This novel is very important to me, because it marks the official beginning of a series, which I have called THE BICYCLE CHRONICLES, as it revolves around Subinspector Morillo (nicknamed “Bicycle” by his colleagues, given his excessive penchant for using it as his means of transportation, something quite unusual in police circles)

Morillo’s character was the tragic protagonist of the first novel of the series, “THE SUICIDE ROOM”, in which he disappeared under dramatic and mysterious circumstances. His disappearance interrupted his budding romantic relationship with Inés, the only survivor after the murder of a woman from the Catalan upper bourgeoisie at the hands of a psychopath, a fearsome enemy that Morillo faced with dramatic consequences.

In “THE SECRET OF CHOPIN”, we witness Inés’ fruitless efforts to find out the truth about Morillo’s disappearance, an investigation full of obstacles, in which she will discover the secrets of a dark international plot that reaches the highest police and political spheres.

In her adventure, Inés will have the help of characters who already appeared in the first novel, such as the impetuous Corporal Roura, or the arrogant Subinspector Aromí, as well as new and endearing characters who will join her crusade.

The uprising and struggle for Polish independence from the Russian Empire in 1831, whose failure caused the “Great Emigration” of Polish artists, politicians and intellectuals, among whom was the famous composer Frédéric Chopin, is the historical framework which will trigger a series of events that almost a century later will catastrophically affect Inés and her entourage. Following the trail of Chopin’s trip to Mallorca in 1838, Inés and her companions will find themselves fighting for their lives in an incredible and dangerous adventure.

Here is a preview of the back cover blurb:

In 1913, Barcelona was a city in social and cultural turmoil. A few months after the unexplainable disappearance of Subinspector Morillo in a mysterious Casino hidden in the mountains, Inés will be hunted by a sinister secret organization that has spent centuries searching for a mysterious object that can forever alter the balance of power in the world.

Given the lack of any official explanation, and determined to find out what happened to Morillo, she will enlist the help of some unlikely allies in a dangerous quest that will take her from the Barcelona streets to the island of Mallorca, where she will be hunted mercilessly by a group of assassins. Her adventure will take her to some unique places like the mythical Carthusian monastery of Valldemossa (where during the winter of 1838, Chopin resided with his lover George Sand, seeking tranquility and inspiration) or some spectacular Majorcan caves and underground lakes.

Millenary secrets will be revealed and new ones will come to light in this long-awaited sequel to THE SUICIDE ROOM, the first novel in the series THE BICYCLE CHRONICLES.