Captain Alatriste (Capitan Alatriste Series #1)

Captain Alatriste

Captain Alatriste by Arturo Perez-Reverte is a suspensful novel about a 17th century swordsman, Diego Alatriste, which lives in Madrid, Spain. Alatriste lives in an apartmen above a pub with a teenage boy, Inigo, who loves him like a father. Alatriste has just returned from serving in a battle in the Flemish war.When Alatriste returns he meets with his boss, who is surrounded by masked men, to be assigned to his next mission. He and an Italian assassin are to ambush two travelers entering Spain. Alatriste and the Italian set out on their mission and come to find that these men are no ordinary travelers, but they are in fact the prince of England and his close acquaintance. After Alatriste refuses to kill the prince and his companion, he aggregates many new enemies, including his partner assassin and the masked henchmen of his boss. Alatriste faces many life-threatening situations and encounters many people that want him dead. Experience the many thrilling battles and page-turning book for yourself by reading this suspensful novel by Arturo Perez-Reverte. I would recommend this book to young adults and adults.If you enjoy action-packed, historic novels this is the book for you. The excitement and suspense only gets better as you read deeper into the book. You make think this book starts off slow, but wait until you read the ending.

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Success in Swashbuckling

Captain Alatriste, written by Arturo Perez-Reverte, is a historically based 'for setting' fictional 'as far as the main characters' novel aimed at those who enjoy the tales of swashbucklers and daring heroes of old who faced seemingly insurmountable odds and dangers in the name of honor. The author intends for the reader to see the glorious days of Spain as it was during the 17th century, and introduce readers to characters and places from Spain¿s past in a way that is accessible and interesting. The novel reaches out to all those who enjoy tales told in the spirit of Dumas and long for adventures set against an age when men lived not just by their words, but their swords as well. It is plain to see and easy to recognize the pride and affection the author holds for his homeland of Spain. Through the story, the narration argues that for the many faults inherent in the great empire and majesty of the Spain of the kings Philip that it was a beautiful country and peopled by a community equally worthy of admiration. The values of chivalrous actions, the dedication to living with honor, and distinguishing one¿s self through being a dignified member in service to one¿s country are highlighted. Courage and the need to follow one¿s instincts in the direction of what is right instead of what is easy is also given emphasis. The author is skillful in his portrayal of these attributes through the hero of the story, as well as those who are his friends and those who become his allies. Our hero, Captain Alatriste and his young ward Inigo are prime examples of individuals living their lives in accordance with these beliefs. Alatriste, despite his position as a mercenary or sword for hire, is still guided by his morals. Both he and the teenage Inigo exemplify courage through the numerous encounters with those who try to kill them. It is also apparent from the disdain of the narrator for those who lack these qualities that such positive attributes are to be emulated and sought after in life instead of those exemplified by villains. The example of the person not to be emulated is personified in the mortal enemy of our hero, a man named Gualterio Malatesta. The villain takes pleasure in menace and murder, while the hero does not fight unless it is necessary. Captain Alatriste is disciplined in conduct and combat, the audience even sees a respectful appreciation for those who Alatriste confronts who exhibit courageous or noble traits. The author succeeds in taking the audience back to a time of honorable heroes who serve more than personal desires for the betterment of society. Captain Alatriste is an enjoyable read filled with all of the things that made swashbuckling tales great through the centuries. The novel covers all of the necessary ingredients for adventure. There is a hero worth cheering for, allies in his times of need, conspiracies of sinister men, numerous swordfights, intrigue, and villains who are deplorable. What else could one ask for in a novel?

