Blood Crime

by Sebastià Alzamora, Martha Tennent (Translation)

A multi-genre gothic novel of the horrific early days of the Spanish Civil War in Barcelona, perfect for fans of Roberto Bolaño and Mario Vargas Llosa."Startling . . . Blood Crime (beautifully translated from the Catalan by Maruxa Relaño and Martha Tennent) has a sort of concentrated power that’s rare in horror novels. It’s akin to poetry." —The New York Times Book Review It is 1936, and Barcelona burns as the Spanish Civil War takes over. The city is a bloodbath. Yet in all this death, the murders of a Marist monk and a young boy, drained of their blood, are strange enough to catch a police inspector’s attention. His quest for justice is complicated by the politics, dangers, and espionage of daily life in a war zone. The Marist brothers of the murdered monk are being persecuted; meanwhile, a convent of Capuchin nuns hides in plain sight, trading favors with the military police to stay alive. In their midst is a thirteen-year-old novice who stumbles into the clutches of the murderer. Can she escape in this city of no happy endings?Narrated by a vampire who thrives in the havoc of the war, this stunning novel, inspired by the true story of a massacre in the early days of the Spanish Civil War, is a gothic reflection on the nature of monsters, in all their human forms.

Genres: Horror, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Crime, Mystery, War, Novels

304 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Sebastià Alzamora i Marín neix a Llucmajor (Mallorca) el 6 de març de 1972. Es llicencia en Filologia Catalana per la Universitat de les Illes Balears el 1995 i, el mateix any, es trasllada a viure a Barcelona. A partir d'aquí compagina la creació literària amb tasques acadèmiques i de gestió cultural. Entre d'altres, ha estat director de l'Espai Mallorca a Barcelona, delegat del Llibre de la Generalitat de Catalunya, director general de Promoció del Llibre de la mateixa institució i membre de l'Institut d'Estudis Baleàrics. Ha estat també director editorial de l'àrea de català de Destino i de l'editorial Moll, professor de l'Aula de Lletres, de l'Escola d'Escriptura i Humanitats de l'Ateneu Barcelonès i del Col·legi de Llicenciats de Barcelona, i ha estat responsable de la biblioteca de la Fundació Pere Vergés.

Reviews

[Greg · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sebastià Alzamora does not seem to know what kind of novel he wants to write with BLOOD CRIME. Is it historical fiction about war and religious persecution? Is it gothic horror about vampires? Is it an allegory of good and evil? Is it a crime novel? Is it meant to be a thriller? This unfortunate lack of focus leads to a superficial treatment of just about everything in the book.

The lack of subtlety in much of the writing also is a serious flaw. The narrative contains copious examples of symbolism that are often heavy-handed. Here are just a few examples—there are many more: religious music (Stabat Mater), designed to portray Mary’s suffering during the crucifixion and a 13 year-old pre-pubertal virgin novice nun for innocence and religious persecution; a vampire for evil incarnate; a deformed and cripple anarchist leader for a catastrophic revolution; a massive automaton horse as revenge triumphant. Likewise, the characters lack nuance. Most major characters are portrayed as either heroic or irredeemably evil.

The story is set in 1936 Barcelona where the Spanish Civil War is raging and anarchists are systematically killing clergy. The Marist brothers negotiate with the anarchists for safe passage to France while the Capuchin nuns take advantage of familial connections to the anarchist leader for their safety in exchange for housing the Bishop of Barcelona for future use as a propaganda tool. Bishop Gabriel Perugorría turns out to be quite a bad dude who is attracted to Sister Concepció, a young innocent novice. Alzamora attempts to build suspense by slowly revealing the Bishop’s true nature, but his handling of the first person narratives sprinkled through the book signals it from the first page.

Manuel Escorza del Vala—a real historical anarchist—is portrayed as totally corrupt. He is willing to deal with anyone to gain advantages for the revolution, but also for himself. Honor is not one of his strong suits.

