Frankfurt 2011 FICTION catalogue by Daniel Cladera

Foreign Rights Frankfurt Book Fair 2011 Fiction Books

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd P1

02/08/11 17:17

Foreign Rights Manager Daniel Cladera (dcladera@planeta.es)

Foreign Rights Adjunct Gemma Sanjuan (gsanjuan@planeta.es)

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd P2

02/08/11 17:00

Foreign Rights Frankfurt Book Fair 2011 Fiction Books

Spanish Language Authors

Víctor Amat, 2 Carmen Amoraga, 3 Lola Artacho, 4 Pati Blasco, 5 Ana R. Cañil, 6 Anna Casanovas, 7 Ángeles Caso, 8 Víctor Conde, 9 David de Juan Marcos, 10 Javier Fesser y Claro García, 11 Carlos Fonseca, 12 Susana Fortes, 13 Ana García-Siñeriz, 14 Gonzalo Giner, 15 Francisco González Ledesma, 16

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 1

Silvia Grijalba, 17 Nieves Hidalgo, 18 Dominique Lapierre, 19 Fernando J. López, 20 Javier Lorenzo, 21 José Ángel Mañas, 22 Elvira Menéndez, 23 Ricardo Menéndez Salmón, 24 Ana Milán, 25 Reyes Monforte, 26 Julia Montejo, 27 Eloy Moreno, 28 Javier Moro, 29 Jorge Navarro, 30 Javier Negrete, 31

José Luis Olaizola, 32 Gisela Pou, 33 Nativel Preciado, 34 Eduardo Roca, 35 Nuria Roca y Juan del Val, 36 Pepa Roma, 37 Isaac Rosa, 38 Fernando Rueda, 39 Clara Sánchez, 40 Mamen Sánchez, 41 Jaume Sanllorente, 42 Margarita Torres, 43 Pablo Tusset, 44 Kirmen Uribe, 45 Andrés Vidal, 46

02/08/11 17:00

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

A 100% Bestseller: tumultuous action in a plot that combines historical detail, a secret about to be revealed, a mysterious evildoer, an emotional couple and especially Montserrat, a magical environment suffused with mystery and legend.

Víctor Amat Montserrat: A long standing mystery. A dark past. The secrets of the sacred mountain finally uncovered. A sinister character disturbs the peace at the monastery of Montserrat: it is Brambora, a mercenary in the service of Suis Viribus, a shady secret organization with obscure intentions. Recognising the danger, the Benedictine community will entrust Joan, a young monk, with their lives. He will be helped in his investigation by Sarah, an attractive young scientist with whom he will find ancient documents which mention a mysterious treasure hidden in the area: a legend that goes back to the final months of the civil war and would bring to light a terrible secret.

The novel is an extremely easy read and will enlight readers as they turn the pages. Very well researched, it is ﬁlled with references and interesting facts about the way of life inside a monastery, drawn from prodigious research into the landscape, how the enclave survived the civil war, and much more.

The Secret of the Sacred Mountain Planeta / 428 pages / June 2011

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 2

02/08/11 17:00

Carmen Amoraga has a degree in Information Sciences and has worked for both radio and television. She has been a columnist for the Levante newspaper and contributed to panels on Punto Radio, Radio 9 and Canal 9. She currently publishes articles in Cartelera Turia. Her ﬁrst novel, Para que nada se pierda, won the 2nd Premio Ateneo Joven in Seville. This was followed by La larga noche, which

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Carmen Amoraga

won the Premio de la Crítica Valenciana, and Todas las caricias. Her novel Algo tan parecido al amor was a ﬁnalist in the Premio Nadal in 2007 and received both critical and popular acclaim. She has also published Todo lo que no te contarán sobre la maternidad, a fun, accessible book that lies somewhere between an essay and an interview.

Many women hope that the story of their lives will read like the pages of a novel: the one who gets married even though she dreams of meeting the love of her life around the next corner; the girl who grows up hoping that the boy next door will notice her, or another, convinced that the man whose heart she has won would cross an ocean to ﬁnd her. This novel is about people who have become strangers to each other in spite of ties of friendship, love and family. Only an objective gaze will help them to redraw their emotional map.

Rights sold to: Piemme (Italy). Premio Planeta Runner-up 2010. An unforgettable novel of crossed lives. Intimistic, reﬂexive, tender, profound and real as life itself. Amoraga uses the hospital as a laboratory of emotions, dreams, desires and illusions.

Time Meanwhile Planeta / 304 pages / November 2010

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 3

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

The romantic and tragic story of an impossible love between a young aristocrat and a noble of much higher rank which breaks social norms and scandalizes Seville society.

Lola Artacho

Lola Artacho, great granddaughter of Joseﬁna Perrier, has uncovered the passionate, dramatic love story passed down to her by her grandfather and father, in the process revealing one of the best kept secrets of recent Spanish history.

Seville. In the middle of the 19th Century, Josefina Perrier, a beautiful, intelligent 18 year old woman with her head full of dreams, plans to marry her cousin Maurice Girau, the owner of one of the most prestigious factories in France. Wanting to leave the rigid morals of Seville society, where she feels trapped, behind, Josefina can’t wait for the moment when she will be able to tour Parisian avenues in a horse-drawn carriage or attend glamorous parties in high French society. However, her life will change forever the afternoon she meets Jacobo Fitz-James Stuart, the 15th Duke of Alba. He is fifteen years older than her and married with two children, but handsome and seductive, and they embark on one of the most notorious romances of the age.

The House of Alba, led by the Duchess, has clearly opposed the publication of this book. For decades they have kept the story under wraps to protect the family name.

The Duke of Alba’s Secret Love MR / 384 pages / April 2011 Lola Artacho was born in Seville, where she studied Fine Arts. She is a businesswoman specialized in the rehabilitation and restoration of homes and buildings in the old quarter of the Andalucian capital. Her passion for art, culture and history have led her to publish her

ﬁrst literary work, in which she immersed herself in the Seville of the 19th Century to reveal the secrets of the life of Joseﬁna Perrier, her great grandmother.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 4

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

A powerful novel, overwhelming writing, a gripping story about the power of love at life’s extremes.” Fernando Sánchez Dragó.

Pati Blasco A story suffused with a criminal, poetic atmosphere that presents love as a unique refuge from pain. Whilst driving home, Ángel hits Sofia and flees. Racked by guilt, he goes back to the scene and finds that his victim is still just alive but needs his help if she is to stay that way. Ángel manages to save Sofia but she remains in a coma. The young man then starts to lie about his identity in order to enter into the invalid’s world and get to know her peculiar family. La piel desnuda is a fastpaced story of love, violence and solidarity that makes us think about intricate twists of fate and the power of justice and love to set our future on the right track.

Pati has been hailed by critics such as Sánchez Dragó, Fernando Schwartz and Ignacio Merino. Her ﬁrst novel, Andando la vida, was awarded the Desnivel Prize for Literature. Painstakingly researched, La piel desnuda exposes the excesses of the Spanish police at the border with Morocco.

Bare Skin Temas de Hoy / 288 pages / February 2011 Pati Blasco (Valladolid, 1978) began working as an editor at Escalar magazine. She has worked on several different publications for the Instituto de la Mujer and contributed to many different productions as a scriptwriter for documentaries and ﬁctional programs.

She is also the author of numerous articles and stories. Andando la vida, winner of the eighth edition of the Desnivel Prize for Mountaineering, Travel and Adventure Literature was her ﬁrst novel. She currently works for the publishers Desnivel as well as living her lifelong dream: to be a writer. 5

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 5

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

The author is a well known journalist and won the Espasa Non-Fiction Prize in 2008 with La mujer del maquis, which sold 20,000 copies.

Ana R. Cañil

A harrowing melodrama about one of the most obscure episodes of Spanish recent history.

Madrid, 1939: Jimena Bartolomé is imprisoned in the women’s prison at Ventas. In this sinister institution, the warden, Maria Topete, controls the destiny of the prisoners and their children… In Si a los tres años no he vuelto Ana R. Cañil recreates some hitherto relatively unknown events from the post-war period: the story of prisoners whose children were taken away by their jailors and placed in convents or given up for adoption. Si a los tres años no he vuelto is an unputdownable novel that exposes terrible historical events and depicts an unforgettable clash between Jimena and Maria, two memorable women.

The novel is based on real, little known characters. Si a los tres años no he vuelto will captivate and move readers of novels by María Dueñas, Almudena Grandes, Eduardo Mendoza, Dulce Chacón and Carlos Fonseca.

