The Artieda File (232 pages) is Luís Rei Núñez’s third work of fiction and won him the prestigious Xerais Award in the year 2000. The book is divided into 45 short chapters, which are not numbered or titled.

The action takes place in Coruña. The Madrid Express has just pulled into the station. The narrator is Bibiana Brea, who works in a photographic studio for the photographer Odilo Querentes. The men in the shop, who include a lamplighter, Mungo Ures, and a tram-driver, Mamede Aneiros, are discussing football when on the radio it is announced that Franco has arrived to spend the summer in the Pazo de Meirás, his summer residence. He presides over a football match between Spain and Portugal in Riazor. The radio transmission is interrupted by the National Union for the Republic, which announces that it is going to lay down arms and calls a national strike in favour of democracy.

Cosme Leis is a Red who received the death penalty, but his sentence was commuted to twelve years in prison. He is sick and being looked after in Oza Sanatorium, where he receives daily visits from his wife, María. He is, however, secretly in love with a nurse, Elisenda, who meets a man in the storeroom where the coffins are kept. They make love and arrange an action for the next day at seven. Cosme calls the police to inform them. Recarei, Rilo, Trasbache, and Tobío are all that remains of the Maquis (resistance fighters) in Galicia. They are the ones who interrupt the transmission of the football match in Riazor to call a strike, with the help of the man Elisenda met in the storeroom with the coffins. As a result, they are all shot to death.

Ricardo Artieda, another resistance fighter, waits for Recarei to come to their meeting, but realizes he isn’t going to turn up. He then meets an English teacher, Susan Temple (Mamede Aneiros’ lover), who was meant to drive the get-away car. They get on a train to Gijón. Artieda hides out in Bilbao, where he sees his sister on a tram, but is unable to greet her. He is told to take the train and give a report about what happened in Coruña. Bibiana reads the newspaper to another customer, Mateo Lan. There is a piece about the killing of the resistance fighters at the radio, but the occupants of the photographic studio disagree with all the information that is given.

Fefa Dubra works in a haberdasher’s shop. She is on her way to work when she sees a boy, Moncho, about to be run over by the coal truck. She saves him from the truck and then accompanies him to the doctor’s for a check-up. Fefa’s brother, Camilo, meets up with a group of youngsters – his friend Varelita; Varelita’s sister; a trainee mechanic, Chuco; an upholsterer, Quilique; and a watchman, Casimiro – in their hideout, an old, dilapidated bus in a local park. They discuss the killing of the resistance fighters. Apparently, there will be reprisals against those who betrayed them. Moncho’s mother, Mariña de Bescansa, offers Fefa a job looking after their home in return for saving Moncho’s life. Fefa prefers to stay at the haberdasher’s, but her mother, Lola, a seamstress, agrees to come and work for them two afternoons a week in return for a generous salary. Moncho’s father is a senior official and the family is well off.

Mamede pays Cosme’s wife, María, a visit and informs her that Cosme has been spotted in the company of two secret agents. María is so shocked she tries cleaning the house to calm down, then writing a description of a maid on the balcony opposite, but can’t help feeling unsettled. Elisenda pays Cosme a visit and asks why he betrayed them. She then asks if he loves her and he replies that he couldn’t help it. Artieda arrives in Coruña, where he is met by Mamede. Mamede informs him that the traitor’s name is Cosme. Cosme had previously been committed to the cause, but had betrayed them because he was in love with the nurse and jealous of the other man. Mamede says there’s no need to kill him in revenge because he is going to die of cancer very soon anyway. Artieda settles into a guesthouse, where he is given an outward-facing room with a toilet.

Camilo visits his mother, Lola the seamstress, at the Bescansas’ house, where he meets the daughter, Marinita. He has just been given a job delivering pastries for the local cake shop. He gets paid in kind and receives tips from customers, enough to go to the cinema. Back at home, he reads out dictionary definitions to his mother while keeping an eye on the girl who lives opposite, Etelvina, who has a crush on him. Artieda visits the nightclub where a famous singer, Trina, performs. He recognizes an old Falangist, Valeriano de Frutos, who is now civil governor of Coruña. There is a debate about who will get Trina should Frutos’ wife find out about their relationship. Trina says she wants none of them, but then she stops to talk to Artieda. Frutos is curious about this man, whom he doesn’t recognize, and has him followed, but Artieda is dismissed as a travelling salesman of no importance.

At the photographic studio, the discussion is about whether someone has been sent already to take revenge on the traitor. Mateo, who is blind but still enjoys going to the cinema, says they have to concentrate on felling the elephant (Franco), but it’s also good to dispose of the rats. Trina comes for some portraits and dedicates one to Bibiana. Camilo takes his school exams, but isn’t very confident about the results. He is told to take a tray of pastries to the owner of a factory on behalf of Susan Temple and to hand over the letter she gives him, written in English. The members of the resistance have a secret printing press in a lamp factory belonging to Ledo, on which they print political pamphlets. Artieda meets the nurse Elisenda there and declares his love for her. Moncho has a brother, Silverio, who belongs to the Youth Front and blinds canaries. He tries to seduce Fefa Dubra and informs his mother that Lola’s husband was a Red. Camilo goes to the cinema, but before the film can start, two men throw pamphlets from the gallery. Camilo follows them outside, where they are pursued by the police. One gets away, but the other, Mamede Aneiros, is detained.

Artieda plays a pelota game against the doctor from Oza Sanatorium, Manuel Segade. Over drinks afterwards, Segade confesses that he is in love with Trina, the singer from the nightclub, and invites Artieda to go with him one night. Camilo receives a visit at home from Artieda, who claims he knew his uncle in France and wants to speak to his mother. Odilo, Mateo, María and Bibiana set out to visit Mamede at the police station. Odilo was adopted by María’s family when he was young; it was María’s father, a teacher, who taught him photography. Artieda goes to the nightclub and leaves with Trina. They make love in her attic. She lets him know that Franco is due to inaugurate a piece of equipment in Oza Sanatorium. Artieda determines to find out the date from Segade.

