I give this book a lower rating than the previous books in the series, and it's not because it does anything particularly wrong. It's a rather entertaining yarn about a heist (or black op, since it's done at the behest of the authorities) commanded by Captain Alatriste during Spain's Golden Century.

The problem is that the mannerisms of the series are starting to tire me out. The narrator interrupts the story so much to give us the same lecture on how Spain at that time combined greatness in the arts and in the bravery of the people with corruption and self-defeating mismanagement. OK, OK, I get it. How could I not, I'm Spanish myself. But really, it's a simple enough message, there's no need to hammer it down so much. Reverte really should let the series grow beyond that.

The narrator, Iñigo de Balboa, Alatriste's young protégé, keeps teasing us with details of what's going to happen between him and his love and nemesis, the heartless Angelica... OK, count me in. I would like to see that, but until then, could we please concentrate on the story at hand?

Having said that, Alatriste is a great character. Complex, multi-faceted, cynical, generous, brave... a hero and a rogue at the same time.

The story itself, once you remove the embellishments and the repetitious discourse, is straightforward but effective. ( )

I give this book a lower rating than the previous books in the series, and it's not because it does anything particularly wrong. It's a rather entertaining yarn about a heist (or black op, since it's done at the behest of the authorities) commanded by Captain Alatriste during Spain's Golden Century.

The problem is that the mannerisms of the series are starting to tire me out. The narrator interrupts the story so much to give us the same lecture on how Spain at that time combined greatness in the arts and in the bravery of the people with corruption and self-defeating mismanagement. OK, OK, I get it. How could I not, I'm Spanish myself. But really, it's a simple enough message, there's no need to hammer it down so much. Reverte really should let the series grow beyond that.

The narrator, Iñigo de Balboa, Alatriste's young protégé, keeps teasing us with details of what's going to happen between him and his love and nemesis, the heartless Angelica... OK, count me in. I would like to see that, but until then, could we please concentrate on the story at hand?

Having said that, Alatriste is a great character. Complex, multi-faceted, cynical, generous, brave... a hero and a rogue at the same time.

The story itself, once you remove the embellishments and the repetitious discourse, is straightforward but effective. ( )

El oro del rey
Arturo Pérez-Reverte
Publicado: 2000 | 169 páginas
Novela Aventuras Histórico
Serie: Las aventuras del capitán Alatriste #4

«—Habrá que matar —dijo Don Francisco de Quevedo—. Y puede que mucho. —Sólo tengo dos manos —respondió Alatriste. —Cuatro —apunté yo». Sevilla, 1626. A su regreso de Flandes, donde han participado en el asedio y rendición de Breda, el capitán Alatriste y el joven mochilero Íñigo Balboa reciben el encargo de reclutar a un pintoresco grupo de bravos espadachines para una peligrosa misión, relacionada con el contrabando del oro que los galeones españoles traen de las Indias. Los bajos fondos de la turbulenta ciudad andaluza, el corral de los Naranjos, la cárcel real, las tabernas de Triana, los arenales del Guadalquivir, son los escenarios de esta nueva aventura, donde los protagonistas reencontrarán traiciones, lances y estocadas, en compañía de viejos amigos y de viejos enemigos.

The fourth Captain Alatriste adventure, which is essentially a pirate swashbuckler. I get the feeling Pérez Reverte is not trying so hard, he just banks on our considerable love of Iñigo and Alatriste. ( )

Fourth in the Captain Alatriste series, set in early 17th century Spain.

Superficially, the series looks like a variation of the swashbuckling action-adventure reminiscent of the pirate scene. Captain Alatriste, the protagonist, is anything but. He is a professional swordsman,an, sometimes soldier of the king of Spain, often a hired sword for whatever dirty work requires violence. He is also a devoté of the theater and friend of poets. An introspective man, he says little but stands fiercely by his friends--and his honor. The stories are narrated by Íñigo Balboa, the young son of a soldier friend killed in one of Spain’s endless wars.

At the time of this installment, 1625, Spain “owns half the world and is at war with the other half.” Because of the ferocity of Spain’s soldiers, “the name of Spaniard made the earth tremble.” But in reality, Spain’s empire, which straddles both the Old and the New Worlds, is in decline. Only the gold from the New World keeps the soldiers paid, the wars going. And corruption, the reluctance of the Spanish to work (everyone wants to be a nobleman), and the lavishness of the court of Philip IV, means that Spain is being drained.

Alatriste and Balboa have returned to Seville after the Battle of Breda in Flanders. Alatriste is approached by an old friend, a confidante of the king, to intercept the theft of one of the treasure ships that is about to make landfall at Seville. It’s a tricky business that will involve nasty fighting with not a great promise of success.

That’s the plot. But what is really the story is that of Spain and its culture--and especially the lives of the soldiers who upheld the empire.

Since Íñigo is now 15 and a true veteran of war, he is starting to grow up, and beginning to understand just what Spain is about. He’s writing as an old man, looking back on his life--but the viewpoint is still that of a young man (they grew up fast in those days), learning about the life he has chosen and the culture to which he belongs.

I find the series fascinating because Perez-Reverte finds the era fascinating and is able to communicate the richness of the times and place. This is one of the shorter and in a way, more straight-forward installments in the series, but absorbing and entertaining. Highly recommended. ( )