If I Don’t Come Back in Three Years Espasa / 400 pages / March 2011 Ana R. Cañil (Madrid, 1960) is a journalist. She began her career writing for economics publications. After working for a few months at El Alcázar newspaper, she moved on to Cinco Días and then to the magazine Mercado and La Gaceta de los Negocios. She lived in New York in

1984 and 1985. She has been head editor at the weekly El Siglo, editor of the Informe Semanal and the Madrid correspondent for El Periódico de Catalunya. In 2008, she received the Espasa Non-Fiction Prize for La mujer del maquis. She writes frequently for Vanity Fair.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 6

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

www. annacasanovas. com

Anna Casanovas The army captain, William Fordyce, future count of Wessex, has spent the last year in hell: he enlisted to search for his brother Alex, and his squadron was ambushed and massacred; but his real nightmare began days later when he woke up in Chablis prison. Back in England, everyone is mourning William’s death, everyone except Marianne who refuses to accept it and goes to search for him. Ever since Grifﬁn Hawkslife trained her and inducted her into the Brotherhood of the Falcon, Marianne has taken part in hundreds of missions but none were as important as saving the man she loves.

Brotherhood of the Falcon. I Gave you my Soul Esencia / 256 pages / April 2011 Anna T. Casanovas (Calella, 1975). After studying law, she worked for a finance company until she published her first novel Nadie como tú (No-one Like You). She continues to write her contemporary romance series. Todo por tu amor is the first volume in the

“Brotherhood of the Falcon” saga. She has begun a new line of writing under the pseudonym Emma Caldwell, with the “Guardians of Alexandria” series peopled by extraordinary characters, also published by Esencia.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 7

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Ángeles Caso was born in Gijón and has a degree in History of Art. She has worked in different cultural and media institutions. Her previous works include: Elisabeth, emperatriz de Austria-Hungría o el hada maldita; El peso de las sombras (1994 Premio Planeta ﬁnalist);

Ángeles Caso

El mundo visto desde el cielo, and El resto de la vida. Un largo silencio (Winner of the 2000 Premio Fernando Lara) is now seen as a milestone in writing about the recuperation of historical memory. She also wrote ﬁlm scripts, translations and books for children.

São, a girl who, like everyone in her village, was born to work, decides one day to try and build a better life for herself in Europe. After learning, again and again, how to overcome adversity, she will ﬁnd a new friend in a Spanish woman who is drowning in her own insecurities. São helps her recover her will to live and together they form an indestructible bond, one that will make them both stronger. A moving story of friendship between different women living in their own worlds, told with all the beauty that reality has to offer. A novel full of feeling for avid readers of emotional ﬁction.

Premio Planeta 2009. Rights sold to: Orlando (The Netherlands), Buchet-Chastel (France), Planeta Manuscrito (Portugal), Marcos & Marcos (Italy), Nemira (Romania), People’s Publishing House (China), Dereta (Serbia), Ucila (Slovenia), Ílgi Kültür (Turkey), Olma Media Group (Russia). ‘A moving journey to the dreams and nightmares to African women’. ‘A Hymm to generosity and solidarity’.

Against the Wind Planeta / 272 pages / November 2009

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 8

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Hija de lobos is a fantastic adventure novel in the classic sense of the genre. The charismatic protagonist and mysterious ﬁgure of the wolf man will make this novel, set at the beginning of the 19th Century, a great read for fantasy novels committed readers and the general public alike.

Víctor Conde Scotland 1826. Rhum island is being evicted to make way for livestock. In spite of this, an expert scientist arrives to live in the only house on the island, a round-walled mansion, accompanied by his adolescent daughter and young son who suffers from a terrible disease. But the presence of strangers seems to have awoken something on the island, something ancient and evil which up until then had existed only in local legends. The eldest daughter, Sabine, must give up her childish dreams to confront a world of shadows and danger if she wants to save her brother’s life, and her own.

Victor Conde, as shown by the excellent reception of his last novel, Crónicas del multiverso is a very popular author among science ﬁction and fantasy readers.

Wolf Daughter Minotauro / 352 pages / September 2011 Víctor Conde (Tenerife, 1973) began his literary career in 2002 with the publication of three titles, the ﬁrst belonging to the multiverse series and the other two forming the children’s series Pascis of Zhintra. He is currently a member of the Nocte association of fantasy and terror writers.

He won the Minotauro Prize in 2010 with Crónicas del multiverso, and was a ﬁnalist for the same prize twice; with the 2004 novel Mystes (published by Minotauro) and the 2005 novel El teatro secreto.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 9

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

“A story about our recent history that combines novel and rich use of language, an original, complex structure and a beautiful, surprising and captivating plot.”

David de Juan Marcos

ROSA REGÀS

“The most moving and beautiful expression of magical realism to date. This world is easy to enter but difﬁcult to leave.”

Cayute is an old man looking back on his life. As he reminisces about Almoneda, an imaginary land located on the border between Spain and Portugal, he takes us on a journey through the collective memory of a town. Readers will discover an unusual place, ﬁlled with inscrutable people whose fates are determined by love in all its variations. We will also be witnesses to the irreparable loss caused by the devastation of Almoneda as Cayute and his friends move further and further away from its magical boundaries; the embodiment of childhood and innocence. Only Cayute will keep the promise he made.

ANTONIO GALA

The ﬁctional land created by the author holds similarities to Juan Rulfo’s Comala in the blend of characters trapped between life and oblivion and García-Márquez’s Macondo for the way in which the author stretches reality until the credible becomes incredible.

The Dance of the Lizards Temas de Hoy / 352 pages / April 2011 David de Juan Marcos (Salamanca, 1980) has a degree in biology and a masters in nature administration, conservation and sustainable development. In his literary career he has published and received awards for numerous short stories. In 2005 he was awarded a grant by the Antonio Gala

Foundation for Young Creators and began to write his ﬁrst longer piece of ﬁction, El baile de las lagartijas, which won the Vicente Blasco Ibañez City of Valencia International Prize for the Novel. It is a powerful novel, promising a long and successful literary career.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 10

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

A novel that will change readers’ attitudes and feelings towards friendship, pain, maternity, paternity, the family and, above all, love.

Javier Fesser Claro García

Los días de colores is a novel about characters and emotions. It is a different kind of novel in which feelings are given prominence over actions.

The reader will be taken back to their adolescence and relive it through the eyes of Camino, a character who shines in her dialogues, monologues, dreams and pain. Three characters dance around this beacon to complete her emotional universe: José, her father, a masterful lesson in unconditional love and tenderness; her older sister Nuria, who soon becomes a spectator, representing constant doubt, forced happiness, and hurtful lies; the person whom one misses but is never there. And together with them, the destabilizing character, Gloria, the obsessively religious mother who dictates the path and education of her whole family, including her husband.

The Coloured Days Planeta / 560 pages / June 2011 Javier Fesser is a storyteller. Throughout his advertisements, television programs and the three longer ﬁlms he has written and directed to date, he has always tried to express and describe his personal vision of life and the characters which make it up with humour

and tenderness. He has won many different international awards and an Oscar nomination. Claro García has worked as a scriptwriter for cinema and television (TVE, Antena 3, Tele 5 and Canal +).

The writing resounds with the emotions of an eleven-year old girl who, sick without knowing it, falls in love with a boy and dedicates her intense days to this hope and excitement without letting anything get in the way. As the novel progresses it reveals more and more details about this magical life with imagination winning out over reality. A read to be listened to, tasted, smelled and touched.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 11

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

A story of violence, friendship and passion.

Carlos Fonseca

Luz negra is a novel with two main elements: an intense love triangle, the story of a friendship, set in turbulent Euskadi and the world of ETA, in which the author Carlos Fonseca is a noted specialist.

Eneko and Aritz are part of a Basque nationalist gang which gets involved in the kale borroka disturbances. Libia is a young, anti-establishment squatter who comes to the city in the summer to sell jewellery in the street. She meets the pair by chance, resulting in an emotional triangle in which love and sex become confused. Aritz’s commitment to Euskal Herria will see him cross the line from street violence to terrorism and, after helping an ETA commando, he ﬂees to France to join the group. Months later, Aritz will return to San Sebastián and will ask Eneko to do him a compromising favour. The story is doomed to end in tragedy.

Written at a breathtaking pace, and featuring exhaustive research and an elegantly constructed plot, Luz negra immerses us in an environment which stimulates all the senses. It is the brave, faithful story of a crude, intense reality.