Superintendent Gregori Muñoz is assigned to investigate the murder of a clergyman and a young child. He is a heroic figure who is not easily duped, but is slow to accept the suggestion of the forensic physician who suspects that the two were murdered by a vampire.

Inexplicably, Alzamora adds a horse to his tale. This horse is heroic in both size and nature. Yet its most bizarre feature is that it is a machine built in collaboration between a judge and the forensic doctor using parts from people murdered during the revolution. One wonders if their professions and the repurposed body parts signal judgment for offenses against Nature?

The writing is not particularly elegant, but this may be the fault of the translation. This notwithstanding, the narrative pacing is slow because it moves unevenly between groups and settings. There is plenty of bloodshed in the climax but, lacking suspense, it is unsatisfying.

[Margalida Roig · Rating 1 out of 5]

No sé que és pitjor, si el llibre o les ressenyes dels anglesos que l'han llegit sense entendre res.
El llibre representa una imatge de la Guerra Civil a Catalunya que ni els mateixos franquistes haurien pogut escriure.
Sort que és de "les d'abans" d'Alzamora. Hem de llegir les seves novel·les més recents.

[Viva · Rating 2 out of 5]

First, a very wordy and difficult to understand intro or preface. Then a long, wordy and uninteresting run up to the discovery of the victims. The police are then shown at the crime scene with no introduction to them. I just found the whole swathe of writing awkward to read and fathom. I don't know if this is because of the writing style or the translation. This book is written in Catalan and translated by two people. Whether the translation or if the book is just not my style, it's just not for me. I got this book free as a review copy.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

interesting........... wonderful story, which made me go look up the history it references... amazingly cool circularity and villain/hero/bystander... atrocities and nastiness and religion and politics and human weakness...

[Txe Polon · Rating 4 out of 5]

La veritat és que em sorprèn la baixa puntuació que té aquest llibre a Goodreads. Potser es tracta d'una promoció errònia de les traduccions a altres llengües, ja que sembla que la promocionen com una història de vampirs. I evidentment no es tracta d'això. A mi m'ha agradat molt l'estil, em sembla que està molt ben escrita i la tècnica de focalització en diferents personatges em sembla molt encertada, ja que cada història té la seva gràcia per separat i s'encamina cap al final conjunt, que és el que dóna unitat a la novel·la. De totes les trames, sorprèn el retrat sense concessions dels membres de la FAI, retratats de forma una mica simplista, ja que són dolents pràcticament sense matisos (tot i que alguns tenen certs dubtes que queden sepultats sota l'autoritat del cap); d'altra banda, la trama del cavall és que la que més desentona dins la història, ja que sembla que s'hi insereix de forma forçada i antinatural. Per mí, és la part més fluixa d'una novel·la que -és veritat- podria haver donat molt més de si, però que en el fons és efectiva amb escreix.

[John Benschoter · Rating 3 out of 5]

A story of the Spanish Civil War and the persecution of nuns and monks couched as a gothic thriller. Alzamora takes from Dracula and Frankenstein, but the real monsters are the men in power. Centered on an actual massacre of Marist and Capuchin bishops, priests, monks, and nuns, Alzamora explores themes of good and evil, humanity, monstrosity, religious belief and faith, and a lot more. But his characters never get bogged down in deep philosophical discussion. Their talks come about naturally in the course of threats and torture and while the police are seeking to solve the mystery of who is killing and drinking the blood of people and animals throughout the city of Barcelona. This is a good, award-winning novel that is enjoyable, despite a few errors in editing that were distracting and disappointing.

[Iñaki Tofiño · Rating 1 out of 5]

Una història mal forjada: dues o tres trames que es barregen però no fan més que confondre el lector; uns personatges mal girbats, sense acabar de definir (llevat d'un o dos, que no són els protagonistes, però); llargues tirallongues de discurs històric que no porten enlloc...
Els ingredients eren bons: guerra civil, persecució religiosa, vampirisme, la FAI, el bisbe Irurita... però la barreja no han sortit gens bé. Una pena.

