Conspiracion En Filipinas

Spanish physicist Lozano Leyva is clearly attracted to historical fiction. The protagonist in his first novel, El enviado del rey (The King's Envoy, Emec , 2000), must endure forced labor in 18th-century Spanish mines. In this, his second novel, the adventurer Don Alvaro de Soler sets sail for the Philippines on a mission for the Spanish crown. The action involves Spain's attempt to expel the sangleyes (Chinese merchants) from the Philippines in the 1750s in a bid for political control. But the narrative's real concern is the struggle for independence by women, slaves, and colonized peoples throughout the oppressive Spanish Empire. The narrative shifts easily among several characters, the most interesting of whom is young Blanca, handmaiden to the aristocratic passenger Dona Beatriz. Blanca's frequent journal entries detail the voyage from Spain to Cuba, Brazil, and eventually the Philippines. She offers innocent yet keen observations on slavery in Cuba and Brazil, the relish with which the sailors enter into battle, and the problematic romance between Alvaro and Beatriz. Other characters describe nautical, military, and political intrigues in convincing if overly thorough detail. This well-written and engaging novel succeeds on many levels as historical fiction, romance, adventure, and social criticism. Recommended for most public libraries and bookstores. Lynn M. Shirey, Harvard Coll. Lib., Cambridge, MA