The Watcher in the Pine

From Publishers Weekly
Both time and place—1940, just after the Spanish Civil War, in a remote village in the mountains of northern Spain—are impeccably rendered in Edgar-winner Pawel's well-researched if austere novel, her third (after 2004's Law of Return) to feature Carlos Tejada, a lieutenant in the Guardia, the police force of Fascist Spain. Tejada has left his previous post in Salamanca to take command of the Guardia in the town of Potes, whose small size belies its troubles. Guerrillas killed his predecessor, and the area has been designated a "Devastated Region" in the war's aftermath. Tejada and his young wife, Elena, who's carrying their first child, are both greeted with wary suspicion, despite Elena's Republican sympathies. The Civil War may be over, but the conflict lives on, embodied by the relationship between Tejada and Elena and their relationships with the residents of Potes. The crime that propels the mystery, which is a long time in coming, involves the theft of two crates of dynamite, a local rebel's death and a ruthless and enterprising guerrilla. But for all the book's richness of detail, the lack of narrative drive and flatness of tone may disappoint fans of more conventional mystery fare. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist
Edgar-winner Pawel (Death of a Nationalist, 2003) returns to post-civil war Spain. Guardia Civil Lieutenant Carlos Tejada and his pregnant wife, Elena, the daughter of leftists, are on their way to a new post in Potes, a city destroyed during the war. The Liebana region is a maquis stronghold, and the new Guardia commander does not receive a warm welcome. When his wife and newborn son are kidnapped, he uncovers a series of crimes, including the murder of his predecessor, smuggling, theft, and arms trafficking involving Guardia officers. His wife appears to be interested in a local maquis sympathizer, and his in-laws are not happy to have a son-in-law in Franco's military. Pawel surrounds her mystery plot with a vivid re-creation of the political environment in postwar Spain and a perceptive portrayal of the delicate balance that holds together a loving marriage. Mixing history, relationships, and Spanish culture, this thought-provoking and entertaining novel will appeal to a wide range of readers both inside and outside the crime fiction genre. Barbara Bibel
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Book Description

"Absolutely riveting. . . . Rebecca Pawel's first act of surprising courage is to make her main character not one of the romantic Republicans of folk song and Hemingway story but an officer of their much-hated enemy, the dreaded Guardia Civil."-Chicago Tribune

"[Rebecca Pawel's] expansive knowledge of the city and the era brings alive its grim streets and harsh martial law. . . . This is a fascinating tale from a promising young writer; I'm already looking forward to her next book."-Rocky Mountain News

"The immediate aftermath of the Spanish Civil War provides the bleak setting for Pawel's stirring first novel. . . . Unsparing in her depiction of the casual brutalities spawned by war, but also offers evidence of the power of little civilities and kindnesses in a novel that easily transcends the formulaic crime story."-Publishers Weekly (starred)

"Pawel anchors a tense and exciting story with a terrific and complex plot."-Detroit Free Press

Spain, 1940. A mountain village is Carlos Tejada's first independent command. But he soon discovers that this "promotion" is a mixed blessing. There is no one to meet the train when he and his wife arrive, the officers of the small Guardia Civil post are far from welcoming. Is it just that they are suspicious of an officer with a Republican sympathizer for a wife? Tejada discovers that the officer he is replacing was shot to death and that the village is a center of smuggling and guerrilla activity. And then worse befalls: a new outbreak of the Civil War, financed from abroad, may be about to take place with his post as its epicenter.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"Spain, 1940. The remote mountain village of Potes is Carlos Tejada's first independent command. Elena Fernandez, his pregnant wife, accompanies him to his new post. They soon discover that his "promotion" is a mixed blessing. They arrive in a snowstorm and there is no one to meet the train. The officers of the small Guardia Civil post seem hostile, as do the villagers. The inhabitants of Potes are strongly Republican in their sympathies and engaged both in smuggling and guerilla activities." They face a choice between living in the jail and foisting themselves as boarders onto a woman whose son was executed by the Nationalist government. And Tejada discovers that the officer he is replacing was shot to death from ambush; his killer is still at large. Then he learns that a new outbreak of the Civil War, financed from abroad, may be about to take place with Potes as its epicenter. And Elena, whose Republican sympathies have become known, is involved.

FROM THE CRITICS

Marilyn Stasio - The New York Times

Pawel frames the complex ethical issues she raises in the divided loyalties of her series hero, Lt. Carlos Tejada, an officer in the Guardia Civil, and his wife, Elena, whose sympathies are entirely with the Republican cause. Until the family wounds are healed, Pawel argues, the war will never end.

Publishers Weekly

Both time and place-1940, just after the Spanish Civil War, in a remote village in the mountains of northern Spain-are impeccably rendered in Edgar-winner Pawel's well-researched if austere novel, her third (after 2004's Law of Return) to feature Carlos Tejada, a lieutenant in the Guardia, the police force of Fascist Spain. Tejada has left his previous post in Salamanca to take command of the Guardia in the town of Potes, whose small size belies its troubles. Guerrillas killed his predecessor, and the area has been designated a "Devastated Region" in the war's aftermath. Tejada and his young wife, Elena, who's carrying their first child, are both greeted with wary suspicion, despite Elena's Republican sympathies. The Civil War may be over, but the conflict lives on, embodied by the relationship between Tejada and Elena and their relationships with the residents of Potes. The crime that propels the mystery, which is a long time in coming, involves the theft of two crates of dynamite, a local rebel's death and a ruthless and enterprising guerrilla. But for all the book's richness of detail, the lack of narrative drive and flatness of tone may disappoint fans of more conventional mystery fare. (Feb. 1) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews