themselves - mothers, daughters, grandmothers, granddaughters.

From the beginning of the Civil War and Franco's dictatorship, through to the socialist democracy it is today; from the 'Generation of 27' women in 1927, the Second Republic which gave Spanish women the vote in the 1931 Constitution, and the Falange founded by Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera, the son of the right-wing dictator, a modern country has emerged.

Using recorded first-hand interviews and authentic photographs, Joan Fallon (Photo: Left) captures a vivid and unique picture of what life was really like for women over the past seventy years, of the hardships they endured and their aspirations for a more egalitarian future. Joan lives on the Eastern Costa del Sol in Spain.

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2009: BOOKS ABOUT SPAIN & BY LOCAL AUTHORS + A FEW OTHERS THAT MAY APPEAL

(An eclectic selection of was published this year, with the latest first)

Seasonal Spanish Food, by Jose Pizarro, is a celebration of simple cooking with fresh ingredients in season.  Pizarro is head chef of Brindisa, hailed as one of the top 5 tapas bars in London.  Season by season, he explores his favourite ingredients from different Spanish regions, the culture and history behind them, and how best to use them with his simple but exceptional recipes.  With anecdotes about typical Spanish pastimes, and stories from his youth growing up on a farm in Extremedura, this is a truly distinctive book. Due late October in hardback. 

The Invisible City is Emili Rosales’ gripping historical and contemporary thriller set in Spain.  Emili Rosell, the young owner of one of Barcelona’s top galleries, receives an old manuscript written by an Italian architect about the Invisible City, an ambitious project dreamt up by King Charles III to build an alternative capital in the Ebro delta, and the details of a lost masterpiece by the Venetian painter Tiepolo.  Juxtaposing the worlds of the 18^th century royal court and the contemporary art world – both with a similar share of intrigue, politics and romance – this is a compelling examination of the forces of power and love. 

Don’t Miss the Fiesta is a debut novel from David Baird, the Frigiliana based journalist and author best known for his guide books and the remarkable Between Two Fires, the story of the guerrilla war against Franco waged in the mountains of the Axarquía until the 1950s.  This is a chilling tale of passion and vengeance set in the fictional mountain pueblo of Benamargo, which is nominally in Granada province, but could be anywhere in the sierras.  The main protagonist is a starry eyed townie seeking rural tranquillity far from the madding crowd of city life.  Nasty surprises await him in a remote village which, beneath its picture postcard perfection, is an emotional minefield of dark secrets and a nightmare of guilt.  “The idea originated,” says David, “with the experience of some friends. They bought a remote farmhouse only to become embroiled in family feuds.  Here in Spain, recent history was very violent and memories are long, so it’s easy for strangers to stumble into situations they do not understand.”  Don’t Miss the Fiesta was inspired by true-life incidents but David is at pains to insist: “The characters in the book are all figments of the imagination and the village of Benamargo does not exist.” 

Blue Division Soldier 1941-45 : Spanish Volunteer on the Eastern Front :The all-volunteer ‘Blue Division’ was a formation that allowed Franco’s technically neutral Spain to support Nazi Germany’s invasion of Russia. Following initial training in Germany, the Blue Division’s units were sent to the Eastern Front in August 1941, where, after a 40-day march to the front, the Division fought in several major actions including Leningrad. In 1943, with the tide turning against the Axis forces in Russia, the Division was ordered to be withdrawn, yet many men chose to stay on and serve with the Volunteer Legion. Even after the collapse in the East, some volunteered to serve with Waffen-SS units through to the fall of Berlin in 1945. This book narrates the experiences of the common soldier, exploring his motivation for serving the Wehrmacht, and detailing his dramatic experiences in a brutal and hostile theatre of World War II