Black Light Temas de Hoy / 416 pages / October 2011 Carlos Fonseca (is a writer and journalist. He currently works at elconfidencial.com, although he spent a large part of his professional career working for the magazine Tiempo. In 2005 he was named journalist of the year by the Association of Information Magazines (ARI).

His previous books include Negociar con ETA, Rosario Dinamitera and the book which inspired Emilio Martínez Lázaro to make the ﬁlm Trece Rosas Rojas, which won fourteen Goya nominations and four awards. In 2009 he published his ﬁrst novel, Tiempo de memoria.

Luz negra is a brave novel. ETA has been a taboo subject in Spanish ﬁction and few authors have dared to approach it from an emotional point of view, especially in such an objective way.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 12

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Sold to 13 languages so far. Film rights: Columbia Pictures.

Susana Fortes

Premio Fernando Lara 2009. Rights sold to: Harpercollins (English World Rights), Nord (MauriSpagnol, Italy), Heloïsse d’Ormesson (France), Muza (Poland), Európa (Hungary), Record (Brazil), Woongjin Think Big (Korea), Shanghai 99 (Chinese Simpliﬁ ed), Uni-Books (Chinese Complex), Dogan Egmont (Turkey), Fraktura (Croatia) Host (Czech Republic), Atticus (Russia).

Paris, 1935. Writers, painters, poets, and photographers come together in the streets and cafés of the rive gauche, as thousands of Jews ﬂee from the Nazis. Two young Jewish émigrés are among them. She, a German of Polish extraction, is proud, disciplined and daring. He, a Hungarian, is a born survivor who’s trying to ﬁnd a place in the world of photography. In barely a year, the start of the Spanish Civil War will turn them into two of the best photojournalists of all time: Robert Capa and Gerda Taro. Love, war and photography marked their lives. They were young, antifascist, good-looking and wild at heart. They had it all. And they risked all they had. They created their own legend and stuck to their convictions up to the end.

Film rights sold to: Forward Pass (Michael Mann - Producer-) COLUMBIA PICTURES

Waiting for Robert Capa Planeta / 240 pages / June 2009 Susana Fortes (Pontevedra 1959), graduated in Geography and History. In 2003 she was shortlisted for the Premio Planeta with the novel El amante albanés which became a bestseller in Spain. With her ﬁrst novel, Querido Corto Maltés, she won the Premio Nuevos Narradores in 1994; in

2001 she was the runner-up of the Premio Primavera, for her novel Fronteras de arena. She is also the author of Quattrocento, which foreign rights have already been acquired by a number of prestigious international publishers. With Esperando a Robert Capa she won the 2010 Valencia Literary Critics Prize.

‘A moving novel that pays homage to all the journalists and photojournalists who live for their profession.’

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 13

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

The ﬁrst novel by Ana GarcíaSiñeriz, a story of strong feelings and enigmatic characters.

Ana García-Siñeriz Fleeing from the pain of the death of her little Alma and the break-up with her husband, María rents a house on the outskirts of Barcelona. The house turns out to be the property of Estela, an enigmatic woman who disappeared a year ago. All of Estela’s possessions remain in the house, inherited from her grandmother, the marquess Estela Vallés-Brugera. María gives herself over to grief, enhanced by the solitude and silence of the house. As the days pass, her curiosity about the Vallés-Bruguera mystery, and especially Estela, grows. Meanwhile, she will try to reconstruct the puzzle of her own life.

An ambitious novel that explores the lives of two very different women who share a common fate.

Those Blonde Women Planeta / 526 pages / June 2010 Ana García-Siñeriz (Oviedo, 1965), is a Spanish journalist and TV host. For years, she cohosted a show called “Lo + Plus” in Canal + where international celebrities, as Gwyneth Paltrow, Julian Schnabel or Mario Vargas Llosa went to be interviewed. She later on moved to a new channel, Cuatro,

for which Siñeriz cohosted with Boris Izaguirre an irreverent show, female oriented, called “Channel no. 4”. Now she presents Cuatro News Morning Show “Matinal Cuatro”. She also writes a successful column for Marie Claire magazine.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 14

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Rights sold to: Blanvalet (Germany).

Gonzalo Giner

Option publishers: Albatros (Poland), Ulisseya (Portugal), Patakys (Greece), Bertelsmann (Russia). The adventure of an unusual stable boy who ﬁnds beauty in the soul of an animal.

In the 16th Century, the king Charles 5th asked the nobility to contribute forces to his campaigns throughout Europe. The king needed horses and the nobility worked hard to satisfy the needs of the monarch. But in the midst of the Renaissance, war was not seen as the only important thing, art mattered too and horses began to be considered as artistic objects, symbols of prestige and distinction. This is the social and political environment into which Yago, a special and different baby is born. He will show everyone around him that he has a special gift: the ability to coax beauty out of horses’ bodies and movements. Yago is the key to creating a special breed of horses.

There was once a time when kings forced their horses to go to war... and another time when men sought the ultimate expression of beauty in the soul of an animal. 100,000 copies sold of his previous title: El sanador de caballos.

The Silent Rider Temas de Hoy / 612 pages / June 2011 Gonzalo Giner broke into the world of publishing with his novel La cuarta alianza which became a bestseller only a few weeks after publication. However, El sanador de caballos was the landmark of his literary career, thanks to its highly successful emotional recreation

of the medieval world of the ﬁrst vets. The success of El sanador de caballos led to other honours including membership of the Royal Academy of Veterinarians of Catalunya.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 15

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Francisco González Ledesma

Rights sold to: Bompiani (Italy), Atalante (France), Dom Quixote (Portugal), Bertelsmann (Poland), Karakter Uitgevers (The Netherlands), Bazar (Sweden), Bazar (Norway), Bazar (Denmark), Bazar (Finland), Nemira (Romania), Ciela (Bulgaria), Azoth Books (Taiwan), Wanrong (China), Olma media Group (Russia).

Marta Vives, young assistant to the lawyer Marcos Solana, is working to uncover the mystery behind the death of a member of Barcelona’s high society. During the investigation, Marta will also become caught up in the feud that has been underway for two centuries between the family of the dead man and another powerful clan in the city, the Masdeus. Marta’s story is accompanied by another voice: that of a restless narrator speaking to us from the mean streets of Medieval Barcelona, persecuted by the inquisition, and a witness to some of the most important moments in the history of the city.

The hidden history of Barcelona lies within this absorbing novel: a book that is both a thrilling adventure and, at the same time, a homage to a marvellous city. “Between good and evil, between God and the Devil, who is to say that the ﬁrst will win.”

The City beyond Time Destino / 472 pages / March 2007 Francisco González Ledesma (Barcelona, 1927) began working as a lawyer and became editor-in-chief of La Vanguardia. He received the Premio Planeta in 1984 for Crónica sentimental en rojo. The crime series featuring Méndez also includes El pecado o algo parecido and Cinco

mujeres y media (French critics’ Prix Mystère). He was awarded the Premio Pepe Carvalho 2005 in recognition of his work as a crime writer.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 16

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

The story of a woman who chose to be true to herself over her feelings.

Silvia Grijalba

This is an incredible story of interwoven loves, uncontrollable passion, deceit and a brave woman who manages to reinvent herself.

When José returned to Spain, searching for the most beautiful woman in the shire, nobody had any doubt about who it was: María Luisa. And when Fernando, her true love, runs off with someone else after years of broken promises, everyone was even more sure: María Luisa would accept José’s advances and come away with him to start her life anew in Cuba. There, María Luisa becomes intoxicated with the sensuality and freedom of the island and José is dedicated to his wife. But their lives take an unexpected turn: they meet Fernando once again in New York where the parties, fashion and high society, will change their lives forever.

I Learned with You Planeta / 304 pages / June 2011 Silvia Grijalba was born in Madrid in 1967. She is a novelist, journalist and song writer. She published her ﬁrst novel, Alivio Rápido in 2001. She has been an editor in the culture section, a columnist and reporter in the newspaper El Mundo. She has also published the non-ﬁction books

Dios Salve a la Movida and Palabra de Rock and a biography of Depeche Mode. Her works have been translated into Italian and German. She has written for magazines such as Rolling Stone, Vogue, Marie Claire, the Guardian newspaper, Glamour and Yo Dona.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 17

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

A story of adventure and eternal love featuring family betrayal, vengeance, slavery and honour among pirates set in the Caribbean. The novel is written with a healthy sense of humour, very much along the lines of Pirates of the Caribbean.

