The Return

Hislop, Victoria

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0755332938 ISBN 13: 9780755332939

Publisher: Headline Review, 2008

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 café, a chance conversation and an intriguing collection of old photographs draw her into the extraordinary tale of Spain's devastating civil war.

Seventy years earlier, the café is home to the close-knit Ramírez 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.

Captivating and deeply moving, Victoria Hislop's second novel is as inspiring as her international bestselling debut, The Island.

Review:

'At last - a beach book with a heart' (Observer)

'The Return may be a beach book, but it goes inland and rummages around in the cellars' (The Times)

'Fear not, Hislop fans, there was more where [The Island] came from... The story of the Spanish Civil War is...executed with verve and sensitivity' (Sunday Telegraph )

'A compelling story that has rarely left the bestseller list this year and deservedly so' (Sunday Express)

'[The Return] should be required holiday reading for anyone going to Spain this year' (Daily Mail)

'The Return aims to open the eyes, and tug the heartstrings, of readers who mostly won't have read Orwell, let alone Cercas... These days, the battle of historical memory against forgetting has to be fought on many fronts. Hislop deserves a medal for opening a breach into the holiday beach bag' (Independent)

'Hislop somehow manages to capture the chaos and disintegration of Spain during the violence of the Thirties and Forties in a dramatic, immediate way... keeps you reading at breakneck speed right to the end' (Sunday Express)

'The queen of the intelligent beach read' (Sunday Express)

'Meticulously researched historical narrative and imaginative storytelling...brings home the hardships of war in a way no history book ever could' (Telegraph)

'The descriptions of war-ravaged Spain, of hand-to-hand fighting, bombardment of civilians, brutal atrocities by both sides and Europe's cold reception of refugees are very powerful' (Guardian)

Book Description:

An atmospheric, vibrant and moving tale of pain and passion at the heart of war-torn Spain, from the million-copy bestselling author of The Island