Deadly Secrets is a Costa based thriller by Robert Tenison. It is a story of bribery, corruption, money laundering and murder in Andalucia. Sound familiar? The action takes place in the (fictional) coastal town of Los Cipreses as well as in Granada, Madrid, London, the Cayman Islands and Seville. Andy Montalvo arrives in the  resort of Los Cipreses following the unexpected death of his old friend Mike Cameron. As Andy looks into Mike's death, he finds himself drawn into an investigation involving greed and skulduggery by the beautiful but engimatic Cristina Ibañez. Together, Andy and Cristina uncover more details about Mike’s death, as well as the money laundering operation, but the body count rises before they finally establish the truth. Robert Tenison was born of Spanish parents in the UK and spent fifteen years as a commercial and investment banker, including a spell in the Cayman Islands. On leaving banking he worked as a freelance business development consultant until founding an online specialist recruitment company. For the last seven years he has been living in Southern Spain where he has been working in the property and financial services sector. Robert is currently working on his second novel which will involve the investigation by the two main characters of Deadly Secrets into blackmail, murder and the fraudulent use of Common Agricultural Policy funds.

Mark le Claire, a well known face along the Eastern Costa del Sol and Costa Tropical has also burst into print with his self-published and bound Vapour Trails in the Blue, a kind of romantic mystery...ish.  Artist Lyle Heapy makes an alcohol fuelled and erotically charged return to Tolmuner (get it?!) on the Costa del Sol, but his hangover-induced resolution to begin things anew results in a riotous time being had by all at the town's annual San Isidro festival. The good times continue apace, but when life begins taking a fatal toll on his circle of friends, Lyle flees with the beautiful Cheryl and comical, hopeless Percy Sandling, with bizzare results. Deciding to lay their ghosts to rest to pursue a happier lifestyle, they head for Pamplona, famous for the running of the bulls fiesta, and so to a showdown with Cheryl's villainous ex-lover.

 History buffs watch out for Papa Spy, by Jimmy Burns. In the 1930s, Tom Burns was a rising star of British publishing with friends such as Evelyn Waugh and Graham Greene. When the UK declared war on Germany in 1939, Burns joined the Ministry of Information and was sent to Madrid to wage a propaganda war against the Nazis. He made enemies at home, namely Kim Philby and Anthony Blunt, head of the foreign intelligence service MI6’s Iberian section, both of them men who would betray their country to the Russians. How Burns overcame these odds, spied for his country and helped keep Franco neutral are told in this extraordinary book by his son.

 
The Shadow of the Wind, Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s gothic novel of Barcelona, has proved a publishing phenomenon in Catalan, Spanish and English. Admirers of the English translation have clamoured for more, and their incessant pleading has as last been heeded with the publication of The Angel's Game.

Zafon revisits his memorable creation, the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, the Sempere & Son bookshop, and Barcelona's old quarter, this time in the 1920s. In an abandoned mansion, a young David Martín writes sensationalist novels under a nom-de-plume. Books are his refuge: his nights are spent concocting bleak tales of the city’s underworld. But are his imaginings really so strange? In a locked room, old photographs and letters hint at a mystery behind the previous owner’s death. The atmosphere drains David as he pines for an impossible love. Close to despair, he receives a letter from a reclusive French editor who asks him to write a book that can change hearts and minds. The reward will be a fortune, or more. David accepts the challenge but starts to suspect that there is a link between the book and the oppressiveness in his home. Read the first chapter online at  carlosruizzafon.co.uk  

Southwest Spain is associated with archaeological finds that have convinced some that the legendary civilization of Atlantis was located there or close by. Charles Brokaw plays on this in The Atlantis Code, a thriller with an obligatory ‘lost key’ and a ‘race against time’. An ancient artefact found in Egypt bears what could be the lost language of Atlantis, with linguist Dr Thomas Lourdes seemingly the only man who can decipher it, if he lives. When an earthquake in Cadiz, Spain, uncovers an unexpected site, it causes intense interest at the Vatican, and so a deadly cat-and-mouse game begins. It is now out in paperback. 

Guernica, Dave Boling’s novel based around a Spanish town whose name has become synonymous with the horrors of war, is now out in paperback. In 1935, Miguel Navarro is in conflict with the Guardia Civil and flees the Basque fishing village of Lekeitio for a new start in Guernica, centre of Basque culture and tradition. In this isolated bastion of democracy, Miguel finds someone to live for - Miren Ansotegui, a charismatic dancer. They discover a love that war and tragedy cannot destroy. History and fiction merge in this beautiful novel about the resilience of family, love, and tradition in the face of hardship.  