Nieves Hidalgo In the winter of 1667, Miguel de Torres and his brother Diego are accused of high treason and condemned to perpetual exile. Trying to rebuild their lives in Maracaibo, they are captured by the pirate Captain Morgan who sells them as slaves. Meanwhile, Kelly Colbert must face the punishment of travelling to Jamaica for having refused to agree to an arranged marriage. At her uncle’s plantation, she will be forced to struggle against the mores of plantation society, her disgust with the institution of slavery and, above all, attraction to Miguel, the arrogant Spanish slave.

Nieves Hidalgo is the best-selling romantic author in Spain. “Nieves Hidalgo knows how to captivate readers of romantic literature, keeping us gripped from the ﬁrst page to the last.” - www.novela romantica.com http:// nieveshidalgo. blogspot.com/

The Black Angel Esencia / 352 pages /May 2011 Nieves Hidalgo has been writing for more than twenty years. Her ﬁrst published novel Lo que dure la eternidad, placed her in the panorama of romantic literature, a place she consolidated with Orgullo sajón. In 2009 she won two Rincón Prizes for the Romantic Novel for best

author and best novel with Orgullo sajón, and two Dama Prizes, one for the best Spanish Romantic novel writer and the other for the best Spanish romantic novel, for her book Amaneceres cautivos. Her other published novels are Hijos de otro barro, Luna de Oriente and Noches de Karnak.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 18

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Rights sold to: Robert Laffont (France), Da Capo Press (English rights), Saggiatore (Italy), Manuscrito (Portugal), Spectrum (The Netherlands).

Dominique Lapierre

A heroic epic about the gardeners who founded South Africa.

In 1652, a Dutch ship landed at the southern tip of Africa hoping to grow salads for the crews of the powerful Dutch East India Company, which were being decimated by scurvy. Although this agricultural venture began without a hint of colonial ambition, the men were soon caught in the heart of a continent of contrasts, full of gold, wild beasts, diamonds and tsetse ďŹ&#x201A;ies. This book is about an exciting adventure which ended up founding a nation.

A human and historical epic, demonstrating great empathy with the most unfortunate people, in the best tradition of the author.

A Rainbow in the Night Planeta / 464 pages / September 2008 Dominique Lapierre is the author of numerous best-sellers, both on his own and in collaboration with other authors such as Larry Collins and Javier Moro. His works, which have inspired many different major cinematic productions, have been read by more than one hundred

million readers across the world.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 19

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

This is Fernando J. López’s powerful, controversial and supremely intelligent vision of the unpleasant reality of life in the classrooms, a world in which adolescents spend much of their time, living according to their own rules, struggling with their life anxieties, contradictions and frustrations, where, unbeknownst to the adults in charge of their education, conﬂicts can break out with catastrophic consequences.

Fernando J. López The Event: Marcos, a middle class teenager, murders his father and leaves one of his four brothers badly wounded. The initial reaction: No-one among Marcos’ friends, relatives and teachers can explain what has happened. Images of the crime ﬁll the news bulletins. The Investigation: Marcos’s crime is not an isolated event. Too many cases in recent years have seen minors involved in extremely violent situations. Bullying. Cyberbullying. Racist attacks. Drug deals. Videos on YouTube of teachers being humiliated. Depressed teachers. Is it the teenagers’ fault? Is it that of their teachers? Their parents? Can anyone really be blamed or are we all victims?

An original and perceptive vision of adolescent conﬂict.

The Angry Age Espasa / 320 pages / February 2011 Fernando J. López (Barcelona, 1977) has a degree in Spanish philology, and currently combines his literary and theatrical writing with teaching language and literature at a Madrid school. He is the author of the novel In(h)armónicos (Joven & Brillante Prize for Fiction) and twenty

theatrical works. He is also an active participant in the blogosphere with his two blogs on education: Prime Time and Eso de la Eso.

A magniﬁcently constructed thriller that grips the reader from the ﬁrst page. Many different voices join together in an attempt to understand an awful, incomprehensible crime committed in a school environment. A timely novel that urges the reader to think about the current state of the education system. An essential read.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 20

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Javier Lorenzo bewitches us with a story of love, hate and vengeance during the civil war.

Javier Lorenzo

His novel stands out for the feeling of its narration and meticulous descriptive prose. A devastating war. A great unrequited love. Two wounds that will never heal.

Amelia was always different from the other girls. For Martin, the pharmacist’s nephew and Alberto, the mayor’s son, Amelia is a perfect being. In time, she chooses Martin, the rebel; a nonconformist atheist. So Alberto, now lieutenant Recuero, dedicates his life and military career to wrecking Martin’s life. The civil war makes it easy for him, as he is on the winning side, and Martin, in spite of being married to Amelia, cannot share their marital bed because he is forced to be hidden. Lieutenant Recuero continues to court her whilst surreptitiously ordering his men to torture her in case she knows Martin’s whereabouts.

A beautiful novel which contrasts the horror of war with the wonder of love. The hatred of two men who love the same woman, whom war and ideology have placed on opposing sides, contrasted with the delicacy of their pure thoughts and admiration of beauty.

The Blue Mistake Planeta / 352 pages / June 2011 Javier Lorenzo was born in Madrid and studied journalism. He started out at the radio, on the SER channel, although he moved on to the written press where he still works. He has also worked as a scriptwriter for television. Author of La España hortera (Temas de Hoy) and Las guardianas del

tabú, his ﬁrst novel, El último soldurio, was very well received by readers, selling more than 50,000 copies over 8 editions.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 21

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

A plot as surprising as it is unnerving, in the tradition of the best subversive crime literature.

José Ángel Mañas

A mystery that has the reader trembling with suspense and suspicion. An exposition, centred on the Greater Madrid area, of the troubles that lurked beneath the surface in the years immediately before the current economic crisis.

What happens when the principal suspect in a rape and murder case is the very policeman who was supposed to protect the victim? A saleswoman in a pharmacy in a village outside of Madrid has been raped and murdered. Inspectors Pacheco and Duarte follow the trail of a psychopath recently released from prison who was known to be in the area and was rumoured to have visited and threatened the victim the week before the murder. But what seemed like an open and shut case gets more complicated when evidence begins to appear making Duarte himself the main suspect.

Powerful use of colloquial language.

Suspicion Destino / 432 pages / November 2010 José Ángel Mañas (Madrid, 1971) was a finalist in the Premio Nadal in 1994 with his first novel, Historias del Kronen and a finalist of the Premio Hammet for the best crime novel published in 2005 with Caso Karen. He is also the author of Soy un escritor frustrado, Ciudad rayada and

El secreto del oráculo. Three of his novels have been made into ﬁlms.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 22

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

A novel about the ﬁrst women’s expedition to the New World in 1550.

Elvira Menéndez

Eighty noblewomen travel to the Indies to become wives to the conquerors. Hardship, pirates and even the plague will leave them undeterred.

The Castilian crown’s conquest of the New World advances unabated. Charles 5th wants to Christianize the remote parts of the empire and, to this end, the Council of the Indies decides to send the first caravan of women in history to the Americas; eighty maidens are chosen from among the best noble families. Hoping to turn their fortunes around, the women embark to find a Christian marriage with a conquistador and start a lineage, but they will have to confront all manner of difficulties: pirate attacks, storms, the plague, and the problems that come with living in a world designed for men. The Heart of the Ocean Temas de Hoy / 608 pages / February 2010 Elvira Menéndez was born in La Coruña in 1949. She graduated from the Real Escuela Superior de Arte Dramático de Madrid and has combined literary and acting work throughout her career. In her literary career she has done a vast amount of scriptwriting for the most important media

organizations and also adapted dramatic works for the screen, but the work for which she is best known is her writing for infants and children. She has written more than 31 books, all of them published by the biggest publishers. El corazón del océano is her ﬁrst book for adults.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 23

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Ricardo Menéndez Salmón

Born in Gijón in 1971, Ricardo Menéndez Salmón studied Philosophy at the University of Oviedo. He is a contributor to the newspapers ABC, El Comercio and La Nueva España. His three previous novels for Seix Barral, La ofensa (2007), Derrumbe (2008) and El corrector (2009); called the Trilogy of Evil, were hailed by the critics and made him into one of the most prestigious contemporary Spanish authors.

Ricardo has been translated into Catalan, French, Italian, Dutch and Portuguese and his work has received many prizes including the Crítica de Asturias, the Crítica de la Feria del Libro de Bilbao, the Cálamo for Best Novel of the year, among others.

Rights sold to: Porto Editora (Portugal), Jacqueline Chambon (France). Option publishers: Marcos & Marcos (Italy), Wereldbibliotheek (The Netherlands). A surprisingly original novel by one of the most highly regarded contemporary Spanish writers.