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Ffast-paced, filled with non stop action

The invincible Armada has recently lost and Spain is in upheaval from the shocker. Meanwhile former Spanish Captain Diego Alatriste returns home to Madrid because war injuries make the life of a soldier impossible to continue. Still he is a renowned swordsman so the President of the Holy Tribunal of the Inquisition Fray Emilio Bocanegra hires him and an Italian assassin who normally works for the King¿s Secretary Gualterio Malatesta to allegedly frighten two Englishmen who have come to Madrid.................... Gualterio is irate because Diego confronts the two visitors giving them a chance to defend themselves; Gualterio prefers to kill from behind as a frontal fight frightens him. When the two Brits put up a strong defense, Diego, adhering to his mission, prevents Gualterio from killing them. However, by doing so he now has a deadly livid enemy who will patiently wait for the moment to strike him down from behind. Diego assists the English on their mission by keeping them safe, but also finds he is caught in the middle of disputing factions blaming one another for the Armada debacle................... CAPTAIN ALASTRISTE is such a superb seventeenth century swashbuckler that any moment this reviewer expected Errol Flynn to show up. The story line is fast-paced, filled with non stop action, and the fully developed cast provides a deep look at Spain still reeling from the Amada catastrophe. It is that latter element that refreshes the sword swinging tale as readers will appreciate how deep a cut the impact that disaster had on the country and to a lesser degree through the two visitors on England. Arturo Pérez-Reverte writes a strong historical novel..................... Harriet Klausner

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Bravo! Captain Alatriste is a Spanish equivalent of England's Hornblower!

Welcome to Spain of the 1600s ... the Inquisition, the Conquistadors, the Hundred Years War, the piracy and poetry, the art, drama, culture and science ... washed down with an adequate dose of swashbuckling and not too much sour wine. Perez-Reverte is a masterful conveyor of the tempo and temper of the times. The adventures of Captain Alatriste and his witness, Inigo, awaken the senses to one of history's most misunderstood periods. Perez-Reverte's Alatriste brings 17th Century Spain to life in the manner that E.M. Forester's Hornblower engages us in the Napoleonic Wars. This series is terrific.

Captain Alatriste Book Review

Captian Diego Alatriste is a retired swordsman living in the fifteenth century. He lives in a small, four foom house in Madrid.
Then one day when he was a spending time at the local tavern with his friends one of his friends told him that an anonymous employer had an assignment for him. That night he left to meet his employer. When he arrived he met three masked men, two are sitting behind a table and one stands next to him. He soon learns that the two men at the table are his employers and the man naxt to him is going to be his partner. He also learns that one of his employers is a member of the spanish inqusition. He also learns that his assignment is to kill two traveling british heritics.
On the night on the assignment the captain meets his partner in a dark street that they know the englishmen will be taveling. In a matter of seconds the englishmen are knocked from their horses and are disarmed by the captain and his partner. Then one of the englishmen couragously said to the captain,"Mercy for my friend". This makes Alatriste decide to defend the two englishmen and attack his partner saying,"Leave off". Out of shock his parter retreats, and leaves Alatriste alone with the two englishmen.
Because of Captain Alatriste's decition he has to hide from the inqusition, and his two unknown employers.
I found this book very interesting because it is told by Captian Alatriste's paige Íñigo.I really enjoyed this book and would recomend it to people ages 13 and older who enjoy historical fiction.

Extremely good book

Captain Alatriste is the first in a series of books and is an amazing book. It takes place in 17th century madrid and is filled with swordfights, romance, and suspense. its one of my favorite books of all time. its addicting. once you pick it up you wont put it down. If your into reading good books and feeling like your actually in the book, then this book is perfect for you. Its the 8th wonder of the world.

Captain Alatriste Book Review

This book is the story of Captain Alatriste who is a swordsman and bounty hunter in Madrid, Spain in the early 17th century. Captain Alatriste returns from fighting in Flanders and goes back to living above a pub. He takes care of a boy named Inigo, who narrates the story. The captain and his companion are given a task by an unknown man to ambush and rob a couple of travelers. They are told "No blood," which means not to kill them. This makes the captain and his companion think that it will be an easy task. Then the man decides to change plans. He tells them that they have to murder the two travelers and that since they have to do this he will increase the pay in order to get them to kill the travelers. After this the man reveals his identity and his name is Emilio Bocanegra. It is a name that is identical with the Spanish Inquisition and is the bloodiest name in Europe. Emilio's requests cannot be denied or there would be consequences. The following night, with the attack about to happen, it becomes clear to the Captain that they aren't any ordinary travelers. You will have to read the book yourself to discover the twists and turns that occur throughout the book. I didn't really like this book that much. I thought it was kind of boring because I felt that there was a lot of un-needed information. I would recommend this book to anybody that likes mystery books.

the first of a great series

while being entertained with the stories, I learned so much about Spanish history & literature from the Captain Alatriste series! I wish they'd release the Viggo Mortensen film in the US.

