El amante albanés

by Susana Fortes

Under Enver Hoxha's dictatorship Albania was the most isolated and paranoid European state, where life could only be lived in complicity with its tyranny, or in clandestine resistance. The villa of state hero Zanum Radjik on Tirana's Elbesan road is a house of many secrets. On one wall hangs the portrait of Zanum's absent wife, whose name was never heard within the house. She was the mother of his two very different sons, and the image of her gaze bears silent witness to her mysterious death of many years before, when Ismail, the youngest was only five. Into this house without women Viktor -- the elder son, his father's favorite -- has brought as his bride a beautiful young peasant girl, Helena. But the Radjik brothers have chosen opposing paths of honor, painfully measuring the growing distance between them. And when an irresistible passion for Helena overwhelms Ismail, his is compelled to exhume at last the long-hidden truths and duplicitous crimes that poison all of their lives. The Albanian Affairs is a gripping exposé of psychological oppression, a sensuous yet wrenching story of forbidden love, and an archetypal tragedy that echoes inexorably as if from the hand of the Greek playwright Aeschylus.

Hardcover

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Susana Fortes (Pontevedra, Spain, 1959) graduated in Geography and History at the Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, and in American History from the Universidad de Barcelona. She has recently spent time in the USA, combining teaching Spanish in Louisiana and participating in university conferences at the Universidad Interestatal de San Francisco. She currently teaches at a secondary school in Valencia. With her first novel, Querido Corto Maltés (Dear Corto Maltés), she won the 1994 Premio Nuevos Narradores. In 2001 she was shortlisted in the Premio Primavera awarded by Espasa for her novel, Fronteras de arena (Borders of Sand). She has also published Las cenizas de la Bounty (Ashes of the Bounty; Espasa, 1998), Tiernos y traidores (Tender Traitors; Seix Barral, 1999) and the screenplay Adiós, muñeca (Ciao, Doll; Espasa, 2002). With her novel El amante albanés (The Albanian Affairs) she was short-listed for the Premio Planeta 2003. Her novels have been translated into English, Dutch, French, Norwegian, Greek, German, Italian, Portuguese (Portugal and Brazil), Chinese (Simplified and Complex) Polish, Hungarian, Croatian, Turkish, Hebrew, Russian and Korean. Susana is a regular contributor to the newspaper El País, as well as various cinema and literature magazines.

Her novel El azar de Laura Ulloa (The Fate of Laura Ulloa), Planeta 2006, won the Premio de la Crítica and has been translated into several languages. Quattroccento (Planeta, October 2007) and her last novel Waiting for Robert Capa (Planeta, 2009), winner of the Premio Fernando Lara 2009, have been translated into 12 languages and are best-seller in many countries.

Film rights of Waiting for Robert Capa have been sold to Forward Pass (Michael Mann's production company) and Columbia Pictures. The screenplay is written by Jez Butterworth.

Reviews

[Kotka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tragiczna historia, trochę banalna. W tle pobieżnie komunistyczna Albania - równie dobrze mógłby to być każdy kraj komunistyczny gdyby nie kilka albańskich przesądów czy zwyczajów. Gdyby nie język i poetyckość nie byłaby tak interesującą. Przypomina mi prozę Rodoredy.

[Trisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was amazing! It gave a glimpse into Albanian culture in regard to marriage as well as the political upheaval that was occurring. It was shocking to read about the "bridal bullet" being part of the dowry and that this is still practiced by some famies to this day! The novel was fantastic and left you with a giant, unanswered question at the end....though I have my own theory..... This was truly a great way to start my literary expedition around the world!

[Fran Barrero · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una historia quizá no muy original pero narrada de un modo sublime. Quizá eso mismo sea lo que más guste a quienes disfrutan de paladear una literatura muy ornamentada y lo que menos a quienes buscan leer deprisa y sin florituras.

[Nacho Benitez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simplemente hermoso. La autora escribe y describe de una forma muy profunda y poetica pero sin volverse pesado y manteniendote atrapado lo suficiente. Me gusto como de fue desenvolviendo la trama yendo y viniendo del pasado al presente.
Quiero ir a Albania

[Maria · Rating 3 out of 5]

La forma de escribir es exquisita, la historia en sí no está mal, me ha dejado un poco indiferente.

