Book description
1940: The Spanish Civil War is over, and Madrid lies ruined, its people
starving, while the Germans continue their relentless march through
Europe. Britain now stands alone while General Franco considers whether
to abandon neutrality and enter the war. Into this uncertain world comes
Harry Brett: a traumatised veteran of Dunkirk turned reluctant spy for
the British Secret Service. Sent to gain the confidence of old
schoolfriend Sandy Forsyth, now a shady Madrid businessman, Harry finds
himself involved in a dangerous game - and surrounded by memories.
Meanwhile Sandy's girlfriend, ex-Red Cross nurse Barbara Clare, is
engaged on a secret mission of her own - to find her former lover Bernie
Piper, a passionate Communist in the International Brigades, 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
compelling tale which offers a remarkable sense of history unfolding,
and the profound impact of impossible choices. 'Sansom adroitly draws
the disparate strands of his ambitious saga together. His non-pareil
evocations of time and place anchor his characters with satisfying
precision' Independent
C. J. Sansom was educated at Birmingham University, where he took a
BA and then a Ph. D. in history. After working in a variety of jobs,
he retrained as a solicitor and practised in Sussex, until becoming a
full-time writer. He has written two novels in his historical crime
series featuring lawyer, Matthew Shardlake. Winter in Madrid is his
third novel. He lives in Sussex.
