Arturo Perez Reverte

Does anyone with more knowledge of Spanish 17th century than me know how accurate the backgrounds to the Capitan Alatriste novels by Perez Reverte are?

Edited by gcle2003 - 30-Apr-2007 at 09:38

Yeah I love the series of capitan Alatriste. The writting is poor but god it is so much fun.

I don't remember it too well but most of it is quite true. In a quite romantic way. It looks a like he liked some bits and pieces in the stuff he read and centers his novels on some details (the English Duke in Spain, the theater, the Capitain Contreras, the painting, the battles�). Of course some stuff are just too awkward such as when a simple soldier manages to foretell the decline of the Spanish Empire.

For me this series is a perfect light stuff. But for better readings my favourites are:
� The manuscript of Saragossa (long but so good, in its style it is almost as good as Cervantes).
� The plays of Lope de Vega
� The memories of the Capitain de Contreras

But of course the main problem for the historicity of the Capitan Alatriste is problematic because it focuses on a relatively small spot of the Spanish Empire. After all Madrid was not THE place of the underworld Seville was (and Cadix), and majority of the population was living in the countryside not in urban areas.

So I'd say it is not wrong but it lacks a real general view. But the reenactment of that period is really a nice way to start