Blood Legend

In June 1922, as the infamous Black Legend of the Las Hurdes region in Extremadura captures national attention due to the upcoming visit of King Alfonso XIII, a young girl is kidnapped and murdered in the remote Hurdan mountains. The condition of her body—disemboweled and drained of a large amount of blood—suggests the crime was committed to use her remains in a healing ritual led by a witch or folk healer.

With local authorities showing little initiative and the population growing restless, the investigation falls to Valerio Lubián—known to all as Cristo—a former army sergeant turned police assistant, who travels from Madrid to Las Hurdes to uncover what’s truly happening in the region and to ensure the royal visit can proceed as planned. But Cristo soon finds himself in a desperate race against time to save the lives of other young girls.

With his sharp and elegant prose, Luis Roso once again delivers a gripping tale within History itself—a vivid portrait filled with atmospheric tension and compelling characters that guides us through the hypnotic landscape of early 20th-century Extremadura.