The beginning of a beautiful friendship (I hope)

I was introduced to Captain Alatriste by a colleague who recommended it very highly as a quick read, totally enjoyable, and addictive. She was right on all counts up to this point. It's a short novel, but the characters are well drawn. The story is relatively simple, yet with twists and turns in the plot. The picture Perez-Reverte draws of Span in the 17th century is both frightening and sometimes disgusting. The Inquisition is in full swing, and wars, both minor and major are everywhere. Europe is in the throes of discovering more of the New World and understanding itself less.

One shortcoming is bothersome: Why does the hero always have to be someone filled with so much angst and having a tragic past? This sort of hero is everywhere. And if Alatriste is so good with a sword and such an honorable man, why isn't he rich? Or at least in the employ of someone who is? It gets harder to believe that heroes with so much talent live in squalid surroundings, wear torn and dirty clothing, yet have so many loyal -- and rich or well placed -- friends. Still, the stories are interesting, the narrator filled with hero worship, and the reader gets a view of Spain not usually shown in history books.

Swashtastic!!!

Captain Alatriste by Arturo Reverte Perez is a riveting swashbuckling tale set in 17th century Spain of a washed up military man who, now that he was wounded and discharged from the army, makes a living supporting himself and the son, Íñigo, of one of his best friends who died in the war, by acting as a hired sword. His highly developed sword fighting skills he learned in the war are the only help his valiant military career has provided. As a hired sword he natural partakes in some excursions of rather dubious natures and will often find himself in jail for as long if not for longer then he is a free man. So when he was hired in addition to a shady Italian to scare a couple of British travelers and steal their documents he thought nothing of it. However, after his primary employer leaves a religious figure of high status with known connections to the inquisition, Fray Emilio Bocanegra, enters the room and informs the two that they are to assassinate rather then merely scare the heathenish bastards. This concerns the Captain who would like to preserve the last shreds of self respect he has for himself since he had little else. During the attack he has a change of heart when the target he picked to kill was pleading for mercy for not himself but his traveling companion right as Alatriste was about to run him through. This made the Captain think deeper as to why he was sent to kill these two seemingly insignificant men and prevents the Italian from finishing off the second of the two intended targets. This one deed sets the action rolling in the book by creating many powerful enemies for himself and some even more powerful friends. Captain Alatriste is a captivating tale of the swashbucklers of 17th century Spain and I would recommend it to anyone who loves dynamic plots complemented by spellbinding fight scenes.

A reviewer

Captain Alatriste by Arturo Pérez-Reverte was an outstanding novel for all ages. Arturo Pérez-Reverte did a remarkable job on this 248 page book. It was an action packed novel full of swordplay and heroism, but mostly of a man trying to survive in the harsh conditions of 17th century Spain. The book takes place in 17th century Spain during the Flemish wars over the Netherlands. Gold is coming from the Americas to Spain but is being spent on goods from other country making Spain have a decreasing economy. In the book Diego Alatriste, the protagonist is a Spanish soldier on leave from the Flemish Wars because of an injury suffered. To survive he hires his sword skills to who ever will pay. One day a friend of Alatriste comes to him with a job he can do. The Captain later finds out that if he carries out this job then there will be a new war on the horizon. One of the things I enjoyed best about this book was how Arturo brought up so much history that was going on during 17-century Spain. Another thing that I enjoyed is how he also tied in Alatriste into all the history as though he was actually there and that he did all the stuff he did. Overall I found this book to be a breathtaking novel. I would recommend this book to all ages and especially people who enjoy history because of it many ties into history but if you like action books then you will also enjoy the book.

