When Carmen, a Spanish student, is looking for a topic for her thesis, an unexpected meeting with an old gypsy woman puts her on the trail of Czechoslovaks who fought with the International Brigades against General Franco in the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). She learns Czech and goes in search of surviving veterans. One of them is František ‘Francisco’ Rek. In an alternating narrative, which repeatedly raises the question of why someone goes to fight in a foreign country, we delve into Francisco’s eventful life. The story of both Carmen and Francisco then takes some surprising turns.

The Hero of Madrid was shortlisted for the Josef Škvorecký Award 2016.

“The skillfully written novel is not boring, and although the final denouement may seem partially expected from a certain point on, it still leaves certain questions unanswered. It’s just a pity that those about whom the story is told have, for the most part, not received the tribute Pilátová pays them without pathos or exaggeration.”

— iLiteratura

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