In 1350, when Europe is still recovering from the Black Death, the future Pope Gregory XI visits the Tuscan painter Adriano de Robertis to destroy his latest work, the blasphemous Bearded Virgin. On the 25th February 1970, the North American painter Mark Rothko slits his wrists in his New York studio. The 11th September 2001, the Russian painter Vsévolod Semiasin writes a letter in which he reveals the causes of his madness. The story of these three masters revolves around a mystery – the unknown fate of Bearded Virgin by Adriano de Robertis – and a central idea – the commitment of the artist to his art in the face of persecution.

After the trilogy formed by La ofensa, Derrumbe and El corrector, Ricardo Menéndez Salmón returns with an audacious text that can be read as a book about apprenticeship, artistic genius or a mystery novel. “Menéndez Salmón is an extremely cultured man possessed of his own expressionist, powerful style.” Light is Older than Love Seix Barral / 176 pages / September 2010

RAFAEL CONTE,

Babelia, El País “One of the authors whom both critics and readers keep tabs on.”

MANUEL DE LA FUENTE, ABC

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 24

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Cookery, love and friendship, an amazing cocktail in which you are the main ingredient. You’ll ﬁnd Ana Milán’s thoughts hugely entertaining and easy to identify with.

Ana Milán

Sexo en Milán has a very carefully prepared structure. It is the perfect book to give girls. Features enchanting details and fun illustrations at the beginning of each chapter.

«Never cook for anyone you hate... when you and I cook for someone it is because we love someone, because we’d like to love someone or because there’s a chance we might love them. If I’ve learned anything, it’s that you have to celebrate life, however unimportant the occasion, that you’ll never be able to get back today. I’m inviting you to accompany me through these pages. This book is aimed at being a simple meeting between friends at which I’d love you to have the best seat. Just a few thoughts about love, friendship and everyday happiness, which we often forget about because that thing we call life distracts us. Won’t you come?»

Ana Milán takes us on an unforgettable, humorous and tongue in cheek journey through the world of relationships.

Sex in Milan MR / 192 pages / September 2011 Ana Milán was born in Alicante. She studied journalism but eventually decided to be an actress. She moved to Madrid where she made her début on the Antena 3 program La Central, and continued her career with the theatre company 5 mujeres. com which toured throughout Spain. Ana

has recently begun a new stage in her career in cinema with the ﬁlms Al ﬁnal del camino and El hombre de las mariposas, the latter soon to be released.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 25

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Reyes Monforte is a writer and journalist. She has spent much of her professional career working in radio, where she has directed and presented several programs on different channels for the last 15 years. She has also worked on different television programs, both on screen and as a scriptwriter. She is currently a columnist for the newspaper La Razón. Her ﬁrst book, Un burka por amor was one of the

Reyes Monforte Sara has gone through some difﬁcult times in her life: the death of her mother, a pregnancy at sixteen... but now, at twentyfour years old, she has found something approaching happiness. Modern and independent, she gives classes at a language school, where she meets and falls in love with one of her students. He, a westernised, romantic and impassioned Muslim slowly draws her into his culture and religion without ever revealing his true motives. When she begins to suspect the truth, it is already too late. Sara ﬁnds herself caught in a plot that affects the people closest to her, leading her to make a shocking decision.

bestselling books of 2007, went through 42 editions and was brought to the screen in a mini-series watched by four million viewers. Both these books and her later publications Amor cruel and La rosa escondida, were translated into several different languages, consolidating Reyes Monforte’s standing as one of the most important authors writing today.

A gripping novel of uncontrollable feelings, passion, action and revenge that recreates the recurring real-life drama of western women recruited by radical Islam for terrorist activity. La inﬁel is a novel inspired by real events occurring all across the western world. From the author of the publishing successes Un burka por amor, Amor cruel and La rosa escondida, a powerful story of love, deceit and vengeance addressing the threat of Islamic extremism in detail. The novel is based on real life cases of Spanish women marrying Islamic terrorists.

An Unfaithful Woman Temas de Hoy / 576 pages / April 2011

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 26

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Rights sold to: Mondadori (Italy).

Julia Montejo

Three generations of an extraordinary family set apart by their surname. A line of unique, exceptional women. An unrepeatable bond. A doomed love affair. A captivating story.

After the death of her aunt, Madelaine ﬁnds herself forced to return to her relatives. The Durangos are the most important family in the village, they own most of the land and the most prosperous businesses, but also suffer from a long history of misfortune and malicious gossip. To Madelaine, the return will mean facing her other aunt, Clara and her own past. It is a murky past ﬁlled with too many unresolved questions: what happened to her grandmother Olivia, who was wiped from the family history? Why did her mother disappear without saying goodbye? And what was her mother’s real relationship with her aunts?

An unconventional plot, mysterious atmosphere, and surprising ending dominated by powerful female characters. Perfectly drawn thoughts, feelings and personalities. A complete narrative technique. An easy to read, rewarding story.

Violets for Olivia MR / 320 pages / April 2011 Julia Montejo (Pamplona) has a degree in journalism from the Universidad de Navarra and a masters in Scriptwriting, Production and Direction from the University of California – Los Angeles (UCLA). In the USA she has written and been an analyst for cinema and television. She wrote and directed the ﬁlm No Turning Back

which won more than 20 international prizes. Her ﬁrst novel, Eva desnuda, was a ﬁnalist in the City of Torrevieja Prize 2005 and was published in 2006. Recently, Twentieth Century Fox acquired the rights to her script The Virgin Mary for international production.

A story about how the past can come to dominate our lives. A novel with numerous different angles and a dizzying pace that fuses themes and epochs in an original tale of love, mapping out the various different lives of a series of fascinating women.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 27

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Rights sold to: Corbaccio (Italy), Crown (Taiwan), Columna (Catalan).

Eloy Moreno

El bolígrafo de gel verde is a detailed, painstaking, magniﬁcent and anguished description of how to waste one’s time, and, consequently, their life.

A young married man with a son and a stable job seems happy until an insignificant event sends his life in strange new directions: the disappearance of a green ballpoint pen. The loss sets him to reflecting on his life and the people around him with surprising consequences. The plot of the novel is that of life itself; a sensitive and intelligent portrayal of the every day. It captures the reader from the first page, moving and exciting them throughout.

A publishing phenomenon long before its publication: Eloy Moreno decided to publish and distribute the book himself. After almost a year demonstrating that the book had a market (it sold more than 3,000 copies), the publishers Espasa grew interested and published it.

The Green Ballpoint Pen Espasa / 320 pages / January 2011 Eloy Moreno lives in Castellón and works in the city’s town hall. He decided to start writing after reading a book that had won an important prize and setting himself the challenge of writing something much better. When his novel was ﬁnished, he decided not to send it to a publisher. Conﬁdent

in the quality of the novel, he decided to win himself a place in bookshops on his own. His success became an internet phenomenon.

It is a story that hooks, seduces, moves, teaches and evokes memories, written in a skilful, original and easy to read manner. The novel is so quotidian, so real, that the reader rapidly feels himself identifying with the characters.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 28

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Javier Moro has contributed from a very early age to the national and international press and has worked as a researcher for various books by authors like Dominique Lapierre and Larry Collins. He spent six years in the USA developing projects for cinema and television, where he collaborated with directors like Ridley Scott. Pasión india, with 1,000,000 copies sold worldwide, has been in all the bestseller lists

Javier Moro

for two years and has become a success of both critics and readers with its publication in 12 countries.

In 1965 Sonia Maino, a 19 yearold Italian student, meets a young Indian man named Rajiv Gandhi. She is the daughter of a humble family from the surroundings of Turin; he comes from the most powerful lineage in India. It is the beginning of a love story that not even death will be able to break. In the name of love, the Italian girl leaves her world and her past to blend into her new country, the prodigious India that worships twenty million gods, speaks eight hundred languages and votes for ﬁve hundred political parties. Her courage, integrity and devotion will end up turning her into a goddess to the eyes of a sixth part of humanity.

Javier Moro has sold more than 500,000 copies of this book since its publication. Fictionalization of the family saga of the Nehru-Gandhi, men and women trapped in the clutches of political power. His previous book, Pasión india, sold more than 1,000,000 copies worldwide, and was translated into twelve languages. With a journalistic language lively and easy to read, the book combines the behaviour inside the powerful family of the NehruGandhis with the course of the Indian political life.

The Red Sari Seix Barral / 632 pages / October 2008

Translated into French, Italian, German, Dutch, Catalan, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Czech and Slovak.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 29

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

A novel about a 19th Century investigation into an assassination attempt in the highest circles of power in Barcelona.