Slow start Great finish

Captain Alatriste is By Arturo Perez Reverte and published by Penguin Publishingin 2006. Capatain Alatriste is about a Spanish swordsman in the seventeenth Century from Madrid. One day Capatian Alatriste is told to go to a house where two men will be waiting to give him a task. When he gets to the house there are two masked men waiting for him. They tell Captain Alatriste and his partner that there will be two men on horseback riding to the house of seven chimneys. They order Alatriste and his partner to kill both men and to steal all of their belongings. No later than midnight that night the two riders come down a cobblestone path towards Alatriste and his partner. Alatriste and his partner jump from the bushes they were hiding in and attack the two men. Alatriste is surprised at their fighting ability. The man Alatriste is fighting begs for Alatriste and his partner not to kill them and just to leave them with a few wounds. Alatriste¿s partner tries to kill his man but Alatriste stops him. Because the two men did not kill the men on horseback they get into a great deal of trouble. I was kind of disappointed because when I first picked up the book I thought the book would be filled with action. As I got farther and farther into the story I realized that there wasn¿t a lot of action until the last few chapters of the book. All in all I thought it was a good book . There were a few dull parts here and there but I think Reverte made up for it in the end. The Lifestyle in Alatriste¿s time is much different from now. This book takes place during a time where people had to fight for their lives on street corners everyday. People also worked as murderers just to survive in life. Alatriste has many struggles in this book. Because he did not kill the two men the masked men are furious. The masked men set out to find and kill Alatriste. Alatriste also struggled to survive in this story. He didn¿t have a real job. He did tasks given to him by people he had never even seen before just for a little money. In the seventeenth century, economy was difficult. Their weren¿t many wealthy people except for royal families and noblemen. There wasn¿t much of a middle class. I would recommend this book to anyone that likes to read. It was a very good book.

cling clang slash!

For anyone who loves a good adventure, this is the book for you! It is more intelligently written than most of the who-dunnits you find on the mystery shelves. Reverte writes with a very subtle and dry humor that accents his hero, Alatriste, perfectly. The more humorous sidekick, don Francisco de Quevodo, emerges more en force in the sequel, 'Purity of Blood'. His catch phrase is an adequate tagline for the series: 'We have no choice but to fight!' My final reason for anyone to read this wonderful epic, another line from Mr. Reverte himself: 'without adventures, we would never know our heroes'

Great new series

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. Very exciting and surprisingly funny at times. The Captain is not always a good man - he does kill for a living after all, but he has a code of honor that often sets him at odds with those who would try to violate that code. While he is certainly moody and somewhat morose , he can also be caring and affectionate to those he considers friends (such as his ward Inigo). His friend ,Don Francisco de Quevedo (poet, womanizer, swordsman) has an irreverant and viciously funny wit which made me laugh out loud when reading his sonnets. His character provided balance to Alatriste's more somber nature and in fact proves to be a pivotal one in the story in terms of the final outcome. Absolutely worth the read , very entertaining.

Great Read!

This book is a very fun and interesting read. The book is very fast paced until about three fourths of the way through. The action was non stop and then it got a little dull, but after a few pages the book continues to be a great read with a good ending. It is a great way to begin what will be a series of five books.

Slow Start for a Trilogy?

Every book by Perez-Reverte has been a treat full of action and historical detail that delights and amuses, until this one. The story is about an aging survivor of the Spanish wars in Flanders who returns to Spain, a bankrupt kingdom, about 1620. He is hired as a swardsman by shadowy figures to harm (maybe kill) some suspicious visitors to Madrid. But guess what? Turns out the visitors are the egregious Duke of Buckingham and his protege, Charles, Prince of Wales. Their mission is to win an Infanta of Spain for Charles. In real life, the Spanish court were horrified at such a goofy approach to a princess of Spain, and also at the possibility of a Protestant marriage. But Perez-Reverte never identifies his secretive visitors, and focusses on the problem of the asassins arguing among themselves. The dramatic impact of this book is that of a first act. Only this time, there is not enough substance to make the reader come back for the second act. There is such brilliance in the other Perez-Reverte books, all of which I recommend heartily, that I hate writing this review. I waited two months after reading Captain Alatriste to write about it, and now do so only hoping that the author, his agent or publisher will wake up before bringing out a second instalment as thin as this one.

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WHAT HAPPEN HERE?

I READ A LOT AND ENJOY BE ENTERTAINED. THIS STORY WAS BORING AND MADE LITTLE SENSE WITH LESS PLOT.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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