Barbara Peters, The Poisoned Pen, Scottsdale, Ariz.
It is the gift of a novelist like British lawyer C.J. Sansom to illuminate present uncertainties, conflicts and moral dilemmas by touring similar landscapes in the past in Winter in Madrid (Viking, Jan. 24). It's 1940 in Spain, the Civil War is over, and Madrid lies ruined, its people starving, while the Germans shoulder through Europe. Into this uncertain picture come several Brits with personal—and patriotic—agendas. Sansom explores issues that similarly trouble and divide today's world. His erudite, lovely style makes such a contrast to the dark deeds he recounts. I recommend reading Winter in Madrid with Rebecca Pawel's brilliant mysteries of the same period, but I'm struck with how Sansom's prize-winning, dark novels of Henry VIII's reign (Dissolution, Dark Fire, Sovereign) reiterate the very same passions and divisions. Sansom also has a wonderful sense of humor, proving real noir is best when lit with flashes of wit.
