Cold Skin (novel)


Cold Skin is the debut novel by Spanish author Albert Sánchez Piñol. The novel had remarkable success with numerous reprints and translations rights. It has been translated to 37 languages, and more than 150,000 copies were sold in its original edition.

Synopsis

The novel chronicles the story of a former fighter for the independence of Ireland who, unmotivated by the events of the Western World, decides to escape from the society in which he lives. He accepts a job offer as a weather official on a remote island in the south Atlantic close to the Antarctic Circle.
On this island there is only one inhabitant, the signals official Batis Caffo, who does not help the Irishman, and hides all the information which he has on the island. So the hero has to spend a night alone, where he suffers the attack of strange monsters that are similar to frogs.
Through his cunning he manages to stay in the lighthouse with Caffo, and thus he can withstand attacks from the big frogs. After some days, he finds out that Caffo has sex with a domesticated monster, the female Aneris. Although the Irishman first thinks that the monsters are evil and murderous, after meeting Aneris, he changes his mind.

Prizes

It won the Ojo Crítico Narrativa prize in 2002, and has been translated into 37 languages.

Film adaption

Alex and David Pastor wrote the film adaption, directed by Xavier Gens and co-starring David Oakes, Ray Stevenson and Aura Garrido. The premiere was scheduled for the Étrange Festival 2017, in Paris, France.