Law of Return

Tejada #2

by Rebecca Pawel

After being transferred from Madrid to Salamanca, Carlos Tejada, promoted to a lieutenant in the Guardia Civil, investigates the disappearance of a well-connected former law professor.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Spain, Fiction, Spanish Civil War, Mystery Thriller, Crime

304 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

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

[Zelal Akgüneş · Rating 4 out of 5]

Serinin bu ikinci kitabında Tejada Salamancaya tayin ediliyor. Orada Salamanca Üniversitesi eski rektörünü destekleyen dilekçeciler adı verilen ve gözetim altında tutulan bir gruptan Manuel Arroyo önce kayboluyor ve sonrasında cesedi bulunuyor.
Tejeda olayı araştırmaya koyuluyor. Dilekçecilerden biri de Elena’nın babası Guillermo Fernandez …
Romanda yeni olan karekterlerden biri de Joseph Meyer ; Guillermo Fernandez gibi Homeros uzmanı ve onun eski bir arkadaşı. Fernandez yahudi olduğu için gestapodan kaçan Meyer’e bu kaçışında yardım etmek istiyor. Birbirlerine yazdıkları telgraflarda İlyadadan alıntılarla kaçışı planlamak ve haberleşmek için şifreli bir dil oluşturuyorlar :)
Romanda ilgimi çeken birkaç ayrıntıdan da bahsedeyim:
Meyer’in pasaportunda yahudi olduğu belli olsun diye J ( Jewish) damgası var örneğin, o dönem gestaponun sıradan rutin bir uygulaması sanırım.Ve Franco taraftarlarının Viva la Muerte ( çok yaşa ölüm ) sloganları ; faşistlerin her dönem ve her coğrafyada yaşamı değil ölümü kutsamaları…

[Seher Andaç · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Önündeyse Biscay Körfezi’nin sonsuz maviliği uzanıyordu.”
Kitabı elime aldım ve bırakamadım. Hâl böyle olunca sayfalar bitti. Oturdum sonsuz maviliği izliyorum:)

[Digdem Absin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Serinin ikinci kitabında Teğmen Carlos Tejada ve onbaşı Jimenez Salamanca’ya tayin ediliyorlar. Eyalet başkenti olan ve üniversitesiyle ünlü Salamanca, Madrid’den farklı olarak barışçı ve zengin bir şehir; İç savaş’ın kazanan tarafında yer aldığı için zarar görmemiş.

1936’da üniversite rektörü Miguel de Unamuno - romandaki tek gerçek karakter- haksız şekilde görevinden uzaklaştırılınca ona destek veren bazı öğretim görevlileri dilekçeciler diye yaftalanmışlar, görevlerinden uzaklaştırılıp gözetim altında tutulmaya başlamışlar. Tejada Salamanca’ya gelince bu dilekçecilerden birinin cinayete kurban gittiği ortaya çıkıyor. Bir yandan bu dosyayla ilgilenirken diğer yandan da babası dilekçecilerden biri olan Elena’nın şüpheli davranışlarını kontrol etmeye çalışıyor Tejada. Salamanca’dan San Sebastian hatta Biarritz’e uzanıyor hikaye. Avrupa’da ise II. Dünya Savaşı devam etmekte ve Fransa işgal ediliyor.

Serinin ikinci kitabı da sürükleyici. Tejada hala Franco’cu ama işini düzgün yapmaya çalışıyor. ‘Kızıllar’la hala sorunları var; fakat önyargılı değil, adil davranıyor. Değişim olacaksa da yavaş olacak galiba :))))

Unamuno’nun görevden alınmasına sebep olan tören konuşmasında, rektörü Viva La Muerte sloganlarıyla karşılamış General Millan taraftarları. Unamuno ise General Millan’a ‘Kazanabilirsiniz ama ikna edemezsiniz’ cevabını vermiş. Kazanmak aslında giderken dik durabilmek!!!

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

A near 5. Almost 5. Close, so very close.

What a terrific fucking novel. Man how come when I pick up books at random they aren't all as good as Rebecca Pawel's books? Tejada is an awesome character, and a worthy addition to the pantheon of serial detectives. I just picked up on this chick a few months ago, and I'm trying to pace myself because I think she only has two more books after this one (so far), but man, I can't get enough of this stuff. Write faster.

[Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this one. Maybe because I really liked her first one and was expecting to be swept into the character's stories once again. To some degree I certainly was but some things just struck me as being out of character particularly the romantic elements, which I found a little sudden and contrived. But then again, it was Spain and it was a different time so maybe I'm being harsh. Still it was a four star read for me and certainly worthwhile. If you have not read the first book in this series I highly recommend you do, as I feel, you will see the author in her full potential. Then again she may rise to higher levels further on in this series ...and I intend to find out!

