There are times when people's destinies are decided in offices. The fate of Argimiro, a Republican who lives locked up in a dungeon and only dreams of revenge; that of the Jewish doctor Arnaud and his wife, who decide to leave Paris for fear of ...

There are times when people's destinies are decided in offices. The fate of Argimiro, a Republican who lives locked up in a dungeon and only dreams of revenge; that of the Jewish doctor Arnaud and his wife, who decide to leave Paris for fear of reprisals; that of Miguel Ángel, a diplomat in Lisbon who seeks outside what he cannot find at home, or that of Isabel, whose only dream is to find her sister, who disappeared during the war, and who, in the meantime, will be able to find love. And, like theirs, that of so many others. Because in 1940 the known world is a different one, and everything seems about to change. Hitler, supreme leader of Nazi Germany and master of half the world, is trying to win the sympathy of the Spanish while planning a campaign to conquer Russia. In Spain, with the civil war over, hunger and repression have taken over the streets, while Franco, Generalissimo and liberator of the country, considers taking back Gibraltar and declares non-belligerency. From Whitehall, Churchill, between puffs of his big cigars, watches any movement from nearby countries with suspicion, as he holds back the bombing raids that aim to wipe out London. And, in the meantime, no one thinks of Portugal... Full of surprising twists and turns, with a dynamic style, almost cheerful in itself, that shines amidst the gloom and horrors of Europe at war, and a sense of humour as fine as it is warm, Jordi Sierra i Fabra gives us a novel that is as simple as it is funny.