the bone thief
the bone thief is a thriller written by the Iberian lawyer and author Manuel Loureiro. His work was released by the Planeta publishing house on May 4, 2022. Loureiro is considered by many readers under the title of "
”, although this is fundamentally related to the themes that his works address, rather than his style or career.
However, it should be noted that the literary career of this author is -in addition to extensive- remarkable. Loureiro is the only Spanish-speaking author who has managed to enter the list of the 100 best-selling titles in the United States. In this sense, it is not surprising that readers need to know more about books like the bone thief.
Synopsis for The Bone Thief
the bone thief tells the story of Laura, a woman who lives in the town of Lugo, in Galicia. One night, after a beautiful and romantic dinner with her boyfriend Carlos de ella, receive a mysterious call. The voice on the other end of the line warns you that, of not fulfilling the dangerous mission that is about to be imposed, you will not see your partner alive again. The work that must be carried out consists of stealing the relics of the Apostle in the cathedral of Santiago.
Surprised and distraught, Laura heads towards her table. To her astonishment, Carlos has disappeared. Ella looks for it but can't find it nowhere. The protagonist decides to ask the owner of the restaurant if she saw her boyfriend leave, but he tells her that she arrived at that place without company, that there was no man next to her. Each person with whom he had contact since then —and whom he asked about his partner— They said they didn't know him.
Madness or plot?
Laura is unable to remember anything that would help her understand her situation and that of Carlos. The only remembrance that lives in his brain has to do with a terrible attack he suffered in Mexico some time ago.. In fact, this event is the only thing in his life that he has any memory of.
This was the main reason why she met Carlos, her psychologist. The protagonist became fond of this man after several sessions, and they both decided to start a love relationship.
Carlos was the only support that Laura had since the attack, her only pillar. The man accompanied her and guided her to abandon her trauma, however, he failed to return her memories. These remain inaccessible at the start of the plot. Without her partner, Lara began to feel lost in a world she didn't know at all.
Against the historical symbols of Christianity
Laura only has seven days to find and send the person who threatened her everything she asks for. Stealing the relics is not an easy task: the remains of history are buried in the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. Its exact location is a crypt guarded by trained agents. The security is due to the attacks that various pieces belonging to Christian history have suffered.
the time jump
Then the work takes the reader back to the year 1983, where two new characters are introduced: a man of about forty years old, and Ivana, his young companion. This couple is dedicated to kidnapping children throughout the world. His main motivation is to transfer the infants to the Soviet Union to make them agents of his government.
The nest
Kidnapped children are taken to the Nest, a secret outlaw Soviet government facility. The complex and its work are described as sinister and cruel. In El nido, minors were trained in different tasks. In general, these were special children, gifted with unusual abilities who served the nation in different areas and missions.
The biggest of their tasks was to infiltrate the West and become sleeper cells. The infants were trained to become the best secret agents on earth., and his ultimate goal was to devastate the western region and thus win the Cold War. The main problem was that the facility operated under the command of an area of the KGB that existed behind the back of its own government.
The fall of the Berlin wall
The Soviets in charge of the Nest program never imagined that, one day, the World of Berlin, the KGB and the Soviet Union itself would collapse, giving way to other political systems. As is unusual under totalitarian commands, those in charge of the facilities where the children were housed were eliminated. Meanwhile, the survivors did not want to leave witnesses to past human rights violations.
To solve the situation, they took on the task of erasing the traces, clues and records of their crimes, regardless of the time, the country or the person in question. Nevertheless, history managed to reach them to the point of leaving them without resources, allies to turn to or places to hide.
Who is Laura?
The protagonist is the common thread that links the two timelines. She will have the responsibility of protecting religious symbols from a terrorist maniac while trying to rescue a boyfriend and recover the lost remains of his battered memory.
However, how a fragile woman could carry out a mission of such qualities? Maybe Laura isn't even the person she thinks she is.: the one he has built over the years.
About the author, Manel Loureiro
Manuel LoureiroManuel Loureiro was born in 1975, in Pontevedra, Spain. Loureiro graduated in law from the University of Santiago de Compostela. After obtaining his degree, he served as a frequent contributor to newspapers such as Journal of Pontevedra o El Mundo. He has also worked as a presenter for media such as Television of Galicia. In addition, he frequently works as a screenwriter for film and TV.
Loureiro He has also written part of the Spanish version of the magazine GQ, and has a frequent listening program on the National Radio of Spain. On the other hand, it has a section in the TV program Fourth Millennium in Four, which can be tuned through Mediaset Spain.
Other books by Manel Loureiro
- Apocalypse Z 1. The beginning of the end (2008);
- Apocalypse Z 2. The dark days (2010);
- Game of Thrones: A book sharp as Valyrian steel (2011);
- The last passenger (2013);
- Glare (2015);
- Twenty (2017);
- The door (2020)