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sequel to Death of a Nationalist, this is another convincing evocation of immediate post-Civil War Spain more-so than the fairly shallow murder case investigated by Tejada, now in provincial Salamanca. The love story with the Republican sympathiser whom he met in Madrid in the previous novel develops further, perhaps too much so, but it is absorbing and the characters are pretty convincing as the anti-hero Guardia lieutenant travels to Nazi occupied France pursuing a wealthy escapee or is he a murder victim? 4.5 stars.

[John_g · Rating 3 out of 5]

Our hero tells Elena that he's not superhuman, but acts like a secret agent, whose moral code surpasses his party as his abilities surpass his supervisors.
Maybe this couple is a parable for today's polarized extremes? Will we likewise find married couples who tolerate political differences, yet leave the country a wreck as large as Spain after its civil war?

The author likes to quote different European languages while exploring regional differences and allegiances.

[Batuhan Doğruk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bu kitabı dokuz sene önce almışım, hangi motivasyonla aldığımı bile hatırlamıyorum. Pek matah bir motivasyon da değilmiş ki serinin ilk kitabını almadan ikinci kitabını almışım. Anladığım kadarıyla ikinci kitabı anlamak için ilk kitabı okumak gerekli değil; yine de ilginç olacak bir seriye ikinci kitaptan başlamak.

[Greta · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Carlos Tejada Alons0 y Leon Investigation takes the reader from Salamanca to San Sebastian to Biaritz and back in post civil war Spain. Tensions run high as the Guardia Civil continue to call on parolees for the truth of their daily activities. Spain remains divided among Franco ruled citizens. Germany has taken over Petain's government in France. At home and abroad, people are scared.

[Ian Racey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always say that you get one major coincidence per book. This was decent, but not only did it depend on two major coincidences, they were the same coincidence (the two main characters happening to run into each other in cities, even countries, where neither had reason to expect the other to be).

[Woody Chandler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a decent mystery with lots of subplots, but it really felt like just a sequel to further the romance between Tejada & Elena. Beyond that I don't want to say anything else so as not to give anything away.

[Dianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

See my review of Summer Snow

[Ann Repetto · Rating 3 out of 5]

have read the first two of this series and love it. Tejada is a good guy but is also an agent of the state. good characters.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up - a few too many loose ends!

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spain in 1940: Lieutenant Carlos Tejada of Franco’s Guardia Civil has been transferred to Salamanca. Among his duties he conducts weekly interviews with parolees including former professors found guilty of signing a letter of protest. One of the parolees, a former professor of classics, is trying to rescue a Jewish friend with whom he communicates in an obscure code referenced to the “Odyssey.” The setting in post- civil war Spain is well researched and Tejada is an interesting character – a conscientious man in a brutal system.

[Kristine Brancolini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Law of Return brings together many of my favorite elements: interesting and complex characters, World War II in Europe as a setting, well-researched historical detail, and a Jewish refugee in need of help. Carlos Tejada has been promoted to lieutenant and transferred to Salamanca from Madrid. It's 1940, the Spanish Civil War has ended and we know who won: Tejada's boss.

In Salamanca Tejada meets a young woman whom he met in Book 1 of the series, Elena Fernandez. She is from Salamanca, where he father was a professor at the university. He has had political problems during the war and is now on probation and under surveillance most of the time. Her father had a German Jewish colleague who is now trapped in France and needs help getting to Spain. Professor Fernandez cannot travel to Biarritz, France, which is near the Spanish border, so Elena and her mother plan to go to San Sebastian and sneak into France. At the last minute her mother is injured so Elena goes alone. At the same time Carlos Tejada is going to San Sebastian to investigate the disappearance of another university professor who is also on probation, Manuel Arroyo Diaz. He has a house and a boat in San Sebastian, so it is suspected that he escaped there with the intention of fleeing the country. But where and why?

The tension in these books is fueled by the strange political situation in Spain. There don't seem to be many good guys and lots of bad guys. However, Lieutenant Tejada is an enigma. Ostensibly on the side of Franco (super bad guy), Tejada is a good man and fair-minded policeman, which seems to be an oxymoron in this context. Elena seems to be fairly a-political at this point, but her brother is a Communist who fled to Mexico after the war. Elena and Carlos seem to be destined to fall in love, but continue to fight about politics.

This book also passed the Wikipedia test for me: It prodded me online to find out more information about Spain after the Civil War ended and about the cities of Salamanca, San Sebastian, and Biarritz. Despite Spain's official neutrality during World War II, Franco and Hitler were thick as thieves, so it was a very dangerous place to be. The title of the book refers to a law passed in Spain stating that Jews of Spanish descent, Sephardic Jews, who can prove their lineage, may return to Spain. But our German Jewish Professor Meyer is not Sephardic. He seeks another solution.

