Secret as the engine of life

Spy novels show lifestyles far from everyday life, even though they are sometimes portrayed that way. This situation Operation Boiler (Espasa, 2022), winner Spring Novel Award A good example of this genre in Spanish of that year came to me because I was at Antonio Ángel’s house, I saw it and asked him about it. I must admit that with his comments there was no choice but to take it home and read it, not without some prejudices, because the author Vicente Valles He’s a journalist, and we already know that almost anything can happen when journalists start writing stories. However, in this case, I can already tell you that, although it is not easy at first, as the story progresses, you find yourself more comfortable and, since it is told in the third person, you put yourself at the service of the events and their reality. I can’t hear more than the news anchor’s voice.

I love geopolitics, I am interested in power relations and the actions that countries take to maintain or achieve economic superiority and power; This is what is depicted in many spy novels, especially in the context of the Cold War of the 20th century and the modern shocks that persist. The scenario of Operation Kazan, a different version of the Trojan horse myth between the Russian and American administrations, is also included here; With a typical sentimental novel beginning in 1922; and, as is often the case, with references to the events of the election won by the Republican candidate, in a present that is very grounded in reality. It is a constant example of the genre in which there are always two opposing sides with very clear moral positions for the author and wandering around different and attractive parts of the world: Moscow, Finland, Switzerland, England, Spain, the USA. Thus, history reaches a global dimension.

The progression of themes and ideas occurs through the fragmentation of time, as everything, through temporal investigation, revolves around November 5, 2024, the date of the US elections, which marks the beginning of the novel as a prologue and marks the emergence of a novel. The secret that will be the driving force of the entire work and will also turn it into a detective novel. From that moment on, history will tell, in more or less short chapters, everything that has happened since the Kazan Operation was conceived under Stalin. Thus, it falls within the realm of the historical novel, which is also a feature of the spy novel, as it has events that take place both during the First World War and in later historical moments.

The many real and invented characters in these novels are always in the service of the action and are constructed through the defining features of the stereotype: spies in the service of their nation, the recognition of a vital reality, or the sacrifice of an entire life. is an ideal. In this sense, it is useful to underline the spy’s concept of “patience”: “Operation Kazan is not rushed, but it requires security and secrecy” (p.213).

So why should you read this novel? In principle, because it contains all the elements that will make reading a spy novel enjoyable for those who like the genre, and because for those who do not, it will be a good way to approach this genre with a plot close to our reality. The inclusion of elements from other genres, such as sentimental, historical, and crime novels, allows you to structure what a good spy novel is to your taste. I had a great time.