A strange, twisty-turny “vampire” story, which was more about the evil humans can do. It had a weird diversion into a sci-fi fantastical element that didn’t seem to fit and, which felt like a deux ex machina. Beautiful writing for such a story and the translation was one of the best I’ve read. ( )

Barcelona, estiu de 1936. Als inicis de la guerra civil, en plena persecució i matança de religiosos per part de nuclis anarcosindicalistes, un sacerdot marista i un nen de set o vuit anys apareixen assassinats en circumstàncies molt estranyes. El comissari Gregori Muñoz obre una investigació per descobrir la identitat de l'assassí, de qui només sabem que és algú que afirma ser un vampir. Mentrestant, una comunitat de monges caputxines viu un estrany segrest dins el seu convent, en companyia del bisbe de Barcelona, que ha estat suposadament executat.Crim de sang és un thriller d'atmosfera gòtica, un relat policíac situat a la Barcelona de la guerra civil, que impressiona pel dinamisme narratiu de la seva construcció, la fusió dels gèneres més diversos i la força de la seva prosa.

Novel·la negra emmarcada en la guerra civil ( )

Sebastià Alzamora does not seem to know what kind of novel he wants to write with BLOOD CRIME. Is it historical fiction about war and religious persecution? Is it gothic horror about vampires? Is it an allegory of good and evil? Is it a crime novel? Is it meant to be a thriller? This unfortunate lack of focus leads to a superficial treatment of just about everything in the book.

The lack of subtlety in much of the writing also is a serious flaw. The narrative contains copious examples of symbolism that are often heavy-handed. Here are just a few examples—there are many more: religious music (Stabat Mater), designed to portray Mary’s suffering during the crucifixion and a 13 year-old pre-pubertal virgin novice nun for innocence and religious persecution; a vampire for evil incarnate; a deformed and cripple anarchist leader for a catastrophic revolution; a massive automaton horse as revenge triumphant. Likewise, the characters lack nuance. Most major characters are portrayed as either heroic or irredeemably evil.

The story is set in 1936 Barcelona where the Spanish Civil War is raging and anarchists are systematically killing clergy. The Marist brothers negotiate with the anarchists for safe passage to France while the Capuchin nuns take advantage of familial connections to the anarchist leader for their safety in exchange for housing the Bishop of Barcelona for future use as a propaganda tool. Bishop Gabriel Perugorría turns out to be quite a bad dude who is attracted to Sister Concepció, a young innocent novice. Alzamora attempts to build suspense by slowly revealing the Bishop’s true nature, but his handling of the first person narratives sprinkled through the book signals it from the first page.

Manuel Escorza del Vala—a real historical anarchist—is portrayed as totally corrupt. He is willing to deal with anyone to gain advantages for the revolution, but also for himself. Honor is not one of his strong suits.

Superintendent Gregori Muñoz is assigned to investigate the murder of a clergyman and a young child. He is a heroic figure who is not easily duped, but is slow to accept the suggestion of the forensic physician who suspects that the two were murdered by a vampire.

Inexplicably, Alzamora adds a horse to his tale. This horse is heroic in both size and nature. Yet its most bizarre feature is that it is a machine built in collaboration between a judge and the forensic doctor using parts from people murdered during the revolution. One wonders if their professions and the repurposed body parts signal judgment for offenses against Nature?

The writing is not particularly elegant, but this may be the fault of the translation. This notwithstanding, the narrative pacing is slow because it moves unevenly between groups and settings. There is plenty of bloodshed in the climax but, lacking suspense, it is unsatisfying. ( )

No he pogut llegir-lo, un despropòsit de llibre.