[Jess · Rating 1 out of 5]

Gave up on page 91 because nothing has happened since the prologue. I'm not kidding when I say the description is the most interesting part of this book. I have over 700 books on my to-read shelf, so I'm going to try one of them instead.

[Stephen Combs · Rating 1 out of 5]

One of very few that I'd didn't manage to tough it out and finish.

[Laura Coll · Rating 2 out of 5]

Un libro con una interesante reflexión sobre la moralidad con un estilo narrativo correcto y que se lee con facilidad. No hay demasiado ritmo ni acción, se centra en profundizar en los personajes y aunque trata el tema de la persecución religiosa durante la guerra civil, tampoco no se centra en ello. Por mi parte, no me ha enganchado.

Reseña completa: http://paseandoentrepaginas.blogspot....

[Anna · Rating 1 out of 5]

I bought this book as it was highly recommended read by the staff of the bookshop and I regret it. I have a feeling the bookshop is having a hard time selling the stock of this badly written book. Or maybe the person who recommended it must have been high on something to consider the book worth reading. It took me 2 years to get past the prologue and 1 page through the first chapter, I gave up. It was like an assault to my brain. I was left asking myself, am I stupid and unable to comprehend what the author was trying to introduce? The book is utterly confusing. It’s trying very hard to be philosophical in a historical gothic thriller and it fails. I want to throw it off the highest building.

[Doug · Rating 4 out of 5]

Complicated story set during the civil war in Spain. I think I liked it, but really need to read again. I think it is a novel that has a lot of meaning, and in the end of the day, it is Spanish (Catalan) and carries a lot of the history of Spain. Marists brothers seeking to escape Barcelona, the abbess, the investigator, Manuel, the Bishop of Barcelona (?Vampire?) and Sister Conception. Complex, complicated, re-read one day in Bahamas. Dont forget the mechanical horse Hadalay, NO CLUE

[deb504 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although the ending was telegraphed, it was an interesting concept. Part crime novel, part war novel (Spanish Civil War), part take-off on the horror genre (vampires & monsters-besides the human ones). It is more fantastical in a Borges manner than the standard crime or war novel. It is not for one seeking a straight-ahead/logical plot. But the concept was unique and well done.

[Jeannette · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am not sure what, exactly, were we supposed to be reading. A mish mash of useless phrases and no focus. I am at a loss to understand how this book won any "coveted prize" Without a doubt, the worst book that I ever hope to come across.

[Damian Mxyzptlk · Rating 2 out of 5]

Strange novel that just has too many things that might as well not be in it, and not enough to make reading it worthwhile.

[enricocioni · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found this book disappointing. And it's not uncommon, when a book in translation turns out to be a disappointment, to blame the translators. However, in this case, I think the mother-daughter team of Martha Tennent and Maruxa Rellaño did an impeccable job. In fact, the prose they produced is the main thing that kept me going through the book's more tedious passages. If I'd known nothing about this book and someone had told me that it had been written in English and not translated into English, I'd almost have believed them--that's how smooth and pleasing Tennent and Rellaño's prose is. At the same time, they don't go so far in their creation of an excellent English text that they erase the cultural connotations of the original--they preserve and convey the Catalan-ness, or at least the un-Englishness of the original through, for example, frequently using the word "religious" as a noun referring to members of the clergy. The word "religious", used this way, always stuck out and made me pause in my reading, but in a good way--a reminder that the book was granting me the privilege of glimpsing into a time and place that were not my own. So the problem isn't the translation--it's almost everything else. You can find my full review here: https://strangebookfellowsblog.wordpr...