Camilo successfully passes his exams and advances to the next year at school. He receives a message saying “an admirer” will be waiting for him at six that evening. He hides in a tree and sees the “admirer” is Etelvina, but does not come down until after she has left. The occupants of the photographic studio learn that Mamede will be lame after the beating he received at the police station. Bibiana is met by Trina in the street, who confesses things about her life and hands her a book while giving her a kiss on the mouth. The members of the resistance meet in a factory to discuss what to do about Mamede. They agree to distribute pamphlets demanding his release at an event Franco will attend at the Nautical Club.

Artieda pays Segade a visit. He explains how to win over Trina and, in return, Segade, who is Franco’s doctor when he comes to Galicia, agrees to tell him the date of Franco’s visit to the sanatorium. Artieda then meets Elisenda and asks her to draw him a map of the sanatorium with Cosme Leis’ and her own room marked on it. Casimiro is hiding in the bushes behind them when they meet and steals something from Artieda’s jacket pocket. María and Odilo pay Cosme a visit in the sanatorium. His condition has worsened. Trina goes to Segade’s surgery, where they become involved, but he doesn’t want to use a condom, and then he diagnoses her with syphilis. Camilo is walking to the photographic studio when he comes across Marinita. They hold hands. At the studio, he learns that Mamede has been admitted to prison. The inspector who arrested him was Pombo, who was also responsible for Mateo Lan’s blindness. Camilo understands he was helped by Silverio, Marinita’s brother. Artieda goes to the haberdasher’s where Fefa works to buy some buttons for a dress he is going to give to someone. The women in the shop wonder whether the dress is for Trina.

Artieda suffers from insomnia and reflects on the time he and his sister were left as orphans. Frutos, the civil governor, meets in his office with his henchman, Ventura Bugallo, whom he entrusts with the task of doing away with a Red. His inspector, Octavio Baladrón, comes in with the details of a candidate to be mayor of Betanzos. Frutos is curious to find out who informed Franco about his relationship with Trina; Baladrón advises him to leave off the relationship in order to please the Caudillo. Frutos looks at the photo of the candidate for Betanzos, a photo taken in Burgos, and notices a young Artieda in the background, the same one who has been hanging around the nightclub recently and who claims to be a travelling salesman. He decides to have Pombo investigate him. Artieda is informed by Segade that Franco will be at the sanatorium on Tuesday morning, in two days’ time. He has given Elisenda the dress and hopes his love for her is requited.

Camilo finds out from Fefa that Silverio has been accosting her. He goes to the cake shop and fills a bag with biscuits to cheer her up, but is caught in flagrante by one of the owners and takes to his heels. He comes across Silverio in the park and gives him a beating (while taking a beating himself). Meanwhile, Lola, his mother, has mislaid a brooch she borrowed from the Bescansas and doesn’t know how she will be able to pay for it. Casimiro is arrested in possession of a pistol (the one he stole from Artieda’s jacket pocket). He gives the police a detailed description of the man. Meanwhile, in the basement of the police station, Mamede is being tortured by Pombo, who wants to find out the names of his accomplices, but Mamede refuses to give them.

In the sanatorium, Cosme is dying. Odilo declares his long-standing love for María and they embrace. Camilo learns that Casimiro has been arrested in possession of a firearm and given a full description of Artieda, and rushes to warn Artieda that the police are looking for him. Trina comes to see Bibiana in the photographic studio and gives her another long kiss. She tells her she is going to leave for South America and hopes Bibiana will fulfil her dreams. Artieda goes to Segade’s surgery, where he steals a phial of arsenic and ties Segade to a chair. Segade understands he is more than a travelling salesman. Camilo warns Artieda the police are looking for him. Artieda helps him out with some money. He then spends Monday night at the sanatorium with Elisenda. His plan is to impersonate Segade the following day. He and Elisenda make love.

Lola goes to see Mariña de Bescansa and pleads with her to withdraw her complaint against Camilo for the beating he gave Silverio. Mariña agrees. Lola then gives her a new brooch, a much more valuable one, to replace the one she has lost and says she won’t be working for the family anymore. It is Tuesday. Franco visits the sanatorium. Artieda has placed the arsenic in a glass for him to drink, but Franco offers the glass to Elisenda. Artieda has to intervene. Cosme takes the glass and drinks the contents, so in the end Artieda does exact revenge on the traitor, though his real target was the Caudillo. He manages to escape, but is pursued by the Social Brigade, including Pombo. He wrests Pombo’s weapon from him and shoots him, but is only able to get as far as the Tower of Hercules in Coruña, where he is surrounded. As he lowers himself from the top of the tower by means of a cable, he decides to let go and falls to his death on the paving stones below.

The Artieda File is an expertly written narrative which brings to life the last embers of resistance to Franco’s regime in the late 1950s. The reader is introduced to a whole series of characters: Lola and her children; Odilo and María, who grew up together; Bibiana and Trina; the blind Mateo Lan, who likes to reminisce; the lamplighter Mungo Ures; the tram-driver Mamede Aneiros; the watchman Casimiro; the civil governor Flores; the inspector Pombo; the nurse Elisenda and others… Even Franco makes an appearance when he attends the inauguration at the sanatorium. The book is written like a film with each scene (each unnumbered chapter) focusing on a character the reader is unable to identify until a few paragraphs have clarified who it is. A worthy winner of the Xerais Award for Novels, this book was the precursor of others that have cemented the author’s reputation.

Synopsis © Jonathan Dunne