The bombing of Guernica was a devastating experiment in total warfare by the German Luftwaffe in the run-up to the Second World War. For the Basques, it was an attack on the soul of their ancient nation; for the world, it was an unprecedented crime against humanity. Boling reintroduces the event and paints his own picture of a people so strong, vibrant, and proud that they are willing to do whatever it takes to protect their values, their country, and their loved ones.  

Thirty years after a publisher refused his first book, local author Glenn Stuart has burst into print with a belated debut, The Well of Despair. It is a fantasy/horror story aimed at young teens, but which he hopes will appeal to all ages. He knows his market well: as Stuart Yates, his real name, he teaches at a Costa school. Find out more about the book and Glenn online at horror-on-the-costa.webs.com, which sells the title mail order for people with PayPal accounts. You can also buy it in selected local stores. The popularity of this genre with young teens is underlined by Stephenie Meyer’s ‘Twilight’ vampire novels, which currently top bestseller lists. The Axarquía pueblo of Riogordo’s answer is Glenn. He has completed three more books and is working on another as we speak. You have to admire his determination. 

Spain’s civil war drew a large number of correspondents and authors, some unknown, some already famous, some about to become so by dint of the stories they told of courage, carnage, betrayal and loss. They included WH Auden, Cyril Connolly, John Dos Passos, Martha Gellhorn, Ernest Hemingway, Josephine Herbst, Arthur Koestler, André Malraux, George Orwell, Kim Philby, Antoine de Saint Exupéry, Stephen Spender and others. Their own courage and the choices they made to eschew traditional neutrality to champion the elected Republic against rebel Nationalists is told in We Saw Spain Die, the paperback release of Paul Preston’s gripping book. 

Stereotyped by the media as an ‘ice cool blonde’ who loved the soggy wilds of Scotland and Yorkshire, UK television celebrity Selina Scott belied her image to swap moorland for a life in sultry Mallorca. A Long Walk in the High Hills is the story of her years high in the Tramuntana hills in a run-down old farmhouse that eventually proved irresistible as a place to settle down. This is a light-hearted and warm account of the ups and downs of renovating the place, of making friends and enemies among the locals, of a brush with financial disaster, and ultimately of a dog that turned her life upside down and proved a friend for life.  

At Home with Spanish is a nicely-priced package that offers step-by-step activities for seven to nine-year-old kids to practise Spanish words and sentences. Each activity is carefully graded, and the book’s production is clear, making use of two colours to distinguish clearly between English and Spanish. To cap it all, the whole thing is a lot of fun. Pop this into their holiday bags and you will be helping them to gain confidence in Spanish at their own, self-selected pace assisted along the way by truly simple-to-follow instructions. Adelante!

 Everything But the Squeal: A Year of Pigging Out in Northern Spain is a foodie’s confessional travelogue. John Barlow becomes a glutton in paradise when he discovers Galicia, a carnivore’s dreamland where almost every part of a pig is devoured. Joining in wholeheartedly, to the chagrin of his veggie wife, he wolfs his way through a year of cocido, chorizo, ribs, roast ham – everything but the squeal. And all of it washed down with local wines. In between gorging and feeling queasy, he muses on taste and on the obligations has to animals he eats. Funny, poignant and thoughtful, this is entertaining fare a paperback version.

Tapas Bar, in the Australian Women’s Weekly series of cook books, is a no-nonsense, low budget collection of tapas, antipasto and mezze, those little morsels and light bites that delight us all on our Mediterranean travels. This latest addition to the brilliant AWW collection serves up melt-in-the-mouth hot cheese fritters, little pastries, stuffed vegetables, chicken on skewers, and scallops, prawns and fish cooked in a variety of ways. There is no great mystery to it. You can be producing and eating these dishes at home to as good if not higher standard than the morsels found in Spanish cafes and bars.

