The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende: A mix of the magical and the mundane

Set in a Hispanic South American country in political turmoil at the turn of the century, this book tells the story of the Trueba family, a family laced, on the female side, with mystery and mysticism, and on the male side, with tyranny and political conflict. The story begins with Esteban Trueba a poor miner attempting to scrape a profit off the rocks to pay a dowry for the wedding with his fiancée Rosa, who by all accounts is a stunning beauty, an angel born on earth, who is described as being like a fish, and except for lacking the tail, was a mermaid. Rosa is killed in a failed poisoning attempt on her father, who is a political candidate, hoping to be elected as president, and Esteban upon hearing this, returns to the city to attend the funeral and pay his respects. Without an aim now that his reason for working the mines is gone, he moves to the family estate.

The family estate covers much of the surrounding lands, which is home to a hacienda, named Tres Marias, which is a farming village. The lands are in disorder when he moves in, with much of the arable land remaining unfarmed, and with much wasteful activity going on. Immediately Esteban goes about restoring order, and helping the area prosper, and Tres Marias becomes the most successful hacienda in the area, and Esteban becomes a wealthy man off of his share of the profits of the activities, building his home into an impressive monument. While the village prospers under his leadership, he also is a tyrant of sorts, raping attractive women, and dispatching any who tried to stand up against him.

Still, though a wealthy man, and a tyrant, he still feels a need to be close to his lost fiancée Rosa, which he does through her sister, Clara. Clara is a strange girl, wilfully mute from a young age, where she witnessed her sister Rosa’s autopsy. She has a touch of magic in her, as well, able to move things telepathically, sometimes unconsciously, much to the dismay of her family, who attempt to keep it secret. Originally just an attempt to become closer to Rosa by Esteban, slowly she begins influence Esteban in the leading of the hacienda, and greatly in the renovation of the estates main housing, which ends up as a twisted maze of corridors.

The House of the Spirits deals with many social issues that were, and still are, to an extent relevant, which include oppression by the church, willingness of the masses to be lead. This book captivated me from the start through to the end, the main storyline moves along quite quickly, all characters, from minor to major are clearly characterized, all the subplots are dealt with quickly, and the author leaves no loose ends. A great standalone book that I would recommend to any reader, and it is well worth the $5 I got it for at the local second hand book store.