[Andy Weston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Small groups of the clergy managed to survive in Civil War-torn Barcelona in 1936, but many were slaughtered or fled. Almazora’s novel concentrates on some Marist Brothers, which include a Bishop, and a group of nuns taking refuge in a nearby convent. He fictionalises a leading player in the Red Terror, the anarchist, Manuel Escorza; though his actual physical handicap and viciousness remain.
The novel opens with a short narration from a vampire, of the particularly brutal murder of an elderly monk and a young boy.
At the convent, the Bishop takes an interest in the youngest of the nuns, a 13 year old, apparently because of her musical abilities - but his behaviour is observed, by the Superintendent investigating the murder, and the vampire, who’s actual identity is for the reader to figure out.
There’s a lot of grisly killings especially at the start of the book, and to some extent the latter part of the book peters out, but in the last sentences the vampire’s identity is revealed.
To Almazora’s credit, is that in writing a vampire into Civil War Spain, it is not really noticed as the violence is that bad anyway. In criticism, the timing of his key scenes put me in mind of a distance runner’s sprint, when it is just too early.. and the runner barely makes the line.

[Heronimo Gieronymus · Rating 5 out of 5]

TRANSYSTEMATICITY [DOLOROSA]

Every now and then he spotted
a coagulated mass of blood on the ground
and using the tip of his shoe
he broke up a clod of earth and
covered the blood with it.

If God so deems it…

A horse with no horseman
pounding the ravaged streets
skirting the bodies and mutilated body parts
that were strewn everywhere
jumping across the still-smoking craters
caused by the explosions
traversing the streets at great speed.

If God so deems it…

Do the rats reproduce
by bipartition
like a vast family of oversized amoebas?

I am but a poor chimney sweep who has left
his coffin and now wanders aimlessly
through a city that is bathed in blood.

The judge had already brought out
his diminutive liqueur glasses
and a bottle of Armagnac—

Let them despoil me
of riches and honour.

And vain will be the efforts…

[Georges · Rating 2 out of 5]

Un bon potentiel avec une intrigue de base intéressante dans un contexte des plus prometeur. Par contre le tout est gaché par un rythme inconsistant, des parties explicatives très longues qui nous fait perdre le fil de l'intrigue. Ça ce replace un leu vers la fin mais pas assez pour rattraper le coup.

[HeikoJ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una barrega curiosa., però m'ha agradat.

[Vicki · Rating 2 out of 5]

Super disappointing, the plot idea is very compelling but then nothing happens in the first 70 pages

[Rafael · Rating 2 out of 5]

La novel·la està bé però avança molt a poc a poc i l’ambient que descriu és molt ranci, a més a més després hi apareix un cavall a l’estil Frankenstein i tot sembla una mica impostat.

[Okenwillow · Rating 3 out of 5]

Que dire d’un tel roman ? Je suis perplexe. La chose est très bien écrite, rondement menée, les personnages sont intéressants bien que pas assez approfondis à mon goût, et les éléments fantastiques sont aussi troublants que disparates. Le contexte historique est plutôt original, car nous sommes à Barcelone en 1936, et il ne fait pas bon être curé lorsque l’on croise un républicain grognon. Certes les curés fascisants l’avaient bien cherché, mais de là à les exterminer et à servir de monnaie d’échange, voire de dérivatif aux pulsions meurtrières de révolutionnaires excessifs, c’est quand même pas joli joli. Bref, un contexte hautement anxiogène donc, et une intrigue pour le moins atypique. Mettez en vrac un commissaire qui n’aime pas les curés, mais qui ne leur veut pas de mal, un évêque gardé au chaud dans un couvent qui ne demande qui libérer sa libido, un vampire qui rôde dans Barcelone, un automate mécano-organique (répondant au nom d’Hadaly, en hommage à L’Ève future de Villiers-de-L’Isle Adam que j’ai maintenant envie de relire, c’est malin !), ça fait beaucoup de choses sans grand rapport entre elles. Le roman est très agréable à lire, envoûtant, mais perturbant dans ses mélanges de thématiques. On finit tout de même par faire le lien entre tous les éléments, mais je reste perplexe quant au choix d’évoquer le vampirisme, le Golem, la pédophilie cléricale, les excès et les crimes des Républicains, tout ceci en même temps et en vrac, sans approfondir un aspect plus que l’autre. Un curieux mélange qui donne le sentiment d’une intrigue non aboutie, brouillonne, même si elle retombe plus ou moins sur ses pattes dans un final inattendu et spectaculaire.


http://www.myinnershelf.com/livres/me...

