Under the Spanish Stars Read Online Free PDF

interested to hear your take on this, though.’
    â€˜Ah.’ He nodded. ‘Well, you may be aware Franco loved the tradition—women and men had certain roles and they were never to change.’ He paused and she nodded for him to continue, even though she had heard this before. Hearing a regular, albeit very talented, Spaniard’s viewpoint intrigued her. ‘For many women, this was a difficult time. They could not divorce if they were unhappy and they had to stay in the home and raise the family. Everyone had to speak the Castilian.’
    â€˜Catalonian and Galician were banned, right?’
    â€˜Yes, yes. And if one of Franco’s men found you speaking anything but the Castilian, you could be put in jail.’
    â€˜I’d heard of that but I still can’t comprehend it.’
    â€˜It is the history of my own country and at times I have a hard time understanding also. It was another world back then. The poor women flamenco dancers … they did not have the freedom of expression like today.’ He paused for a moment. ‘I am sorry, I am running off at the mouth again.’
    â€˜Actually, this is very interesting and some of it is new to me.’
    â€˜If we are to continue talking we should have more wine.’
    Charlotte held up her hand. ‘No more for me, thanks. I’ve drunk more than my fair share tonight.’
    â€˜If this is your wish.’ Mateo poured himself a glass and sipped the dark red liquid. ‘You have heard of Carmen Amaya?’
    â€˜No. Should I?’ She felt ridiculous for her lack of flamenco knowledge.
    â€˜Carmen Amaya was before the Franco era and she took flamenco to the world stage in the 1930s. Her family were gitano and took great pleasure in defying tradition. She did the foot stomping,’ Mateo used his heels to tap a rhythm on the floorboards, ‘she wore pants like a man and her footwork was very intricate—nothing like the traditional flamenco where the role of the woman is more as a seductress. Carmen,of course, rebelled against this.’
    â€˜I like the sound of her already,’ said Charlotte, settling into Mateo’s company.
    â€˜Tell me, what is the name of your grandmother?’
    â€˜Katarina Sanchez.’
    â€˜Wo-ho-ho!’ He slapped the table. ‘ La Flama ?’
    â€˜You know who she is?’
    â€˜But of course! She left the world of flamenco heartbroken when she gave up without warning. Tell me, what happened?’ He leant forward with the eagerness of a detective about to solve the mystery of a lifetime.
    â€˜I hate to disappoint, but I don’t know. Not even Google knows. And she refuses to talk about it.’
    â€˜Hmm …’ He rubbed the stubble on his chin with his thumb and forefinger. ‘Ah!’ He held a finger in the air. ‘I wonder if your abuela wanting you to meet with the Giménez clan has something to do with her giving up flamenco. Charlotte Sanchez—’
    â€˜My surname’s Kavanagh.’
    â€˜Charlotte Kavanagh, I must say, this has been the most interesting evening.’

CHAPTER
3
    1936—Katarina
    Seventeen-year-old Katarina Sanchez opened the bedroom door, ensuring the lock didn’t click and echo in the vast expanse of the family house in Granada. She craned her neck to check no one was in the hallway and, satisfied that everyone was still at school, work or social engagements, she hurried across the dark red carpet, clutching a small bag of bread and fruit. Taking a deep breath and biting her bottom lip, she edged the heavy front door open just enough so her tall, thin frame could slip through without difficulty. Once her low-heeled boots hit the stone steps that led down to the street, she lowered her head to shield her face from passers-by. The midday sun warmed her skin as she willed her feet to walk at a casual pace, even though she wanted to break into a run.
    For almost a year, she had regularly