Jorge Navarro

Jorge Navarro reveals himself to be an extremely talented writer, especially good at recreating a historical atmosphere as attractive as it is disturbing and combining it with a highly original plot.

Barcelona 1893. After an attack at the Liceu Theatre, the city is plunged into a whirlwind of uncertainty and anarchist attacks. The Baron of Castellfullit, one of the most powerful people in Barcelona, decides to travel to Madrid to inform the authorities of the situation and to look for support for a coup that would re-establish order. Many people hate the arrogant baron: his wife, his young lover Soﬁa, even his own son, all have reasons to see him killed. But they are not the only ones. Four people will die during an attack, and a ﬁfth, completely innocent, will be tried in the midst of great social upheaval.

“A novel full of critical subtlety, humour and spirit. A strangeness that comes highly recommended.” ALICIA GIMÉNEZ BARTLETT

“Jorge Navarro writes very well, builds up a good plot and depicts the period very successfully. I like him.” EDUARDO MENDOZA

The Five Deaths of the Haughty Baron Seix Barral / 336 pages / March 2011 Jorge Navarro Pérez was born in 1962 in Castelldefels, where he works as a secondary school teacher. He graduated in geography and history from the Universidad de Barcelona, and his stories have appeared in several anthologies including Quince líneas: Relatos y Noche

de relatos, and literary magazines. One of them won the Federico MuelasCity of Cuenca Prize for the Short Story in 1992. As a photographer, he worked under the pseudonym Bocángel for both magazines and publishers and his work has been shown in group and individual exhibitions.

“A book destined to leave a mark on its readers.” LORENZO SILVA

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 30

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

The Tramórea saga has sold more than 35,000 copies.

Javier Negrete There are only a few days left until the three moons come into alignment and the crazy God Tubilok opens the gates to the hellish Prates, which will cause the destruction of Tramórea. Meanwhile, a thousand years after it was ﬁrst made, Tarimán reforges a sword of power. Ariel must thwart the machinations of the necromancer Ulma Tor and return Zemal to Derguín, while all the Kalagorinôr wizards try to help the humans in their desperate race against the clock and the Gods. All except for Mikhon Tiq, who, knowing the terrible secret of his origins, seems to have become Tubilok’s ally. The pieces are in place for one last battle.

Javier Negrete is the best contemporary Spanish fantasy author. His books are eagerly awaited by both critics and the reading public. El corazón de Tramórea is the ﬁnal instalment in a journey that began in 2003 with La espada de fuego. Negrete’s readers have been waiting for the ﬁnal book in the Tramórea saga for years.

The Heart of Tramórea Minotauro / 672 pages / May 2011 Javier Negrete was born in Madrid in 1964. In 1992 he published his ﬁrst novel, La luna quieta. He is the author of many other works of science ﬁction such as La mirada de las furias (premio Ignotus for best novel, 1998), Estado crepuscular (premio Ignotus and Gilgamesh for best story, 1994),

La Espada de Fuego (premio Ignotus, 2003), El espíritu del mago (2005), Señores del Olimpo (winner of the premio Minotauro 2006 and the Utopiales 2008) and Alejandro Magno y las águilas de Roma (premio Celsius 2008).

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 31

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

José Luis Olaizola, founder and president of the NGO Somos Uno –which ﬁghts against child prostitution in Thailand –, has written a heartrending, exciting and wonderful tale based on real events. A unique, intense story of human goodness and triumph over adversity.

José Luis Olaizola Wichi is a twelve year old Thai girl, intelligent, joyful and extroverted. She lives a happy life, but things begin to get worse when her mother becomes addicted to gambling and loses the small amount of money they have. Wichi’s father disappears from home, never to return, and Wichi’s world falls apart deﬁnitively when her mother dies and she is left in the charge of her grandmother, Mrs Phakamon, a perverse old woman who never loved Wichi and plans to abandon her in a brothel. However, the serendipitous intervention of Siri, the only person who really cares about Wichi, will save her from her terrible fate and send them on a long journey.

This is a novel that moves and inspires. A ﬁctional story based on real events in a style currently very popular with the reading public. It is a clear example of the power of human goodness and personal triumph over adversity.

The Girl from the Rice Paddies MR /256 pages / May 2011 José Luis Olaizola is from San Sebastián. In his extensive literary career he has won many awards including the Ateneo de Sevilla prize in 1976 for his novel Planicio and the 1983 Planeta Prize for La guerra del general Escobar, recently acclaimed by both Álvaro Mutis and Javier Cercas

as the “best Spanish novel about the Spanish Civil War.” In 1982 he won the Barco de Vapor Prize for his novel Cucho whose French translation won the Grand Prix de l’Académie des Lecteurs de Paris.

This is the story of the strength and suffering of a girl seeking a better future. Beautiful, captivating and realistic. A unique, intense book which takes us to the fascinating and evocative world of Thailand.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 32

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

A family divided. An accident. A mother who never forgets. Passion and ambition in the world of cava, along the same lines as Falcon Crest or The Bodega by Noah Gordon.

Gisela Pou El silencio de las viñas is the moving saga of the Brucart del Bas, a great family presided over by the matriarch Aurora del Bas, the woman who made Brucart cava one of the world’s most important producers of the sparkling wine. This is a captivating story set in the magniﬁcent landscapes of the Penedès vineyards, in which old loves are rekindled and we are given a delicious tour of the history of cava, from its beginnings in the 19th Century to today, passing though key historical moments such as the phylloxera plague which tore through the country at the beginning of the 20th century, the Civil War and modernization of cava production in recent times.

The deﬁnitive novel about the passions which move the world of cava. A fascinating tour of Spanish vineyards.

The Silence of the Vines Planeta / 350 pages / September 2011 Gisela Pou (Castellar del Vallès, 1959) has worked on scripts for drama series on Antena 3 and TV3, amongst others. She is the author of several different works of ﬁction for children and young people and the novel for adults Sense la mare (Columna, 2007).

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 33

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

There is great interest in contemporary Spanish society in our recent history. An original approach as the description of the situation begins with union activity and its repercussions on the personal lives of the unionists.

Nativel Preciado A portrait of a period of Spanish history dominated by the epic struggle of men and women who, in defiance of the Franco regime, fought against crippling economic, political and social conditions which excluded a large part of the population. Nativel Preciado reconstructs the era of Camacho’s unionist struggle and that of other leaders of the workers’ movement who committed their lives and those of their families to their ideals, featuring the memories of Josefina Samper, Marcelino Camacho’s widow, a woman who, like her husband, was fiercely committed to the struggle for democracy.

A serious, rigorous piece of research which combines careful documentation with an exciting real-life story. The author has an excellent reputation; Nativel Preciado is a wellrespected writer and political commentator.

They Shall not be Moved Espasa /224 pages / September 2011 Nativel Preciado is a prestigious professional journalist. Over the last thirty years she has written and edited numerous reports for newspapers, radio and television. She is one of the best interviewers in the country. Especially notable were her series of interviews in the weekly Tiempo. She has

received several prizes for her professional work, including the Francisco Cerecedo (1986) and the Víctor de la Serna (1989). She is the author of many different books including: Fuera de campo (1991), El sentir de las mujeres (1996) and Amigos íntimos (1998).

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 34

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Rights sold to: Mondadori (Italy), Aleksandra i Andrzej Kurylowicz (Poland).

Eduardo Roca Cologne, 15th Century. The winds of reform and change are whipping through a Europe still governed by old beliefs and superstitions. Access to knowledge is in the hands of the few. However, a small group of erudite men meeting in absolute secrecy are united by a common goal: to spread culture amongst the people. How? Through books. But beforehand they will have to overcome the barriers set in place by the church – which doesn’t want “dangerous” works such as the Gospels to reach the masses – and the nobility – who want to hold on to their privileges. One man rises to meet this challenge; a modest goldsmith named Lorenz, helped by his daughter. However, the price to be paid for his insolence could be high: his life and those of everyone close to him.

An intense and epic novel about the magic of books. Along the lines of The Pillars of the Earth: the struggle of one man to see his dream become reality. The novel is like a fresco of the city of Cologne in the 15th Century. The author describes everything: the monuments, geography, merchandise, jobs of the period, food, streets, dress, interiors of the houses...

The Workshop of Forbidden Books MR / 640 pages / February 2011 Eduardo Roca (Barcelona, 1963) is a university researcher and professor. He graduated as an industrial engineer from the Universidad Politécnica de Barcelona. He currently lives and resides in Heidelberg (Germany), where he combines his teaching with diverse

cultural projects. El taller de los libros prohibidos is his ﬁrst novel.