[rinabeana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was excellent. There was enough exposition that I didn't feel in the dark since I hadn't read Death of a Nationalist. I felt very sorry for Elena's father and his fellow parolees. I still didn't entirely agree with some of Tejada's techniques, but I couldn't really fault him for doing his job, especially since he was nicer than many of his comrades were. The entire sequence when Elena is trying to rescue Meyer and Tejada shows up unexpectedly (saving the day) was fantastic. Part of what I really liked about this book is that it moved along with an exciting story, but also devoted time to developing relationships and ethical/philosophical/moral debates. I'll even go so far as to say that I liked Tejada better than Elena in this novel, even though I knew that what Tejada stood for wasn't really right. He was at least more reasonable than her and didn't snoop through her things and then shun her when she misinterpreted a private letter (I was really angry with her for that).

[Scilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rebecca Pawel is an excellent writer of books which take place in Spain in the beginning of Franco's rule. Carlos Tejada Alonso y Leon is a Lieutenant in the Guardia Civil and is transferred to Salamanca, where he attended university. He is monitoring parolees, and Elena, a woman who he had helped out in Madrid and with whom he is in love, comes with her father, former classics professor Fernandez for his weekly interview with the Guardia. Another parollee, Manuel Arroyo Díaz, is found murdered. Tajeda is in charge of the investigation and uses that to follow Elena, with whom he is in love, to the coast and then to Biarritz. She is trying to help a Jewish friend of her father escape the Nazis in France. Of course, courting a socialist is not good for his career, and Elena is not comfortable with the Guardia.

[Nikki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read Rebecca Pawel's all-too-brief series out of order as they became available to me. Talk about your odd couple; a detective who's a Franco fascist and his love interest, a much more liberal intellectual. Each brings insights to the crimes they solve, and their relationship deepens most satisfactorily. I have never bought a book from Soho Press that wasn't good, so the publisher alone should tell you something. The setting at the end of the Spanish Civil War and the beginning of World War II is also one of my favorite time periods, so I was primed to like these books from the beginning, and the writing is excellent also. Highly recommended.

[Mmars · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found Death of a Nationalist consistently good & felt it had more historical insight. At times Law of Return is more suspenseful and just as interesting. Here the theme is more of disappearance and escape. The Spanish Civil War and its reach are ebbing while WWII has overtaken France and Jewish citizens are attempting to escape deportations in France and Germany. Without being the main focus of the book, Pawel did an excellent job of capturing the process of being on the run and only with connections, luck, and willingness could it be possible to escape. In some respects the actual mystery of the story takes a back seat to history. I think this is true of both books and perhaps, for me, it makes them more enjoyable.

[Belen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series set during the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War is notable for having a Fascist as the book's detective. A main character full of contradictions, but with a clear moral certainty. Moral values are for me, one of the most enjoyable features of any mystery. However his values are challenged by a teacher who sympathizes with the loosing side. All the novel's have good plots and wonderful detail, in this case about Salamanca. The first book is set in Madrid, and the third in a tiny town in the mountains, you feel like you're there during this time period. A well-written mystery, adventure and love story.

[Jonathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well I think I am now officially a fan of Rebecca Pawel, and of Tejada. Again, it's hard to put aside the fact that the man is a fascist(sympathizer) but I appreciate that Pawel doesn't shy away from the complications that this brings up. The story was a little slow for what I consider a mystery to be, but I didn't mind. Pawel has written complex characters again, and I actually enjoyed getting to know them. The 'mystery' drew me in too, but I really found it secondary to the questions of politics, loyalty to people and causes that are central to this book. I think I'm hooked.

[Ruth · Rating 3 out of 5]

This should be 3.5 stars: 4 stars for the romance and the captivating setting (Spain immediately after the Spanish Civil War), 3 stars for the actual mystery, which was weak and sort of unnecessary, despite this being shelved in the mystery section. My suggestion: Pawel should stop writing mysteries (or stop her publisher from classing her that way) and just write novels about Spain in this era. She's clearly a talented writer, but not of whodunits.

[Gabrielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pawel created an interesting character because with Tejada, readers have to look beyond a political label to the person.

As with the first book, strong cast of characters, well-developed arcs. As with the first, I want and need to bolster my pitiful knowledge of Spain's fascist, communist, et al history.

[Mercedes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Second in the series that started with 'Death of a Nationalist'. Sometimes authors begin with a bang but can't sustain it. This is a good sophomore effort that doesn't disappoint. The setting is still Spain but time has moved on and it takes places in the early years after the Civil War.

[Mikey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Soho crime series book with with Lieutinent Carlos Tejada at the helm to solve a missing persons possible murder,set in Spain. I generally like this series but this particular book was a bit slow.

[Kent Hayden · Rating 3 out of 5]

This, the second in the series, was a light read and missing many of the elements that made the first so good. The characters are apparently fully developed and no deeper do we go into their conflicted psyches. I'll read the third but it better be good!

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

am i a sucker for liking a happy ending?

[Brigitte · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one just didn't do it for me. I found the plot slow, and I lost interest in it quickly.

[Gypsy Lady · Rating 3 out of 5]

Aftermath of the Spanish Civil War.