Alatriste: Elusive no longer

Remember this post? This is three years ago...I was pining then!!!

It seems like I have wanted to see the Alatriste movie since the dawn of time. Well, at least since I first got word of it.

I have read ALL of the Alatriste books since their English publications began being released. I love them. Veteran soldier and sword-for-hire, Diego Alatriste, runs around Madrid all swashbuckling. Sometimes there is a battle; or a lover; or a boat; or tavern-drinking; or swordplay and conspiracy… the surrender at Breda….the Spanish Inquisition and a particularly gruesome auto-da-fe.

All fun.

17th Century Madrid is a remarkable canvas ---especially when rendered by Alatriste’s page ( and the series’ narrator), Inigo Balboa. Inigo’s father, Lope, was a friend and comrade of Alatriste’s during one-of-the-many-wars-he-fights-in and after he is killed in action, Alatriste takes care of his son.


Both Inigo and Alatriste have complicated loves: Diego adores a married Spanish actress and Inigo pines for the Machiavellian temptress Angelica.

The film version captures most of it.


Be ye forewarned. If you have not read the books and are not familiar with the series, the movie will make no sense to you. Because, it doesn’t really have a plot. It is just a series of vignettes about Alatriste’s life: snatching the best moments of the books.


You know those VH1 countdowns where they pick the “Top 30 scandals of the 80s” or what have you? This is sort of like that: “ Top 50 Alatriste Book Moments” and they filmed them and patched them together and that’s what you get.

So, as a film separate from the series, it is not that good of an adaptation. But, as a companion TO the series, it is a wonderful homage.


Beautifully filmed: expertly sub-titled. The second most expensive film Spain has ever produced.


It looks and feels and tastes and sounds JUST as I imagined it to. The casting is PERFECTION: from Viggo Mortensen’s swarthy and silent Alatriste, to Inigo, to Angelica ( she is divine) … even to the peripheral characters like Don Francesco.


I have rarely seen a film that so matched my conceptualization of a fictional world. For that, I am so glad I waited ( and waited and waited ) for Alatriste to be released in Region 1.


The Alatriste books made me crave Madrid and the film makes me want to go there even more so.


I really enjoyed it. I REALLY loved the guy who played Inigo.

Oh Alatriste! Who cares if every one of your five (so far) novels are exactly the same ?

I love Captain Alatriste! And I loved The Cavalier in the Yellow Doublet

I love Alatriste: I love his low-brimmed hat and his black boots and his long moustache and the fact that he broods and broods and glares at us with steely grey eyes and then broods again.

And I love the fact that every Alatriste novel set in Madrid is exactly the same ( The Sun Over Breda and The King's Gold had some fun battle scenes and ships and pirates and treasure and stuff.... ) except when Inigo almost gets swallowed up by the Spanish Inquisition in Purity of Blood but with that slight hiccup its all the same.

I LOVE these books. In fact, Alatriste ----actually Alatriste's Madrid--- what with its cobblestones and lanterns and taverns and poets and theatre and carriages and equal parts squalour and lavish riches--- have made Spain ( after Vienna, Austria) my most foreseeable future trip.

I gotta hand it to Perez-Reverte for sheer atmosphere. Our guide, Inigo Balboa, page to the elusive Alatriste, is looking back on his life as the famous sword-for-hire's page and like the legend-in-making is as close to the Spanish lore he embroiders with his snippets of verse and poem; of theatre; of Cervantes.

So much Cervantes.

Perez-Reverte crafts an homage to Spain. He makes it grand. Alatriste paints it grand. Inigo gives us the insider scoop on how it is grand.

This is unabashed patriotism here, kids, all over the place, dripping from the rooftop of the Inn of the Turk ( where Alatriste and Inigo take rooms) through the countless barrels of wine to the blood-soaked alleyways bereft of Alatriste's recent swordthrust.

Like all of the novels in the series, The Cavalier in the Yellow Doublet is all swordplay and tawdry romance and epic conspiracy: this time-- with regicide.

I seem to always be reading Alatriste on a plane somewhere: which is magnificent because I have a bit of a fear of heights and like to get wholly engrossed in a yarn before take off so that I don't look up from my book.

My first two Alatristes were consumed on a trip to the Maritimes; The King's Gold en route to New York City and today en route to St John's Newfoundland where I am here for work, my dreary eyes didn't abhor the early morning flight ---instead they were countered with a venti latte ( triple shot, dear god yes!) and another round of Alatriste.

If you haven't read them yet and have a penchant for historical fiction --- or just need some sweeping swashbuckling from a dazzlingly romantic era of trickery and derring-do, then get yourself some Perez-Reverte. But, a caveat, they always take forever to be translated into English and I tap my fingernails forever until the next installment is tossed my way.

