Sira

Several years ago, I absolutely loved The Time in Between by Spanish author María Dueñas. Her debut novel, it was engrossing and exciting, about a naive young woman, Sira Quiroga, becoming an undercover spy for the English during World War II. So I was excited to learn that, at long last, this stellar novel would be getting a sequel. Sira came out in Spanish last year and is now available in English. It picks up shortly after the previous book left off, following Sira in marriage, motherhood, and new political adventures. 

Special thanks to Amazon Crossing and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this book!

Summary

Sira is now a married woman, changing her last name from Quiroga to Bonnard. She and Marcus end up in Palestine, where he continues his work and she finds her own footing in a new country. But tensions are rising, and soon their little family is threatened. In the end, Sira returns to Marcus’s home in England without him… but with their newborn son. It isn’t long before Sira is roped into new political work. Her next mission is to return to her own country of birth, Spain, and pose as a journalist so she can find out more about Eva Perón, the wife of Argentina’s new president. But Sira’s job gets a lot more complicated when people from her past reemerge and once again put her fractured little family in danger. 

Review

Sira is the long-awaited sequel to The Time in Between, a smart and captivating novel that I adored; it was a five-star read. Now our protagonist is back but unsure of where to go next in life. She accompanies her new husband, Marcus Bonnard, when his job relocates him to Palestine after World War II has ended. However, it takes some time for Sira to find her own pursuits, and even when she does, they don’t last long. But things completely turn around when she loses Marcus on the same day their son is born. Sira ends up in England before signing on for one last undercover mission in Spain. 

As much as I loved The Time in Between, I expected to enjoy Sira just as much. Unfortunately, though, I never fully connected with this one. I can’t pinpoint why exactly. The writing is equally good, and though less naive now, Sira is still a complicated character. This book is also just as international, set in four different countries across continents, and involves the politics of each. 

Perhaps fundamentally the stakes simply feel lower here. I never really understood why the work Sira here did was that important, in contrast to how vital it felt in the first book. Another issue I had is how disjointed everything feels. It’s almost like four novellas rather than one cohesive novel. The four parts (Palestine, England, Spain, and Morocco) don’t have the strong through-line that I had hoped for. 

Sira herself is also less likable here, or at least her unlikable qualities struck as more bothersome now. Before, she was naive and selfish at times, but she was still young. Now she’s a bit older, but still seems somewhat self-centered in matters beyond her newborn son. Some events happen early on that I didn’t like much, and the people she interacts with afterward seem to all react to her more or less the same way. 

Despite its shortcomings, Sira is still strong in other ways. I loved getting to know different countries, mostly from an outsider’s perspective. Through Sira’s eyes, we get to see how Palestine and England are in the mid-1940s, both politically and culturally. When she returns to Spain, it’s from a local’s perspective, albeit after many years living abroad. It’s not until she returns to Morocco that Sira seems to be on sure footing (with the exception of the climatic issue that takes place there!). 

I also enjoyed getting to know the different political landscapes in the aftermath of World War II. First Sira is in Palestine as the conflict between Jews and Arabs unfolds. Later she’s in Franco’s Spain, but more than looking at Spain’s own political turmoil, we’re also getting to know about the political landscape arising in Argentina with their new president, Juan Perón. The two countries are aiming for an alliance, and Argentine First Lady Eva Perón’s visit is part of that plan. 

Finally, for those who read the first book, it’s fun to see some of those characters reemerge here. Sometimes it’s a welcome reunion, but sometimes it leads to more problems! This is largely tied up in Sira’s new role as a mother to her baby son, Víctor, and an antagonist knowing how to hit her where she’s weakest.

Final Thoughts

While there are many things I enjoyed about Sira, overall this sequel is a bit of a letdown compared to its predecessor. It just never fully captured my interest the way The Time in Between did. 

However, I am interested in seeing the TV series for The Time in Between and the upcoming adaptation of Sira—perhaps it will translate better on screen? I’m hopeful that it will. 

Get the Book

You can buy Sira here – it’s available as a paperback, ebook, and audiobook.

Sira by María Dueñas
Series	Sira Quiroga (#2)
Translator	Simon Bruni
Audience	Adult
Genre	Historical Fiction
Setting	Palestine; England; Spain; Morcocco
Number of Pages	605
Format I Read	Ebook (NetGalley ARC)
Original Publication Date	September 26, 2023 (English translation)

Official Summary

The charismatic protagonist from María Dueñas’s international bestseller The Time In Between returns in a sweeping novel of love and intrigue set against the tumultuous aftermath of World War II.

Former seamstress turned couturier turned spy Sira Quiroga is finally ready to embrace serenity with her British diplomat husband, Marcus, and the upcoming prospect of motherhood. But tranquility proves elusive. Fate has other plans for Sira.

Installed in Jerusalem under the British Mandate, and enmeshed in the murky world of shady operators, political menace, and catastrophic violence, Sira finds her future with Marcus put to the ultimate test. Forced to reinvent herself again, Sira travels to England and adopts a new identity as a journalist dispatched to Spain. But as her skills at cunning duplicity are put into play, the ghosts of her past follow, bent on wreaking havoc in her life.

Moving from turbulent Jerusalem and austere London to Franco’s Madrid and colonial Tangier, and peopled with formidable real-life historical figures, Sira cuts an unforgettable path through the danger, stratagems, chaos, and promise of some of the most momentous events of the postwar era.