Five books you must read before coming to Lisbon

Suspense

The tale of a Swiss professor’s visit to Lisbon to dig up the story of a Portuguese author who died after the 1974 Revolution.

Romance 

One of the great novels of 19th-century Portuguese literature (and of all- time), about the incestuous love between a brother and sister, set in Lisbon at that same period.

Tourist Guide

Written by one of Portugal’s greatest poets, and published in 1925, this guide to the city covers leisure, culture, art and architecture.

Historical novel

The plot focusses on the persecution of New Christians (forced converts from Judaism) in the 16th century. Two bodies are found in strange circumstances and an illuminated manuscript disappears.

Detective story

The first setting is 1940s Lisbon,as refugees and spies throng the city during World War Two. The second is the same city in the late 1990s, with a crime that prompts the hero to delve into that same history. Ultimately, the two stories coincide.