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2008-12-26 16:30:44
类归于： — Eco Team @ 10:17 下午
New crime fiction
新犯罪小说
SPAIN during the second world war offers rich pickings for spy writers. Tungsten was produced there, which was vital for the armaments and ballistics industries of both sides. Nazi front companies ran global money-laundering operations from there and Madrid was always a nest of spooks.
二战期间的西班牙为间谍作家提供了丰富的素材。西班牙生产了钨，这对战争中对立两派的军备和弹道工业都非常关键。纳粹的挂牌公司在这里从事着全球性的洗钱活动，而马德里在当时毫无例外地成为了间谍活动的巢穴。
As a fascist, General Franco’s sympathies naturally leaned more towards the Axis powers. But Spain remained determinedly neutral. Early in the war Franco despatched the Blue Division, Spanish troops who served on the Eastern front. Yet he also let numerous Jewish refugees pass through Spain, and in the winter of 1944 Spanish diplomats in Budapest saved thousands of Jews by issuing them with protection papers.
作为一名法西斯份子，Franco将军自然会将同情心向轴心国倾斜。不过，西班牙仍坚定地坚持其中立国的立场。战争初期，佛朗哥将军曾派遣在东线服役的西班牙军队”蓝色师”参加战斗。但他也允许众多的犹太难民越过西班牙，并且在1944年冬天，西班牙驻布达佩斯的外交官向数以千计的犹太人颁发保护证件，挽救了他们的生命。
Into this whirlpoolsteps Peter Cotton, a British spy sent to arrest a colleague, Ronald May, an agent-turned-rogue, and close down his operation in Cadiz(加的斯). Cotton speaks fluent Spanish, albeit with a posh Mexican accent, learnt as a child in Central America. Language helps, but not enough to navigate the powerful undertows pulling the country in opposite directions as the war draws to a close. When Cotton arrives May is already dead, his body fished out from the sea. Did he jump or was he pushed? Cotton’s colleague Henderson, a dullard and paper stamper, is no help at all. Ramírez, the charming chameleon who serves as the local police chief, has all sorts of information to trade, but his own agenda, or agendas, to pursue. A pretty Irish governess and a glacial Teutonic blonde all add merrily to the mix.
在纷繁复杂的背景下，Peter Cotton，一名英国间碟，受命去加的斯逮捕Ronald May，一名胡作非为的间碟同事，并关闭在加的斯的情报办事处。Cotton操一品流利的西班牙语，带着优雅的墨西哥语音，这得益于他在中美洲度过的孩童时光。语言的帮助很大，但是，随着战争日趋结束，语言优势还不足以扭转将该国（指西班牙）推向相反方向（轴心国一边）的逆流。。 Cotton 到加的斯时May已经不在人世，尸体从大海里捞上来。他是自己跳海的还是被人推下去的？Cotton的同事Henderson是一个蠢蛋，一个照章办事的人，丝毫帮不上忙。Ramírez是当地一位警察局局长，是一位魅力十足的变色龙，手里掌控了各种情报，但心怀叵测。漂亮的爱尔兰家庭女教师和冷若冰霜的条顿金发美女又给本以复杂的情节增添了许多趣味。
A little more menace would be welcome, but Aly Monroe knows her Spain and wears her learning lightly . Her writing is skilful and evocative, with hints of Alan Furst. Wartime Cadiz itself is brilliantly drawn: the creaking social formalities of the war-weary Spanish bourgeoisie; the heavy silence of the fascist-era siesta and the endless shabby grind of the dictatorship. And overlaying everything, the heat and dust of a late Spanish summer. “The Maze of Cadiz” is a stylish and impressive debut. Peter Cotton will be back; this is just the first in a planned series.
更多的危险情节可能会更吸引人，不过 Aly Monroe了解她的西班牙并且充分展现自己的所学。她的写作手法巧妙并能让人浮想联翩，有一点亚伦‧福斯特的风格。她生动地描述了战争期间的加的斯：厌战的西班牙中产阶级社会奉行着僵化的社会礼节；纳粹时代的午睡显得那么地沉闷，独裁统治进行无穷尽的压榨。而西班牙夏末特有的炎热和尘土把这一切都掩盖了起来。《加的斯之谜》是一本极具特色、让人印象深刻的处女作。Peter Cotton会再次归来。这本书只是一系列小说中的第一本。
