The six chapters of this study have undertaken to examine the writings of Arturo Pérez-Reverte from a number of perspectives. Chapter 1 looked at the context of this writer, the various links between his work and that of other contemporary writers in Spain, the role of narrative, its importance in telling the stories of the past and the cultural status of narrative as a link with that past. Chapter 2 considered how Pérez-Reverte's characters could be interpreted in a variety of ways, particularly as representations of his readers. The binary male– female opposition in that context becomes not a feminist issue, but rather one of expert reader versus inexperienced reader. It can thus be taken out of fiction and transposed into a way of interpreting the world and real lives as stories. Chapter 3 was concerned with the notion of narrative as a means of rescuing the past, and focused on three of Pérez-Reverte's war stories as well as the Alatriste series. The conclusion reached was that, for Pérez-Reverte, the narrative techniques of fiction have a role in making past events relevant. The past must be remembered since it is a significant part of the present. Chapter 4 considered the nuts and bolts of how Revertian stories are told, that is, their narrative ingredients. One of the most significant of these ingredients was seen to be the element of play. Games were seen to lie at the heart of the stories, whether it was a question of treasure hunting, computer hacking, murder mystery, or chess. In each case, there was an ironic dimension, allowing readers to become aware of the rules, but not until they had fallen foul of them. Chapter 5 took a slight diversion into two other areas for which Pérez-Reverte is known: his journalistic articles and cinema. The aim was to show that even in his non-fiction, there is a vision that is consistent with the thematic concerns identifiable in that fiction, while in the film versions of his novels, directors have picked up on themes that have global significance, though in most of the films, greater closure was offered.

Finally, the sixth chapter delved into Pérez Reverte's most recent novel, El pintor de batallas (2006). Its author's statement that this novel contains a revelation that explains his other novels, hopefully, has been proven right. In this novel, there is a concern for history, its narration and its effects on the present, themes also explored in Territorio comanche, El húsar, and Cabo Trafalgar. Secondly, there is an interest in characterisation that goes beyond plot, the protagonists taking on artistic roles of creator and interpreter, while art is seen as a communication between both (concerns also evident in La tabla de Flandes and El club Dumas, for example).