The Summer Snow

Tejada #4

by Rebecca Pawel

“Pawel’s splendid historical series . . . takes an inspired turn in The Summer Snow. ” — The New York Times Book Review
 
In the city of Granada, Spain, bastion of the conservative Catholic aristocracy, fear of the red menace remains strong in 1945. One rich, elderly lady summons the police to her home almost once a week, sure Communists are plotting against her. She changes her will almost as often. When she is found dead, the long-suffering police can’t believe that she really may have been murdered. But as her latest will has vanished, the death must be investigated.
 
Influence is exerted to have Lieutenant Carlos Tejada Alonso y Léon transferred temporarily from Potes, in the northern mountains, to take charge because the old lady is his grandaunt. And one of the chief suspects is his father. The family expects Tejada to exonerate its members, but Tejada is a man who puts duty first.

Genres: Mystery, Spain, Crime, Fiction, Historical, Mystery Thriller, Historical Mystery

338 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Rebecca Pawel was born in 1977 and was raised in New York City. She spent a summer studying in Madrid in 1994 and fell in love with Spain. She also majored in Spanish language and literature at Columbia University.

Death of a Nationalist was nominiated for Best first Novel for both the 2004 Anthony and 2004 Macavity, and won the 2004 Edgar Best First Novel. It was also a finalist for the LA Times Best Mystery.

She is currently a teacher at the High School for Enterpirse, Business and Technology in New York City.

Reviews

[Seher Andaç · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aşk her şeyi affeder mi? Bu kitaba göre sanki evet.
Elena bir kızıl yani komünist, Tejada onların peşindeki muhafız. Sevdiler, evlendiler ve bir oğlan çocukları oldu. Peki sonra ne oldu?
Ben okur için Tejada’nın peşinde kitap bitti.
Tejada dediğim gibi Franco döneminin bir sivil muhafızı, yani kitaptaki adıyla bir gardia. Bir hukukçu aynı zamanda. Her bölümde işini yaptı ki zaten görev adamı olarak karakteri oluşturulmuş.
Peki Elena? Dört kitap boyunca ne bir eylemini ne de kuvvetli bir söylemini okumadım. O bir kızıl ama sadece cümle içinde. O dönemler “Mujeres Libres” örgütü var mesela, keşke dedim içimden Elena’yı o örgütün içinden görseydik. Zaten kitapta kadın karakterler yancı sadece. Yazık.
Bir dönem kitabı ama dönemi temsiliyeti bir karakter üzerinden gittiği için oldukça zayıf. İyi niyetli ama edebiyatın gücünü yakalayamamış.
Ülkemizde dört kitap da özenle çevrilmiş; çevirmenin emeğine sağlık.

[Digdem Absin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Serinin son kitabında bizi İspanya’nın güneyine Granada’ya, Carlos Tejada’nın memleketine götürüyor Rebecca Pawel. Dört yıllık bir zaman atlamasıyla II. Dünya Savaşı sonunda ‘kızıl tehlike’ sebebiyle sınırlarına Guardia’ları yığan bir İspanya karşılıyor bizi. ABD ve İngiltere Franco rejiminden memnun değildir; bu durum da ülkeyi savunma pozisyonuna sokmuştur. İç savaş sırasında yurt dışına gidenler ve ‘hafif’ suçlular için af çıksa da Cumhuriyetçiler hala büyük baskı altındadır.

Büyük halası ölen Tejada Granada’ya geldiğinde kendini bir cinayet davasının içinde buluyor. Yaptığı seçimler nedeniyle kendini ailesine ait hissetmeyen Carlos’un sıkıntıları başlıyor. Öte yandan Elena Madrid’den tanıdığı bir üniversite arkadaşını aramaya başlıyor Granada’da; ona Madrid’i ve acı geçmişi hatırlatan başka kişilerle de karşılaşıyor bu arada. Tejada’nın üzerinde çalıştığı dava sürerken çok sayıda karakter giriyor hikayeye ve yaşanan acıları gözler önüne sürüyor.

İlk üç kitapta serinin bir polisiye olduğunu kabul etsem de iç savaş ve sonrasının tarafsız dümdüz anlatılması rahatsız ediyordu. Olaylar satır aralarında anlatılıyordu. Sanki Cumhuriyetçilerin yaşadığı acılar daha fazla bastırılamamış gibi ortaya çıktı son kitapta. Romanın ortasına kadar Granada Aristokrasisi ve Guardia hikayesi sıksa da yarıdan sonraki tempo çok iyiydi ve oradan itibaren serinin en siyasi hikayesine dönüştü Kış Güneşi. ‘Kızılların’ yaşadıkları, çektikleri acılar ve gördükleri muamele Tejada’yı bile isyan noktasına getirdi. Serinin diğer kitaplarındaki sonları düşününce bu hikayenin sonu sürpriz ve kötü oldu benim için.

[LJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE SUMMER SNOW (Historical-Spain-1940s) – VG
Pawel, Rebecca – 4th in series
Soho Crime, 2006- US Hardcover – ISBN: 1569474087
*** Lieutenant Carlos Tejada comes to Granada with his wife and son after his wealthy grand aunt has died. She had been a querulous old lady always seeing conspiracies but Carlos finds she had been murdered. While trying to find his aunt’s killer, his wife, Elena, must deal with her in-laws disapproval of her while trying to keep their young son amused.
*** I so enjoy this series as much for the relationship of Tajada and his wife as for the mystery itself. It is not a perfect marriage. They were raised differently, and have very different political views which cause friction. In other words, it’s realistic. It’s interesting seeing Tajada in an environment where he is not in command of the men, but of the investigation, and where has to interrogate family members, including his father. This is a very good, character-driven story still with a very good mystery. I highly recommend this series.

[Tbfrank · Rating 2 out of 5]

Selecting post-Civil war Spain as the backdrop to her Tejada novels was a bold choice. Unfortunately the author's main character evokes little sympathy in modern readers who are predisposed to object to his politics, his methods, and his waffling treatment of women. Exactly what were the author's intentions for this series is not apparent as Tejada achieves minimal growth and demonstrates little more than a superficial understanding of his role in the undoing of Spain. The attempt to humanize him through his family has minimal effect and his wife's ability to prod his conscience is limited by social constraints. His cousin Felipe played the part better but his presence was too little and too late.

The years between 1939 and 1945 are rich with drama, danger, pathos, heroics, death, and destruction. The social fabric was brutally torn with plenty of blame for both sides, yet these novels contain a minimal examination of the roots and the fruit of the conflict.

[Ann Tonks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interestingly, the last review I wrote on Goodreads was about failing to finish a book because I found the protagonist so offensive. I might have said the same about Gardia Lieutenant Carlos Tejada, the lead character in this story. He's a right wing conservative Catholic in Franco's Spain; a Spain where many of its people are still suffering from the Civil War. But somehow or other Ms Pawel has managed to create a self-aware character who does manage to make some good decision. This story in the series is set in Granada amongst Tejada's family and social milieu and its a fascinating read.

[Woody Chandler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This seems like the last entry in the series, other than her post-war collection, and it was a coming-home, coming full-circle as Tejada & his family take leave from his remote posting to return to his parents' home to investigate the murder of his aunt. A number of loose ends dating back to the first book are tied up/off & I was left with a feeling of satiety. In a previous book, Pawel mentioned that she had contemplated killing Tejada, but a simple fade to black as in this case sufficed. I feel like I spent enough time with his character & now it is time to move on.

[Dianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

While I think the writing in this series is bit simplistic, I thoroughly enjoyed each volume. I'm not a a student of the Spanish Civil War, but most of what I've read slants to the opposition side. This book gives a sympathetic look to the winners, and whether we like the winning side or not, the books give an excellent picture of the situation just after the war. Frankly, I wanted more books.

[Marcy Skala · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay -- I was disappointed in the lack of a sense of place. Not much in the way of description of Granada. I didn't feel much empathy for Sergeant Tejada and his fascist leanings. Does give one a sense of Spain after the civil war.

[Marsha Valance · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the 13 best mysteries I read in 2006.

[Annabelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This takes place in 1945 in Spain, in the backdrop of the post revolution, where commies and reds are anathema to civilized society. The main character is Tejada, a police in Potas, Norther Mountains, who is married to a former communist activist, Luisa, with proletariat leanings. He is called Grenada his hometown to investigate the death of his grand aunt. She has been afraid of the commies and has thought they were trying to kill her, and terrorizes the local police, Rivas, to find the culprits. There are many red herrings, including Tejada’s cousins Fernando and Felipe. Tejada’s family is super uptight and formal and classist, so everyone struggles. His father just wants him to cover things up, and is trying to find the missing will. There are many beautiful lyrical features about the book. The story of the prince that brought flowering trees to replicate snow underlies the story and returns as a symbol at the end. The vivid locale of the streets of Granada and the mountains is enticing, as well of the history of what happened in Spain during WWII and post Spanish Civil War But the pacing is a bit turgid, and lulls one to disinterest at times. But it is a good read!

[Scilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book takes place in Grenada Spain in 1945. Leeutenant Carlos Tejada Alonso y Leon has come to Grenada to help investigate the death of his rich, elderly grand aunt Rosalia. He is staying with his wife, Elena, and young son) with his parents, who didn't want him to go into the Guardia or to marry Elena, whose parents had been communists. The death is complicated by the fact that the will is missing and this makes several family members suspects, including Tejada's father. After annoying several relatives (including his father) with his questions and helping Elena find out about an old friend, Tejada solves the murder. The book is very well written, and gives one a sense of life in Spain at the time. If you haven't read Rebecca Pawel, you should!

[Blaire · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in Spain in 1945, this book is unusual in its setting, characters, and themes - a very literary mystery. The political climate in Spain just after the civil war, and with WWII looming on the borders, is interesting and plays a large role in the book. More interesting to me are the cast of characters; particularly the protagonist, Carlos Tejada and his wife Elena. Carlos is from an aristocratic family while Elena is working class with 'Red' sympathies. They make an odd pair, and their class and political views loom large in the relationship. The secondary characters are all well-drawn and have their own interesting stories. The mystery itself seems almost beside the point, although the plot is well constructed and the murderer difficult to guess.

[rinabeana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was the perhaps the most depressing because I didn't particularly like Tejada's family. Their attitudes and treatment of Elena and Tejada were rather appalling, though not overtly so. I found myself wishing that they could just leave. Also, I was expecting some sort of resolution (in general) as I'd read that this was the last planned Tejada novel. The ending wasn't really a cliffhanger, but it certainly left room for more books about the Tejadas, especially now that Carlos Antonio is getting older. I guess I'm trying to say that I have no closure.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel is intriguing mainly for its setting in post civil-war Spain, a world, from the point of view of a liberal democracy, turned upside down. Lieutenant Carlos Tejada is a politically correct aristocratic fascist and his wife Elena a socialist and, thus, one of the losers and a political liability. The lieutenant is investigating a murder in which both the victim and the prime suspect are members of his own family. The solution to the mystery requires him to sort out both patriarchal expectations and murky politics.

[Denise Hartman · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Summer Snow is a moody mystery heavy on the characters and lighter on the mystery though there is a distinct mystery being solved. I've lived in Spain and find their civil war era to be hard and rough, but this story boiled down the post war ravages to specific families and people that made the war almost more understandable. The main characters were very strong personalities that you knew when you got done, but some of them were harder to like than others. I think the author did this intentionally and did a good job of it. Not a light read, but an intersting one.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I give this book three stars, but one star is for the historical setting of Spain in 1945. So if I take away the fascination with that time and place, then it's a mediocre mystery. All of the main characters were fairly one-dimensional, and consequently uninteresting to me. However I like the pacing of the story as it unfolded and of course, I loved the backdrop of mid-century Madrid.

[Nikki · Rating 4 out of 5]

Word is that this is the last in the series of four books about a Spanish fascist policeman in the early post-Civil War period (the Spanish one that is) and his much more liberal wife. It's a pity if so, they are all excellent books. I do feel it was not quite up to the standard of the first three; however, meeting the protagonist's aristocratic family alone is worth the reading.

[Mitzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have loved reading this series. I am a fan of detective novels and this one set in Spain under Franco is just so interesting. All four in the series are quick, easy, and way fun reads. I highly recommend it. These are old so if you don;t have a reader, you can likely find them in used book stores.

[Dhartridge · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked Death of a Nationalist quite a bit more and could have rated this book two and a half stars, but the setting and time period are interesting to me. The pace here was slow with much domestic detail.On the other hand, a lead character who is not a lonely, hard drinking, tortured soul makes for a change from some other series I've read.

[Cal · Rating 2 out of 5]

After Death of a Nationalist I was disapointed with Summer Snow. It presents as well researched
in a convincing setting. I simply found 75% of it uninteresting and too
slow. I like some slower paced books but the revelations offered here do not justify the
time spent (for me).

[Gypsy Lady · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aftermath of the Spanish Civil War.

[Jemera Rone · Rating 4 out of 5]

See my review of Death of a Nationalist bty the same writer. This one concerns the death of our hero's relative in Granada, a nationalist stronghold during the recently concluded Spanish Civil War.

[Laurie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read and somewhat informative about the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War. I'm not really into mysteries as a genre which is why it only received 3 stars.

[Alistair · Rating 3 out of 5]

3+
A falangist policeman enforcing the Francoist tyranny in 1940's Spain.
I end up siding and sympathising with the 'criminals'.

But I enjoyed revisiting places I've been.

[jasmine · Rating 4 out of 5]

about loyalty to one's job versus and one's family....a bit slow but I love a mystery