Readers will ﬁnd it easy to identify with the novel’s plot: the struggle between the corrupt and powerful who want to control everything and idealistic characters who rebel in support of a new invention.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 35

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Option publishers: Tyto Alba (Lithuania).

Nuria Roca Juan del Val

An astounding novel, irresistible and addictive from the ﬁrst page to the last. Having sold 120,000 copies of her ﬁrst two books, Nuria Roca is more than just promising, she’s the real deal.

This is the story of a woman who set out to be worthy of her most cherished desires. There’s someone out there who knows something about us that we don’t even know ourselves. After becoming one of the bestselling authors of 2009, Nuria Roca (in collaboration with Juan de Val) decided to make her second novel a story that combines the best ingredients of Los caracoles no saben que son caracoles (sex, humour and daily life), with a surprising plot set behind the scenes in the world of publishing, where nothing is what it seems.

A novel that will exceed all expectations. Para Ana (de tu muerto) is the story of an unﬁnished novel in which everyone knows more than they’re letting on. We always think that fulﬁlling our dreams depends on luck, but can’t we do something to deserve it?

To Ana (from beyond the grave) Espasa / 288 pages / April 2011 Nuria Roca Granell (Montcada, Valencia, 1972) has worked in television since 1992, making so many programs that there’s not enough space to list them all here. Her ﬁrst book, Sexual-mente was extremely successful in 2007 and her ﬁrst novel Los caracoles no saben que son caracoles

made 2009 an even better year. Juan del Val Pérez (Madrid, 1970) has done many different jobs: in construction, at newspapers, magazines, on the radio, on television... but he has always been a writer, even if this is his ﬁrst novel.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 36

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Pepa Roma has written a wonderfully evocative novel about the immense suggestive power India still holds for western travellers. This is a paean to the unlimited power of dreams and an insightful look at love and friendship, with all their highs and lows.

Pepa Roma Lola and Che met over forty years ago. Their friendship survived endless nights of partying in the Barcelona of the gauche divine period; the utopias of May ‘68; hippies in London and psychedelia... but with time and after certain incidents they never discussed, they drifted apart. However, when fate gives them a second chance to renew their friendship they decide to realize a dream from their youth: to travel together around India. The journey will help them to relive the days when they were Che and Lola, Lola and Che: always inseparable; but also to face up to a dramatic past they have tried to forget.

Indian Express Planeta / 320 pages / April 2011 Pepa Roma (Lleida) has spent most of her life in Barcelona, where she studied philosophy, literature and information sciences. She has spent almost her entire professional life working as a journalist for some of the main Spanish media institutions such as La Vanguardia, Tele/eXpres,

El Periódico de Cataluña, TVE, El Globo, Diario 16 and El País. Her works include Mandala, the novella Cómo desaparecer sin ser visto and stories such as Adiós Estambul (Goodbye Istanbul, Antonio Machado prize 1990).

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 37

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Option publishers: Christian Bourgois (France), Wereldbibliotheek (The Netherlands), Klett-Cotta (Germany), Planeta Manuscrito (Portugal), Utopija (Serbia), Olma Media Group (Russia).

Isaac Rosa As this is not a common subject for contemporary ﬁction we must issue a warning: in this novel, the characters work. A lot. In fact, they don’t do anything else. And the work is not exactly creative or intellectual; they are not ﬁlm makers or researchers, certainly not writers. Some even work with their hands. And sweat. And, of course, get tired. And sick, hurt, bored, and desperate. Each morning they feel the depression so familiar to workers who expected something else from their adult lives. The pages of La mano invisible contain people who lay bricks, work on an assembly line, cut meat, sew, polish and load. But they don’t know why. Just one thing is for sure: a hand is pulling the strings.

In La mano invisible, Isaac Rosa addresses one of the great but least explored themes of our time; the work environment. His last novel El país del miedo won the National Critics Prize 2008 and the José Manuel Lara Prize for best Spanish novel. The ﬁlm version is currently in production. “A careful and brilliant prose stylist, well endowed with the gifts of irony, parody and sarcastic motes.” The Invisible Hand Seix Barral / 384 pages / September 2011 Isaac Rosa was born in Seville in 1974. He has published the novels ¡Otra maldita novela sobre la guerra civil!, El vano ayer, which in 2005 won the Rómulo Gallegos, Ojo Critico and Andalucia Critica Prizes and was later made into a ﬁlm under the title La vida en rojo; and El país del miedo honoured by

the editors of the J.M. Lara Foundation as the best novel of the year with the ﬁlm version. A newspaper columnist, he is also a short story writer, wrote the play Adiós, muchachos, and is co-author of the nonﬁction book Kosovo. His work has been translated into several different languages.

RICARDO SENABRE, El Cultural, El Mundo

“Some impeccable and uncompromising narrative constructions.” JOAQUÍN ARNÁIZ, La Razón

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 38

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

“Fantastic. The best Spanish spy novel ever written.”

Fernando Rueda

JULIA NAVARRO

Fernando Rueda is the author of La Casa, a huge bestseller and the ﬁrst ever book on the Spanish intelligence service.

Ela has just been named Director of Operations of the CNI secret service. After her appointment, her grandfather gives Ela a series of recordings he has made. The tapes will tell of an enthralling world and a story that Ela never could have imagined; a vivid portrayal of Spain running from the civil war years up to the sixties, featuring fascinating characters such as Kim Philby – the most famous double agent of all time–, prominent Nazis who took refuge in Spain, European royal families… all these memories will tell Ela much more about her family than she ever suspected, and will put her on the track of a political plot that began in the war over seventy years ago and continues to this day.

Fernando Rueda is regarded as the foremost specialist on all things related to espionage.

The Voice of the Past MR / 544 pages / October 2010 Fernando Rueda Rieu was born in Madrid and has a doctorate in journalism from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. He is the leading Spanish expert on espionage. He began his career as a research journalist at the newspaper Ya and the weekly Época, and

was deputy editor of the magazines Tiempo and Interviú. In addition to his work in the print media, he has also been involved in radio, and has appeared on several television programs.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 39

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Premio Nadal 2010.

Clara Sánchez

Rights sold to: Garzanti (Italy), Alma Books (English rights), De Bezige Bij (The Netherlands), Marabout (France), Park (Hungary), Colibri (Bulgaria), Dudaj (Albania), Pegasus (Turkey), Olma Media Group (Russia), Utopija (Serbia).

Sandra has decided to escape to a coastal village in Alicante: she is 30, has left her job and, pregnant by a man she doesn’t love, spends her time putting off the decision about what to do with her life. On the beach she meets the Christensens, a Norwegian couple in their eighties who appear to be the answer to Sandra’s prayers when they offer to pay her to accompany Karin to her physiotherapy sessions. Then Julián arrives from Argentina, he is a survivor of the Mauthausen extermination camp, and begins to follow the Norwegian couple’s movements closely. One day Julián confronts Sandra, telling her that the Christensens are not w who they appe to be, appear reco recounting a st story of ho horrors that h has nothing tto do with h her.

‘Lo que esconde tu nombre is a captivating and convincingly realistic thriller but it is above all an absorbing novel about memory and redemption.’ ‘A novel that combines a plot of a growing dramatic tension with sketches taking us to Notorious by Hitchcock and Rosemary’s Baby by Polanski.’

What Your Name Conceals Destino / 425 pages / February 2010 Clara Sánchez was born in Guadalajara. After going through various jobs, she taught at universities for a number of years and regularly appeared on the TVE programme Qué grande es el cine. In 1989 she published the novel Piedras preciosas, which was followed by No es distinta la

noche (1990), El palacio varado (1993), Desde el mirador (1996), El misterio de todos los días (1999), Últimas noticias del paraíso, for which she received the Premio Alfaguara in 2000, and Un millón de luces (2004). Her work has been published in various different countries.

4 40

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 40

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Option publishers: Mondadori (Italy).

Mamen Sánchez The enchanting, legendary Lake Como has been the setting for innumerable secret events and mysteries. It has been a silent witness to stories of passion, vengeance, ambition and death. Some are notorious whilst others are fleetingly mentioned on winter afternoons or lost in the dust-filled pages of some forgotten book. And it is in just such a book, over two centuries old, that the young sisters Ventura, Francesca and Claudia, heiresses to one of the most powerful families in the North of Italy, find the story of the indomitable Lady Morgan and her tumultuous love affairs; just the inspiration and encouragement they need to esca escape from their hate hated stepmother.

