Camino del Baztan Thriller

andonius · Apr 24, 2015

For those of you who like reading fast-action books (and the Camino, of course), I'll recommend a novel that has been recently published in English after a BIG success in Spain.
It's called "The invisible Guardian", written by Dolores Redondo. you can find it at Amazon at this link:

http://www.amazon.com/s/?tag=casaivar02-20 keywords=the+invisible+guardian

It's not a book about the Camino , but the action takes place in the valley of Baztan, and it will give you a good view of the valley, its people and its miths and superstitions.
In fact the book is the first part of a trilogy that has been already published in Spanish and it's a real hit in Spain.
After reading it I'm seriously planning to do the Camino del Baztan this year. I only hope I will not have to walk in its forests at night.... (if you read the book you'll know why).

p3nny · Apr 24, 2015

andonius said:
For those of you who like reading fast-action books (and the Camino, of course), I'll recommend a novel that has been recently published in English after a BIG success in Spain.
It's called "The invisible Guardian", written by Dolores Redondo. you can find it at Amazon at this link:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias=aps&field&tag=camiforu-20 keywords=the+invisible+guardian

It's not a book about the Camino , but the action takes place in the valley of Baztan, and it will give you a good view of the valley, its people and its miths and superstitions.
In fact the book is the first part of a trilogy that has been already published in Spanish and it's a real hit in Spain.
After reading it I'm seriously planning to do the Camino del Baztan this year. I only hope I will not have to walk in its forests at night.... (if you read the book you'll know why).

Is there an English version for the Kindle?
~Penny

SYates · Apr 24, 2015

Yes http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HPMW9F0/?tag=casaivar02-20 but it is completely overprized in my opinion. SY

Robo · Jan 2, 2017

andonius said:
For those of you who like reading fast-action books (and the Camino, of course), I'll recommend a novel that has been recently published in English after a BIG success in Spain.
It's called "The invisible Guardian", written by Dolores Redondo. you can find it at Amazon at this link:

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias=aps&field&tag=camiforu-20 keywords=the+invisible+guardian

It's not a book about the Camino , but the action takes place in the valley of Baztan, and it will give you a good view of the valley, its people and its miths and superstitions.
In fact the book is the first part of a trilogy that has been already published in Spanish and it's a real hit in Spain.
After reading it I'm seriously planning to do the Camino del Baztan this year. I only hope I will not have to walk in its forests at night.... (if you read the book you'll know why).

Just read it in one sitting Thanks for the recommendation.
Available in English for Kindle.

timr · Jan 2, 2017

Robo said:
Just read it in one sitting Thanks for the recommendation.
Available in English for Kindle.

I read this too and loved it, and it was (part of) my reason for walking the Baztan route this year. The second volume has been translated and came out towards the end of the year. I read it the day it came out on Kindle. She describes the area with great affection, and although the book is a "serial killer story" it is vastly more than that, providing an interesting take on Basque culture and mythology. Not to mention the cookery!
There are NOT, I am happy to say, "Dolores Redondo" tours of the region! Yet.
The books though have been a publishing phenomenon across the continent. Her latest book was filling the bookshop windows in Santiago when I was there in November.

Robo · Jan 2, 2017

timr said:
I read this too and loved it, and it was (part of) my reason for walking the Baztan route this year. The second volume has been translated and came out towards the end of the year. I read it the day it came out on Kindle. She describes the area with great affection, and although the book is a "serial killer story" it is vastly more than that, providing an interesting take on Basque culture and mythology. Not to mention the cookery!
There are NOT, I am happy to say, "Dolores Redondo" tours of the region! Yet.
The books though have been a publishing phenomenon across the continent. Her latest book was filling the bookshop windows in Santiago when I was there in November.

Now I have to buy the second one

timr · Jan 2, 2017

Robo said:
Now I have to buy the second one

You do, really! A new year present to self.
And you will be waiting anxiously for the third.
I talked about it with one of the only three pilgrims I met on the Baztan route - a young Basque man - who was reading it (in Spanish) as he walked. And he loved it too. He said a Spanish film (or TV series) is being made.

Robo · Jan 2, 2017

timr said:
You do, really! A new year present to self.
And you will be waiting anxiously for the third.
I talked about it with one of the only three pilgrims I met on the Baztan route - a young Basque man - who was reading it (in Spanish) as he walked. And he loved it too. He said a Spanish film (or TV series) is being made.

Already have it. Isn't Kindle useful I'll keep it for next weekend....

timr · Jan 2, 2017

Oh look at this @Robo @NualaOC
http://kilometrosquecuentan.com/ruta-trilogia-baztan/

peregrina2000 · Jan 16, 2017

timr said:
I read this too and loved it, and it was (part of) my reason for walking the Baztan route this year. The second volume has been translated and came out towards the end of the year. I read it the day it came out on Kindle. She describes the area with great affection, and although the book is a "serial killer story" it is vastly more than that, providing an interesting take on Basque culture and mythology. Not to mention the cookery!
There are NOT, I am happy to say, "Dolores Redondo" tours of the region! Yet.
The books though have been a publishing phenomenon across the continent. Her latest book was filling the bookshop windows in Santiago when I was there in November.