[Selu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un muy buen libro. Maravillosamente escrito. Lo he cogido y no he podido dejarlo hasta terminar. Un saludo a todos. :)

[Judit Arroyuelos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liburu hau ere nahikotxo gustatu zitzaidan, gainera istorio erromantikoa nahasten du intriga puntu batekin. Halere, oso zaila da Albaniaren inguruan dakidan gutxiarekin istoria sozio-politikoa ulertzea...

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Engrossing story about one family's past and present told in a non-linear timeline. Like a soap opera with a bit of history tossed in.

[Lucía · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un libro que nos adentra en la desconocida Albania a través de la historia familiar del protagonista, Ismail, y de los secretos que rodean su vida.

[David Heredero · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Lo que se ha admitido desde siempre adquiere una categoría de verdad inalterable. No se cuestiona con el paso del tiempo o resulta muy difícil hacerlo"

[Sarah McClelland · Rating 2 out of 5]

probably wouldn't have finished it if it was longer but it did have some intriguing thoughts and a little bit of my interest was piqued by the plot

[Sandra Dias · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sinceramente nem sei como escrever esta minha opinião.

No início estava a literalmente a empurrar as páginas. A escrita desta autora não era apelativa, mas antes confusa, com comparações excessivamente enumerativas e com saltos na estória demasiado inesperados e súbitos. Mas como eu tive sempre esta mania de não gostar de deixar livros a meio, continuei a ler. E ainda bem que o fiz.

Passadas estas primeiras páginas o livro começou a agradar-me. É a estória de dois irmãos que durante a infância eram inseparáveis, mas à medida que cresciam foram separados pelos próprios pais para que cada um cumprisse os desejos de futuro de cada progenitor. Mas a relação entre este casal é algo estranha e desde cedo que adivinhamos o que se passou. No entanto, e apesar das minhas quase certezas, tive de esperar para saber se tinha razão. A mãe faleceu à muitos anos e o pai é uma personagem sombra, alguém que sabemos que existe mas que nada partilha ou demonstra. Aliás, é através do irmão mais novo, Ismaíl, que vamos descobrindo o que verdadeiramente se passou.

A estória em si é bastante simples, mas o desfecho é que foi mais complicado. Uma estória de um amor proibido repleto de segredos de estado, intrigas a rodearem os amantes e uma traição inesperada embora à muito temida. Tudo isto num país isolado de toda a Europa e altamente paranóico, com uma polícia secreta de Estado que prende e assassina qualquer pessoa sem ser necessário qualquer prova, bastando apenas que alguém aponte o dedo.

À medida que Ismaíl vai ligando os pontos, vai-se apaixonando pela bela cunhada. Esta relação soou-me quase como um reflexo um pouco distorcido do que se tinha passado com a mãe de Ismaíl, e cujo desfecho... bem, é melhor lerem para eu não retirar o prazer de leitura de alguém que tenha este livro na estante à espera de ler ou com intenções em lê-lo.

Como balanço final posso dizer que acabei por gostar do livro, mas tenho pena que a autora não tenha reescrito os primeiros capítulos.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the start of this novel, it is evident why it was not only nominated for the Planeta award in 2003, but was awarded runner up. It gave a concise insight into Albanian culture and tradition as well as what it is like living under a tyrannical government . Fortes beautiful language sharply contrasts with the dark backdrop of Albania's political turbulence and immediately draws you into the passionate world of Ismail and his struggles with his family both past and present.

[Raquel · Rating 3 out of 5]

História de um amor proibido. Quem é que não gosta de ler a história de um amor proibido? É uma história de amor interessante, livro curto, mas deveras apaixonante. Viktor leva para casa a sua noiva Helena, mas que por sua vez acaba por se apaixonar pelo irmão Ismaíl, e chega a altura em que tem que optar por um deles, mas adora os dois. Adorei ler esta história cheia de intriga entre os dois irmãos.

http://aviciadadoslivros.blogspot.pt/...

[Janey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Albania fascinates me, and this book held promise for an exploration of conditions under Hoxha, but I kept questioning whether the awkward phrase I stumbled over was from the translation or the original. I wanted to edit the language, and it pulled me out of the story too often to let myself be swept along by it.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book and I read it in one day. Evrything in right dodes. Very good.

[Marieta · Rating 2 out of 5]

El título original, en castellano, es "El amante albanés". Me encantó. Me gusta la autora Susana Fortes. Hace mucho tiempo que lo leí, pero lo recuerdo como muy recomendable.

[Carmen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Destruido trastero