Of Love and Shadows (Spanish: De amor y de sombra) was published by Plaza & Janés in 1984 and is Allende’s most directly political novel — based on the actual 1978 discovery of fifteen bodies in an abandoned mine in Lonquén, Chile, victims of political murders carried out by the military after the 1973 coup. The novel follows Irene Beltrán, a magazine journalist from a privileged family, and Francisco Leal, a photographer from a leftist family, as they investigate the disappearance of a young girl and discover evidence of systematic mass murder.
The love story between Irene and Francisco unfolds alongside the political investigation — their growing intimacy mirrors their growing awareness of the regime’s crimes, and their commitment to each other parallels their commitment to bearing witness. Allende structures the novel as a thriller (will they find the truth? will they survive to tell it?) while maintaining the lyrical prose and emotional depth of literary fiction.
The novel is less magical than The House of the Spirits — the supernatural elements are minimal, replaced by a documentary realism appropriate to its subject — but it retains Allende’s characteristic warmth toward her characters and her belief in love as a force that can resist political evil. The novel was banned in Chile under the dictatorship and circulated in underground editions, giving it both literary and political significance.
Collecting Of Love and Shadows
First Spanish edition (Plaza & Janés, Barcelona, 1984): Cloth binding, dust jacket.
Market values:
- First Spanish edition: $50–$150
- First English edition (Knopf, 1987): $20–$50
- Signed copies: $75–$200