Hi, timr,
I have just started the book and am enjoying it, even though I cannot remember the last murder mystery I read. But, sorry to say, there ARE Dolores Redondo tours!

http://cuentatelavida.blogspot.com/2014/08/visita-guiada-elizondo-los-escenarios.html

https://www.tripadvisor.es/Attracti..._Baztan_Visitas_Guiadas-Elizondo_Navarra.html

Maybe our little group of Baztan pilgrims will have to stop in Elizondo for a guided walking tour this May!

peregrina2000 · Jan 22, 2017

Does anyone know how to pronounce basajaun in Basque?

How about txantxigorris? (and more importantly, has anyone eaten them?). I assumed all through the book that they were sweets, but wikipedia describes something with pork.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chanchigorri_cake

amancio · Feb 22, 2017

Well, the best news is you are only one third of the way! Still a lot more to come, thoroughly enjoyable reading (in Spanish, in my case)

By this I mean, there are two more books to come, the beginning of the second book took a bit longer to catch, but then it was fabulous too.

timr · Feb 23, 2017

For those of us who cannot manage the books in Spanish, I see that number three, Offering to the Storm, is due for publication in translation on 24th August this year.

NualaOC · Mar 12, 2017

timr said:
Oh look at this @Robo @NualaOC
http://kilometrosquecuentan.com/ruta-trilogia-baztan/

I finally read The Invisible Guardian - and although I never read crime novels, I couldn't put it down! I really enjoyed the references to some of the places on or near this Camino.

@timr, I looked at your link again as the book left me with a big burning question...... but not about bears, basajauns or those tricky basque pronunciations. I REALLY wanted to know about that special bakery in Elizondo that makes its own chocolate with hazelnuts! I was delighted to learn from that link that this magical place really does exist - La Cocolatería Malkorra on Calle Santiago. Definitely worth a coffee stop!

timr · Mar 12, 2017

@NualaOC Yes! It was early on Sunday morning when I passed through, sleepy time, and I missed it, but a little bit further on as you begin to leave the town I found this and it was open at 10:20am. Well now I will have to go back definitely! With more careful notes..... But I have to say this place was wonderful too!!

peregrina2000 · Mar 13, 2017

timr said:
For those of us who cannot manage the books in Spanish, I see that number three, Offering to the Storm, is due for publication in translation on 24th August this year.

So what do you think happened to the second book? Kind of unusual to translate the third in the series before the second. I don't usually read fiction in Spanish (not sure why it's so much less comfortable than news or documents, etc, but it is, for me anyway), but I do want to read them in order!

NualaOC · Mar 13, 2017

peregrina2000 said:
So what do you think happened to the second book? Kind of unusual to translate the third in the series before the second. I don't usually read fiction in Spanish (not sure why it's so much less comfortable than news or documents, etc, but it is, for me anyway), but I do want to read them in order!

Hi Laurie, the second book is definitely available in English - I have it on my kindle. It's also in paperback on Amazon.

timr · Mar 13, 2017

peregrina2000 said:
So what do you think happened to the second book? Kind of unusual to translate the third in the series before the second. I don't usually read fiction in Spanish (not sure why it's so much less comfortable than news or documents, etc, but it is, for me anyway), but I do want to read them in order!

@peregrina2000
Yes Laurie, the second one The Legacy of the Bones came out on 25 August last year. I saw it sneak on to my Kindle at midnight and started reading it immediately! Waiting for next August for the final one. Meanwhile I am learning Spanish seriously at the moment, but don't think I am up to reading a novel for pleasure in Spanish. Yet. The books seem to have been a phenomenal success all over Europe, and as I mentioned elsewhere her latest novel, Todo esto te daré (not in the series), was 'everywhere' in bookshops when I was in Spain in November. It won the Spanish Premio Planeta in 2016, which I see, if wikipedia is to be believed, is worth €601,000.

peregrina2000 · Mar 13, 2017

timr said:
@peregrina2000
Yes Laurie, the second one The Legacy of the Bones came out on 25 August last year. I saw it sneak on to my Kindle at midnight and started reading it immediately! Waiting for next August for the final one. Meanwhile I am learning Spanish seriously at the moment, but don't think I am up to reading a novel for pleasure in Spanish. Yet. The books seem to have been a phenomenal success all over Europe, and as I mentioned elsewhere her latest novel, Todo esto te daré (not in the series), was 'everywhere' in bookshops when I was in Spain in November. It won the Spanish Premio Planeta in 2016, which I see, if wikipedia is to be believed, is worth €601,000.

Maybe Dolores Redondo is a camino-wannabe, because the newest book takes place on the Invierno!

https://www.caminodesantiago.me/community/threads/invierno-thriller.46382/

Kiwi-family · Mar 14, 2017

Ah the wonderful dreadful forest (where we got lost - just as well I hadn't read the book methinks)
And the wonderful chocolate which we saved all the way to Pamplona to share with family that we met there.