Two BIG Rachel Thumbs Up

BBAW Meme

• Do you snack while you read? If so, favorite reading snack? Sometimes on a weekend night, I will go and get a bag of jellybellys to accompany what I am reading. Other than that, usually not. I drink tea.

• Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you? It really depends on the book. When I am working ( I have a job as a reviewer), I pencil mark my books for sure and use post-its throughout. I was an underliner in school and on my own ( just ask Once Upon a Bookshelf). Often, my favourite books are underlined ( favourite passages that are just aching to stand out on the page) but I will purchase an unmarked copy. Reading is a very engaging and interactive experience and I am a very effusive reader: I physically respond to reading and one of the ways is to underline or star a passage. It is ownership for me.
• How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears? Laying the book flat open? Bookmark---often in the form of a post-it or train ticket if it is there. Sometimes my Aragorn bookmark. Or else I remember the page number. I am really good with page numbers
• Fiction, Non-fiction, or both? Mostly fiction. But, I like to read the context of books I love so I read a lot of biography; lit crit and history
• Hard copy or audiobooks? Hardcopy of my favourite authors whose books I cannot wait for in trade. Trade is my favourite format. I loathe being read to so I loathe audio books.
• Are you a person who tends to read to the end of chapters, or are you able to put a book down at any point? Depends on the book. Really.
• If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop to look it up right away? Nope. Unless it excites or intrigues me. I love word sounds and the pairing of sounds with sentence structure and the way words fit into a book.
• What are you currently reading? Dogwood by Chris Fabry
• What is the last book you bought? The new Alatriste book by Arturo Perez Reverte: The Cavalier in the Yellow Doublet
• Are you the type of person that only reads one book at a time or can you read more than one at a time? I read more than one. Usually one “comfort” book for just before I go to sleep ( a re-read: right now it is Les Miserables); one kids or YA book for work; one non-fiction ( right now a biography on the slave abolitionist Wiliam Wilberforce) and I always have the Bible on the go ( I am a Christian so this ties into my daily reading) and sometimes a Christianesque devotional---right now Grace Notes by Philip Yancey so subsidize my reading
• Do you have a favorite time of day and/or place to read? Favourite place? A fall day down by the Toronto Harbour in a little Second Cup. I can read anywhere. I like my couch at home with lots of pillows and low light and tea. I like when I go to my parent’s house in Orillia and make use of the chaise lounge in the sun. It really depends on my mood. Sometimes Philosopher’s Walk( a park in Toronto near the University) under a tree.
• Do you prefer series books or stand alone books? Depending on genre: YA and Mystery and nautical fiction SERIES!!!!! General fiction standalone

• How do you organize your books? (By genre, title, author’s last name, etc.?) I literally own thousands of books. So much so that a lot of my mass markets are in layaway in big rubbermaid bins until I have my own library. I have bookshelves specifically for YA and childrens. My classics are separated ( alphabetically ) and my general fiction alphabetical; series are chronological (ie Aubrey Maturin ) if I have lit crit or biographies or related material on a certain book I put it with the author after the novels are lined up. I have a shelf just for Christianity ( alphabetical); history, etc. Let’s sum this up: alphabetical but in genre-specific regions.
• Is there a specific book or author that you find yourself recommending over and over? CATHERINE WEBB'S HORATIO LYLE SERIES!
  

Book Trailers are Dumb

A few random things:

• Book Trailers are Dumb. I have never seen a convincing one. Libba Bray in a cow suit may be the one exception ( see it here)
• Meg Cabot's blog is far better than any of her books
• The two authors whose books I am most excited for any given year ( pre-order; check continually on Chapters.ca for updates on release dates etc., ) are:
• 1.) Catherine Webb --- whose Horatio Lyle series is by far my favourite thing in contemporary YA
• 2.) Martha Grimes --- whose Richard Jury series is the best part of any book year
• Scott Lynch needs to come up with ONE release date for Republic of Theives and stick to it
• I should learn Spanish---if only to be able to read Arturo Perez-Reverte's Alatriste series without having to wait for translation
• I may have bought the first Charles Finch novel because he looked nice in his photograph

books I love that you've probably never read:

While reading Scott Lynch this weekend, I was forced to think about all of the books that I love that a lot of people would never stumble upon or read under normal circumstances.

So, I give you a bunch of books that have probably fallen under your radar, but are worth every word:


The Blooding of Jack Absolute by CC Humphreys. You've probably heard of Sharpe by Bernard Cornwell, you probably haven't heard of Humphreys. I love this series. Especially this book. It's one of the funniest I have ever read.


The Extraordinary and Unusual Adventures of Horatio Lyle, The Doomsday Machine, the Obsidian Dagger by Catherine Webb. Actually, if you have stumbled upon this blog you have read about them because I seem to talk about nothing else.

Captain Alatriste ( and subsequent novels ) by Arturo Perez Reverte. You have probably read or heard of the Flanders Panel and The Club Dumas but you have probably not read Alatriste.


Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt. This is a gorgeous, dark and brooding fairytale with a chilling ending that will steal your breath.


The Lies of Locke Lamora, Red Seas Under Red Skies and soon The Republic of Thieves by Scott Lynch. Sort of George RR Martin, Sort of Robin Hood, a heist and witty repartee that would make The Sting jealous, the best of high fantasy/imagined historical fiction.


Tribes by Arthur Slade. If you're Canadian, you have probably heard of Dust and Megiddo's Shadow but you probably skipped Tribes. Shame on you. Good book.


The Spell Book of Listen Taylor by Jaclyn Moriarty. This book is published by House of Anansi and has not quite risen to the status of The Year of Secret Assignments or The Murder of Bindy Mackenzie but it is brilliant and worth the read.

Deafening by Frances Itani. Set in small town Ontario during the years preceding and during the Great War, a well-spun romance between a deaf woman and a hearing stretcher-bearer who develop a language of their own. Glimpses of the homefront and the warfront are expounded upon poignantly.


Skulduggery Pleasant, Playing with Fire etc., by Derek Landy. Fire-throwing Skeleton detective pairs with whipsmart 12 year old in this funny and fresh series with the quickest dialogue since Nick and Norah Charles. Unbelievably good!


Montmorency: Thief, Liar Gentleman by Eleanor Updale. I am a champion of young adult novels with adult protagonists ( see Horatio Lyle ). A Jekyll and Hyde-esque romp through Victorian London.


Mairelon the Magician by Patricia C. Wrede. Magical, luminous historical novel.


The Privilege of the Sword by Ellen Kushner. Medieval-type fantasy starring sword-wielding heroine and a plethora of moody eccentrics.

the post that was supposed to be about The Landing

I was supposed to write about the Landing. But, I left the review on my work computer and my work computer....erm...at work.


So, instead I have decided to write about Charles Finch. I love Charles Finch. He has a nice face. And, most importantly and ever less superficially, the books ARE fantastic, chock full of plaintive verisimilitude and boasting beautiful titles.

Also, to the point of Literary Alter Egos, we can muse on Charles Finch naming his hero Charles Lenox. That should be fun ...'specially because the second installment finds our hero in Oxford: Charles Finch's old stomping ground ( I say "old" with a grain of salt because we are 'bout the same age ). Now, a real review ( because I do like to do things properly and not lackadaisically: hence this blog's sporadic tendencies to wane to and fro ) requires me dipping back into A Beautiful Blue Death and The September Society. Followed by extravagant praise and then a melange of anecdotes on the British detective front---obviously including the darling little mystery store in New York City ( Greenwich Village to be precise ) that editor Otahyoni and I pillaged on our vacation there this past summer ----and obviously a foray into Will Thomas
( because I really do like him and The Black Hand was more than decent!) and maybe a dash of that Rhys Bowen, Her Royal Spyness which was the best of froth and Deanna Raybourn's Silent as the Grave which was also the best of froth ......

and then, being in the frame of murderous mind, I would probably talk about the gorgeous new covers bestowed upon those Nero Wolfe omnibuses.

Then I would talk about Archie Goodwin.

Then I would muse on my favourite fictional characters. Leading to Alatriste, perchance, and then to The Painter of Battles ( on the Perez-Reverte front)

oh cursed stream-of-consciousness--- I would come full circle back to YA fiction and to Horatio Lyle and....


what's the point?


I have none of this planned out.


Oh blog-in-embryo, you doth fail me.

Oh well! Do you all have some titles to write down in your notebooks?

the elusive Alatriste

Okay, so I have been pining for this supposed Captain Alatriste movie since I heard about it ( namely through a chance encounter with a youtube trailer .


But I am beginning to think the bloody thing will never be released in North America.


As with the brilliant Arturo Perez Reverte series, we tend to get more than a little late, I guess it is somewhere lost in translation.


So, we speculate:


did Viggo Mortensen REALLY learn Spanish?

does Diego kiss that girl.... you know, the one that turns all the events on the sidelines and makes life a living hell ?

is the movie as high budget as its excellent website?




I'm dying here people!

Arturo Perez-Reverte Rocks my SOCKS

-just returned from fantastic trip to the East Coast ( PEI PEI !!! )

-there really is a Priest Pond ( home of Dean Priest in ...wonderful)

-I am now a member of the LM Montgomery Land Trust ( PRESERVE PEI! )

-I am a slacker who never writes in her blog

-I love Somerset Maugham

-the Captain Alatriste series is very very worth it.....finished Captain Alatriste and Purity of Blood in Nova Scotia. Now reading the latest Sun over Breda. According to imdb.com there is a Captain Alatriste movie that has been shown already in Spain with Viggo Mortensen. Hope we get it here.