[Karsten Vestergaard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Denne spanske roman ladet til at have fået en lidt hård medfart, hvilket er synd, for den har faktisk mange kvaliteter.

En af årsagerne er nok, at den er lidt svær at sætte i bås. Både titlen og bagsideteksten indikerer, at der er tale om en vampyrroman, men hvis man har sat næsen op efter en traditionel stage-i-hjertet-fortælling, bliver man skuffet.

Jo, der optræder en vampyr, men vampyren i ”Blodrus” er i lige så høj grad en udefrakommende, der betragter menneskeheden. Og i Alzamoras roman adskiller menneskene sig ikke stort fra monstrene.

Handlingen udspiller sig i 1936, hvor Spanien har begyndt sin nedstigning i borgerkrigens vanvid, og Alzamora fremmaner den samme knugende og pessimistiske stemning som i et af landsmanden Goyas "sorte malerier". Det får romanen til at skille sig ud fra mængden, men vil givetvis ikke appellere til alle.

Det samme kan man sige om et andet træk ved bogen. Alzamora har valgt at fortælle historien ved at springe mellem en række sidestillede karakterer, hvis skæbner flettes sammen.

Det fungerer såmænd udmærket, og Alzamora skriver godt nok til at give alle sine karakterer deres egen personlighed, men til tider savnede jeg en egentlig hovedperson at forankre historien hos.

Kan man affinde sig med det - plus den omstændighed at vampyrhistorien til tider glider noget i baggrunden - er "Blodrus" et originalt indspark i den ellers overvejende engelsk-sprogede gotiske fiktion.

[Rafał · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fajny pomysł opowiedzenia o wojnie domowej w Barcelonie w formie gotyckiego kryminału wampirycznego zapowiadał się świetnie - ale niestety nie za dużo z tego wyszło. Konstrukcja raczej kuleje, wampiryzm okazuje się w gruncie rzeczy pretekstowy i mało istotny, tekst przez dwieście stron z okładem sprawia wrażenie, że fabuła dopiero się rozkręca, aż tu nagle przychodzi ostatnia strona, dziwny motyw quasifrankensteinowski wyrasta ni z tego, ni z owego, postaci nie porywają, a rozważania na temat dobra i zła (zwłaszcza tego drugiego) stanowiące zasadniczą istotę książki raczej nie wykraczają poza oczywistości. Zostają rzut oka na czerwony terror w Hiszpanii, niezłe migawki z ogarniętej rewolucyjnym chaosem Barcelony (jakkolwiek trudno tu mówić o jakimś szczególnym zanurzeniu), zgrabny język tłumaczenia. Lektura szybka i bezbolesna - co skądinąd, zważywszy na temat, chyba nie jest do końca pożądane - ale nie do końca satysfakcjonująca.

[Kenneth Glad · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hvis jeg udelukkende skulle vurdere denne bog ud fra de sidste ca. 80 sider, kunne den nok have sneget sig på et tretal, men desværre for bogen var der 200 sider før disse sidste 80 sider. Utroligt at en bog, der omhandler korruption, borgerkrig, anarkister, politifolk, forræddere og vampyrer kan være så kedelig og intetsigende i så lang tid....

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una història amb alts i baixos, no de trama, sino d'algu a de les històries que la formen. Ara bé, està molt ben escrita i enganxa. Més aquí http://elquellegeixo.blogspot.com.es/...

[Jordi J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Guerra Civil, Barcelona i vampirs. Curiosa barreja que et va enganxant. Val la pena

[Carlo 71 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Libro pubblicato perché un autore catalano tira?

[Kin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chi crea i mostri?.La guerra, l'uomo e la sua tecnologia,il fanatismo,Dio?.I vampiri sono tra noi.Romanzo caleodoscopico che tratta degli orrori della guerra civile nel 1936 in Catalogna.Interessante.