Atria Books The Time in Between

El mundo que creyó la esctritora, muy histórico, personajes interesantes. Cuati

Great book, well worth reading

I enjoyed reading this book because the plot is well developed and characters are well described.

Good condition book as described in the offer. Delivery time was also as promised. Trustful experience. No reason to not be a repeat customer.

A Spanish friend with a connection to the formerly Spanish parts of Morocco recommended this book--particularly for its detailed descriptions of the Spanish protectorate of the late 1930s. And I found her to be right on the money in that regard. The first part--and sometimes, the best part--of the book is set in Tangier and Tetouan just as the Spanish Civil War was picking up steam just across the Straits of Gibraltor.The book's heroine and primary narrator, Sira Quiroga, comes to Tangier as a naive twenty-something seamstress in the company of the man who seduced her and later robbed and dumped her. She moves on to Tetouan--a hour or so east, pregnant, utterly broke and owing a big hotel bill. After a visit from the local commissioner of police, she winds up in a seedy rooming house in the charge of a good-hearted smuggler, who will help turn her fortunes around. This first part of Sira Quiroga's story is well written and makes the character sympathetic enough for the reader to tolerate some of the less likable moments that come when she becomes successful and prosperous as a diva of fashion. And much is said about fashion, dresses, and style in the book. Sira actually becomes a serious snob as she moves on to Madrid and starts to dress the elite.The heart of this book, however, is supposed to be the protagonist's gradual involvement in spying for the British Government. And these parts of the book are also well done and interesting in their detail and involvement of actual political and military figures of the time. Those figures are well fleshed out and credible. What was a little disappointing to me was the author's deliberate plot admonishment to the heroine to stay away from her old Madrid neighborhoods on her return to her post-civil war city. This effectively eliminates any reference to the destruction, poverty and starvation that was the rule at the moment. Sira's world is a glamor and parties. This is necessary for the espionage story line, but the vacuum is noticed.Overall, a good read about a fascinating period of history in places that the reader of English doesn't find a lot about.