CaroleH · Apr 9, 2017

Off to Book Depository again.

peregrina2000 · Dec 1, 2018

FINALLY I am getting around to reading the rest of the Baztán Trilogy. Legacy of the Bones has the same mix of Navarra/Pamplona/Baztán places and Basque mythology.

And for those on the Francés, if you are looking for a splurge in Pamplona, this place seems like foodie heaven. http://restauranterodero.com/. Inspector Amaia noted in the book that it has a Michelin star, and I can confirm that the star continues for 2018! http://www.bonviveur.es/noticias/los-restaurantes-de-navarra-con-estrellas-michelin-2018

OzAnnie · Dec 17, 2018

Thanks for adding to this thread Laurie.
I hadn’t noticed it before. Looks like some reading for those quiet January 2019 days ahead.
I’m now off to order them - the books have got good recommendations on this forum .
Annie

Edit :
Looks like paperback (English )editions are not easy to get online just now (I’m in Australia)
I’ll wait until next year I think.
Ps. The No2 was available on Amazon dot com, but I found the shipping charges doubled the cost.
I’ve previously purchased books thru UK - ‘ book depository ‘ who don’t charge shipping worldwide- But they are not available there.

peregrina2000 · Dec 17, 2018

OzAnnie said:
Thanks for adding to this thread Laurie.
I hadn’t noticed it before. Looks like some reading for those quiet January 2019 days ahead.
I’m now off to order them - the books have got good recommendations on this forum .
Annie

Edit :
Looks like paperback (English )editions are not easy to get online just now (I’m in Australia)
I’ll wait until next year I think.
Ps. The No2 was available on Amazon dot com, but I found the shipping charges doubled the cost.
I’ve previously purchased books thru UK - ‘ book depository ‘ who don’t charge shipping worldwide- But they are not available there.

Well, I have just finished the third installment and liked the books very much. And I am not a mystery reader. It is true that a part of my enjoyment came from the re-creation of the forests we walked through, but I think all in all if you like folklore, don’t mind being creeped out, and enjoy reading about women bosses who have to deal with jerky male subordinates and daughter-mother conflicts, you will like these books. Highly recommended to read all three in one go, because I read the Invisible Guardian a year ago and had to go back to it several times to get myself oriented for the other two books.

FLEUR · Dec 17, 2018

Thanks for the reminder Preregrina2000. Having walked the Baztan last September I might try reading this set of books. I think they'll have far more meaning now.

peregrina2000 · Dec 17, 2018

FLEUR said:
Thanks for the reminder Preregrina2000. Having walked the Baztan last September I might try reading this set of books. I think they'll have far more meaning now.

The descriptions of Elizondo will resonate, but most of all, it’s that forest!!! Redondo paints it so perfectly. I remember when @Nuala and I were walking alone, having taken a slight alternative to the other three, when all of a sudden, I saw what turned out to be @VNwalking, her brown robes kind of flowing between the trees — had I read the book earlier, I would have been convinced it was the Basajuan!
https://es.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basajaun

NualaOC · Dec 17, 2018

peregrina2000 said:
The descriptions of Elizondo will resonate, but most of all, it’s that forest!!! Redondo paints it so perfectly. I remember when @Nuala and I were walking alone, having taken a slight alternative to the other three, when all of a sudden, I saw what turned out to be @VNwalking, her brown robes kind of flowing between the trees — had I read the book earlier, I would have been convinced it was the Basajuan!
https://es.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basajaun

Such a happy memory! It still amazes me how we all ‘accidentally’ met up at the exact point where the two trails merged. One of my favourite walking days of any Camino.

FLEUR · Dec 17, 2018

Walking the Baztan and in particular the climb up through the forest was amazing.

OTH86 · Dec 17, 2018

OzAnnie said:
...
I’ve previously purchased books thru UK - ‘ book depository ‘ who don’t charge shipping worldwide- But they are not available there.

@OzAnnie, try BookFinder.com. I'm in the US & have gotten books from UK, So Africa, etc! Good luck!!

Dinkumdigger · Feb 5, 2019

Thanks for the recommendations.
I have recently read the Baztan trilogy in one go,I just couldn't put the books down,absolutely rivetting.
I followed that up with another book by Dolores Redondo,All This I Give To You,based in Galicia and another great read.
To top it off I have just watched the dvd El Guardian Invisible and,although my Spanish is abysmal,I managed to follow it reasonably well.

peregrina2000 · Feb 5, 2019

Dinkumdigger said:
Thanks for the recommendations.
I have recently read the Baztan trilogy in one go,I just couldn't put the books down,absolutely rivetting.
I followed that up with another book by Dolores Redondo,All This I Give To You,based in Galicia and another great read.
To top it off I have just watched the dvd El Guardian Invisible and,although my Spanish is abysmal,I managed to follow it reasonably well.

Those who have walked the Camino de Invierno will recognize some of the places in All This I Give to You -- there's a chapter entitled "Belesar" with some great descriptions of the vineyards along the Miño, very evocative. Chantada and Monforte make brief appearances, too. Eagerly awaiting the next book!

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