A magniﬁcent melodrama, which combines two stories of passion and vengeance, united by their location in the evocative and glamorous Lake Como. After Gafas de sol para días de lluvia (25,000 copies sold) and Agua del limonero (46,000 copies sold) Mamen Sánchez is a well-established author.

A Ladies Game Espasa / November 2011 Mamen Sánchez has a degree in Information Sciences from the Universidad Complutense and has taken doctorate courses in Literature and History at the Sorbonne and English Literature at universities in London and Oxford. She is a deputy editor at the magazine ¡Hola! and

editor of ¡Hola! México. She is married and has ﬁve children. She has published three books for children and the novels Gafas de sol para días de lluvia and Agua del limonero.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 41

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

This is a shocking story which denounces a blight on our society, portraying the men and women who cause and suffer from it, told with ﬂair, wisdom and passion.

Jaume Sanllorente

Jaume Sanllorente’s previous book, Sonrisas de Bombay, about his experiences in India, sold 40,000 copies.

Enrique Guzmán, a young lawyer from Madrid, is sent to Manila to prepare a report on under-age prostitution networks. Inevitably, soon after his arrival, the job which had at first been a chore, becomes a crusade. On his journey he will meet characters who will change his fate, from policemen and journalists committed to unmasking the ordeal of human trafficking to despicable pimps making money out of the sacrifice of innocent girls. Meanwhile, Jaume Sanllorente tells the story of the twin sisters, Alma and Teresa, born and raised together in a poor village until, having barely reached puberty, they suffer a cruel fate.

This is a novel with enormous human interest, both for its dramatic subject (prostitution networks in the Far East) and the prestige of the author. The author is the founder of the NGO Mumbai Smiles, and has received numerous awards and recognitions for his humanitarian work.

The Concubine’s Song Espasa / 304 pages / June 2011 Jaume Sanllorente (Barcelona, 1976) has a degree in Journalism. He later studied Development Cooperation at the Institute of Peace Studies and took several courses related to human resources, leadership and marketing. He currently lives in Mumbai (India)

where he works as director general of the NGO Mumbai Smiles which he founded himself in 2005 (https:// www.sonrisasdebombay. org/). In 2009 the Spanish government honoured him with the Cruz de Oﬁcial de la Orden del Mérito Civil.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 42

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Rights sold to Alnari (Serbia).

Margarita Torres

A stupendous historical and adventure novel along the lines of In the Name of the Rose. “Readers are privileged to be able to welcome a new historical novel by Margarita Torres. La cátedra de la calavera is destined to be a success.”

1509. A young woman ﬂees from an arranged marriage dressed as a boy and seeks refuge at the home of the professor Luisa de Medrano. Once in Salamanca, still disguised in men’s clothing, she will meet a knave and a brilliant medical student with whom she will begin an ambiguous, intense friendship. The woman, together with Luisa and the Master of the School, will investigate a series of mysterious murders that have taken place within the university. They will thus be caught up in a murky affair also involving the Inquisition and the Crown. A historical thriller that pays homage to one of Spain’s most important institutions.

JAVIER SERRA

“La cátedra de la calavera will touch hearts and help us to dream. It is the work of a great historian.” JULIA NAVARRO

The Skull Chair Temas de Hoy / 416 pages / June 2010 Margarita Torres (La Bañeza, 1969) is a Doctor of Medieval History and a professor in the same subject at the University of León. Author of more than ﬁfty articles and papers, her published books include: Linajes nobiliarios en León y Castilla (siglos IXXIII), El Cid y otros señores

de la guerra, Batallas legendarias y el oﬁcio de la guerra and Enrique de Castilla. She has been León’s ofﬁcial chronicler for a number years.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 43

02/08/11 17:01

In spite of his avoidance of conventional media, Pablo Tusset (Barcelona 1965) has come to be regarded as one of the most solid and original voices of contemporary European literature, his work now having been translated into over twenty different languages. So far, he has written a hilarious, irreverent comedy that was immediately made into a ﬁlm (Lo mejor que le puede pasar a un cruasán, 2001), a

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Pablo Tusset

dark and disturbing thriller (En el nombre del Cerdo, 2005) and a satire caricaturing Spanish politics over the last decade (Sakamura, Corrales y los muertos rientes, 2009).

Rights sold to: Opera (Greece), FVA (Germany). Option publishers: Sammako (Finland), Signatuur (The Netherlands), Dom Quixote (Portugal), Humanitas (Romania). An extremely funny novel, utterly absorbing.

Spring 2089: on the Oxford 7 campus, Sirhan Palaiopoulos a professor of Pre-computer cinematography, is plotting something along with his most dedicated students. Dean Deckard tries to manage the situation from his ofﬁce in Huxley tower whilst the anti-disturbance brigades are deployed below. However, with the help of Rick Blaine, an old space hand and smuggler of Burley tobacco (grown in real soil!), the intrepid students manage to escape the space station and make their way to Earth. But they have no idea of the dangers they face at the end of their journey; to the heart of an apocalyptic Barcelona just after the Storming of Boqueria Market.

This time, in a new twist, he surprises us with a science ﬁction adventure ﬁlled with the author’s characteristic humour, engaging characters, gripping atmosphere, and bursts of political incorrectness. Tusset shows masterful talent at dialogue, characterization and the creation of a future world that constantly alludes to the present.

Oxford 7 Destino / 272 pages / April 2011

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 44

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Rights sold to: Gallimard (France), Planeta Manuscrito (Portugal), Hakusui-Sha (Japan), Edicions 62 (Catalan), Xerais (Galician).

Kirmen Uribe When Liborio Uribe found out that he was going to die, he wanted to see a painting by Aurelio Arteta one last time. He spent his entire life on the high seas and, like his son José, living unforgettable adventures that would later fade into obscurity. Years later, faced with the same painting, his grandson Kirmen, a writer and poet, uses these family stories to write a novel. Bilbao-New York-Bilbao takes place during a ﬂight, telling the tale of three generations of the same family. Through letters, diaries, emails, poems and dictionaries, it creates a mosaic of memories and stories that combine to form a homage to a world that has almost disappeared as well as a hymn to the continuity of life.

90,000 copies sold in Spain. Premio Nacional de Narrativa 2009 (National Fiction Prize), Premio Nacional de la Crítica 2008 (National Critics Prize). A literary phenomenon that has completely revolutionized the Spanish publishing scene. “Uribe is an author with numerous preoccupations, politically committed, with a global, humanist conscience and a direct and different voice.” Bilbao–New York–Bilbao Seix Barral / 212 pages / February 2010 Kirmen Uribe (Ondarroa, 1970) is a refreshing new voice on the Basque literary scene. The publication of his book of poetry Bitartean heldu eskutik in 2003, winner of the National Critics Prize, is among the most read in the Basque language and has been translated into Spanish,

French and English. The English translation received an award from the PEN American Center and was a ﬁnalist in the category of best poetry book translated into English in 2007. He has also published articles and poems in various prestigious magazines, including the New Yorker.

PEN AMERICAN CENTER

Qué leer magazine calls Bilbao-New York-Bilbao one of the year’s ﬁve best books.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 45

02/08/11 17:01

frankfurt 2011 fiction books

Rights sold to: Albatros (Poland).

Andrés Vidal

The triumph of a man who struggled to achieve his dream against all the odds. ‘An important work of research and documentation covering an understudied period; the beginnings of industrialization in Catalonia.’

In the Barcelona of the Industrial Revolution era, the protagonist, Rosendo Roca, will refuse to accept his tragic fate and go on a dangerous quest that will come to dominate the rest of his life. On the way, he will have to struggle against hunger, the nobility, engrained tradition, war, sickness and the proletariat, as well as the contradictions that come with a form of progress in which the Church and vested interests play a crucially decisive role. He will discover the value of friendship, unconditional love and the power of hate in a newly industrial world in which he himself will play a big part in transforming.

A book that will remind you of Falcones with a Zafón’s twist set in the Barcelona of the Industrial Revolution era (XIX century).

The Inheritance of the Land Planeta / 768 pages / March 2010 Andrés Vidal’s writing is a rich melting pot of ideas and projects drawing inspiration from journalistic work, cinema and television. La herencia de la tierra is his ﬁrst novel.

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 46

02/08/11 17:01

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 47

02/08/11 17:01

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 48

02/08/11 17:01

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 49

02/08/11 17:01

Fiction Frankfurt 2011 v6.indd 50

02/08/11 17:01