Victoria Hislop’s bestselling, Granada based novel The Return is now out in standard paperback. Beneath the majestic towers of the Alhambra, Granada's cobbled streets resonate with music and secrets. Sonia Cameron knows nothing of the city's shocking past; she is here to dance. But in a quiet cafe, a chance conversation and an intriguing collection of old photographs draw her into the extraordinary tale of Spain's devastating civil war. 70 years earlier, the cafe is home to the close-knit Ramirez family. In 1936, an army coup led by Franco shatters the country's fragile peace, and in the heart of Granada the family witnesses the worst atrocities of conflict. Divided by politics and tragedy, everyone must take a side, fighting a personal battle as Spain rips itself apart. This is the paperback release that thousands of Hislop’s fans have been waiting for.

Seventy years after the Spanish Civil War ended ‘officially’ on April 1, 1939, the roll call of its survivors is shrinking rapidly each year. Even fewer in number are the British and Irish who can still tell how they once fought under the banner of the International Brigade in a vain attempt to save the democratically elected Spanish Republic. There were only around 2500 brigadistas anyhow, and when historian Max Arthur decided to seek them out to interview, he reckoned that no more that 20 were still alive. At least one, Irishman Bob Doyle, has since died, his passing in January not going unnoticed by obituary writers in the UK. 

Yet the power of their stories as told in The Real Band of Brothers more than makes up for their scarcity as they share their experiences and feelings, explain their motives, reveal their regrets, and evaluate the legacy of what happened. Eight of these oral histories are recounted including a nurse, a Surrey art student Sam Lesser, the Trade Union leader Jack Jones, an Egyptologist, and Irish Republican Army activist Doyle. This is another tour de force from an author whose previous bestsellers in this genre included Forgotten Voices of the Great War. The Real Band of Brothers is available at Smiffs from April 2.

He is not the only writer to get in on the act. Peter Darman’s Heroic Voices of the Spanish Civil War  is a similarly gripping and moving book. Once again, participants tell their stories in their own words. Based on original and previously unpublished interviews from the UK Imperial War Museum's sound archives and other first-hand accounts from surviving members, this is a fitting tribute to their heroism and self-sacrifice. It should be here in mid-April.

Harder to come by these days, but still worth ordering, is Brigadista: An Irishman's Fight Against Fascism, Bob Doyle’s own story, which was published in Dublin in 2006. Remember too that, for some, the war against Franco lasted a great deal longer, as told to great effect in Between Two Fires, David Baird’s magisterial account of the guerrilla war in our own local mountains. 

Look out soon for a new edition of Back Roads of Southern Spain, by the self same Baird, the bard of Frigiliana. Take the B-Road to the finest Andalucía can offer with this updated version of Santana Books’ collection of 25 jolly jaunts for the motorist who enjoys a more leisurely pace of life. David has driven these highways and byways for more than three decades and delights in ferreting out the latest restaurants, cafes, attractions and hotels worthy of a look-see in places far from the madding crowd. The powers that be in Spain really should give the man a medal for his services to their country. Oh, they already have. Well say no more. 

If you are thinking of investing in a seriously huge and excellent Spanish-English (and vice versa) dictionary then wait until the end of April, early May, when the latest Collins Spanish Dictionary will appear at around 43 euros. The publisher reckons that the ninth edition of this market-leader offers the most complete and accurate picture of Spanish available today. It has more than 315,000 references, making it ostensibly the largest lexicon of its kind. There is also a free, downloadable version of the full dictionary text, with audio pronunciation. It has thousands of the latest words from a wide range of areas, loads of idioms and examples, and extensive notes on language, grammar and culture. It weighs a ton, but is a must-have for the bookshelf of any serious user. 

Spanish Style, by Kate Hill, provides a stylish and dramatic tour of 23 hand-picked homes and boutique hotels across the country, showcasing a superb array of design ideas. Her evocative words set off inspirational delights such as Frank Gehry’s landmark hotel for the Marqués de Riscal winery and the tiny family cabaña of artist Moisés Tibau. Tim Clinch’s photographs meanwhile reveal a treasure-trove of textures and colours, where blue-washed ceilings and blood-red tiles contrast with brocade-darkened rooms burnished with shuttered sunlight. This is for dreamers and design pros alike. 

