Any suggestions of light-hearted or fast but good reads set in or near Barcelona, Seville, or Marbella?

James Michener's The Drifters will give you an idea of what the Costa del Sol was.

Communion in Seville [can't recall at the moment the Spanish authors name - well known, several prizes] is a fun light read - a mustery set in contemporary Seville. You will recognize restaurants etc. Highly recommend.

Same author has one about sunken treasure off the south coast that is also good but I liked Communion better.

It's called "The Seville Communion" and it's out in paper.

The author is Arturo Perez-Reverte; he's written many mysteries, some of them historical

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...ce&s=books

The author is Arthuro Reverte-Perez. Excelllent writer and a great read. Also look for the Nautical Chart.

Barbra Wilson's "Gaudi Afternoon" takes place in Barcelona. There's a film of this that I have never seen. Has anyone? Stars Judy Davis.

I read an interesting biography on Gaudi by Gijs van Hensbergen. It was an enjoyable read for a summer afternoon.

cigalechanta,

I didn't know Gaudi Afternoon was a book, thanks. It was a fun little movie.

Seville Communion sounds great. IS Nautical Chart by the same author?

Yes Misha. He is a wonderful author. Check out Flander's Panel (set in Netherlands and Madrid), the Dumas Club (set in Italy & France (Johnny Depp stared in a moview loosely based on the book)), the Fencing Master (set in France, have not read it yet).

We followed Mitchener`s Iberia in Spain, and went to a lot of places he described.

-The Time of The Doves by Merce Rodoreda
-Barcelona: The Great Enchantress (just came out - by Robert Hughes - not to be confused with his other book entitled Barcelona that came out like 10 years ago)
-The Seville Communion
-Nada by Carmen LaForet (I dont know if this is in English translation or not, but worth checking out - it takes place in early 20th century Barcelona)
-The Back Room by Carmen Martin Gaite
-The Pilgrimage by Paolo Coehlo

"The Factory of Light: Tales From My Andalucian Village" by Michael Jacobs was recently shortlisted for the Thomas Cook travel literature award so it may be worth reading. I haven't read it myself though so cannot give a personal recommendation.

..old saws...hemingway..I think the title is death in the afternoon..about bull fighting...the sun also rises is of course probably already known to you..

'Driving Over Lemons' is an easy read, 'Under the Tuscan Sun' type book about a British couple that buy a very run down farm in the Alpujarras area near Granada. I can't remember the author's name however.

Chris Stewart is the author of Driving over Lemons: An Optimist in Spain.

I just finished an enjoyable book called Duende: A Journey into the Heart of Flamenco by Jason Webster.

"I am held by the music, as though any separation between myself and the rhythm has disappeared. A fat woman singing on stage, dancing in a way that seems as if she is barely moving, yet I feel she is stepping inside something and drawing me in with her. A chill, like a ripping sensation, moves up to my eyes. Tears begin to well up, while the cry from her lungs finds an echo within me, and makes me want to shout along with her. The hairs on my skin stand on end, blood drains to my feet. I am rooted to the spot, suspended between the emotion being drawn out of me, as though bypassing my mind, and the shame of what I am -feeling."

The book is the story of how this blond Englishman searches for duende in Spain and his awakenings in the process.

The Return by Victoria Hislop is great read - great description of Flamenco and Spanish Civil war lovely family story

Was in Marbella last April -- pure heaven. Do ferry over to the ritzy part to west (which name escapes me at moment). Perhaps Washington Irving's Tales of the Alhambra?

Makes me want to go all over again!

I don't have anys suggestions for Barca or Marbella, however if you enjoy crime novels, Robert Wilson has four novels set in Seville. The primary character is a police inspector, Javier Falcon & novels focus on the solving of various (usually lethal) crimes. Wilson vividly portrays the heat, food & social structures of the city. As always, the detective has a complicated private life. Another Wilson book is A Small Death in Lisbon (set in Lisbon) This was a European prizewinner when first published.