The Catalan architect Antonio Gaudí stood head and shoulders above many contemporaries. Secure and confident in his abilities and vision, he could be iconoclastic while still paying homage to tradition and pandering to middle class tastes in the early 20^th century. Gaudí Brick, by Daniel Giralt-Miracle, is a budget guide from Taschen, but is nevertheless packed with examples of the great man’s genius and benefits from the usual lavish photographs that this publisher specialises in laying before readers. It makes a fine edition to the growing collection of books that it has devoted to one of Barçelona’s best loved sons. 

JH Elliott’s Spain, Europe and the Wider World 1500-1800 has become a classic since its first publication around 20 years ago. It is now updated to benefit from all the insight and research that Elliott has gained and conducted in the intervening years. Presented as a collection of his writings about politics, art, culture, and ideas in Europe and Spain’s colonial worlds and is organised around three themes: early modern Europe, European overseas expansion, and the works and historical context of El Greco, Velazquez, Rubens, and Van Dyck. If you are looking for serious historical perspectives that also make for enjoyable reading, this is for you. You are unlikely to find it in stock anywhere, but any good book shop will order it.

The pick of new historical fiction includes The Last Queen, based on a dark corner of Spanish history. Juana ‘La Loca’ – Joanna the Mad - married aged 16 and became heir to the Spanish throne at age 25. But she was declared insane by her husband Philip the Fair of Flanders, and locked up by her father, Ferdinand of Ferdinand & Isabella fame. The California based writer CW Gortner mines this story of the last ‘true’ queen of Spain to great effect. Raised in Málaga, Gortner is half-Spanish by birth. His passion for the country, his familiarity with the Renaissance period, and his thorough research, provide perfect springboards for The Last Queen, which is told through Juana’s own voice and should be here in mid-January in standard paperback.

Archbishop John Blackwood Ryan meanwhile leaves familiar territory in Chicago to visit southern Spain in his latest bout of fictional crime cracking. Archbishop in Andalusia, the seventeenth Blackie Ryan novel sees the whisky tippling spiritual sleuth enlisted by a local cardinal to head off the murder of the beautiful Duchess of Seville whose wealth, title and influence are coveted by members of her family. The plot is studded with satisfying snippets from Spanish history and life while Seville and Córdoba have starring roles throughout. Another crowd pleaser from author, priest and sociologist Andrew M Greeley. Don’t expect to find it on the shelves in many places. It is a hardback import. But it is worth considering as a special order – the archbishop could become a habit (no pun intended).

Life Street, Death Street is a curious mezcla of short stories and memoir from Scotsman Ivar Watson, who quit teaching English at a Basque university to try his hand at avocado farming near La Viñuela in the Axarquía. The stories read well enough and provide glimpses of deep Spain, today and in the past. Yet they sometimes lack surprise and originality - witness the tale of the impoverished man who goes on a spree, clocking up credit on the strength of a windfall that he fabricated. Still, it is a new and distinctive addition to the list of works written by foreigners who have settled in Spain and who see the country and its history through a hybrid prism.

Spain Food & Drink is the long awaited second edition of a popular AA guide. It benefits from a new format and from being pocket-sized for trips to the local market, restaurants, cafes and stores. Get what you want, learn about the familiar and less known products that are widely available, and try your hand at haggling like many Spaniards do. As well as covering the food, cuisine, wine and other drinks of Spain, the 128 page package includes useful sections on eating out and eating in, so you should be covered for all eventualities.

The paperback release of William Maltby’s The Rise & Fall of the Spanish Empire brings into reach a serious historian’s take on the empire building that made Spain’s fortune before its foreign possessions evaporated dramatically. Professor Maltby’s account repays effort with insights that run far deeper than most unashamedly popular works on the subject. He emphasises economics, institutions and intellectual movements, but still delivers a succinct and readable version of what happened in and to an empire that stretched from Italy and the Netherlands to Peru and the Philippines. This is not just for eggheads.