"A convincing, original and readable analysis of the contemporary political scene in Spain. While I am confident that the book will prove useful to those studying Spanish politics, I would also recommend it to readers with little previous knowledge of the country, who wish to draw on the lessons provided by Spain in its remarkable transformation into a mature democracy." Paul Kennedy, International Affairs "Nuanced and convincing in its explanation of why Spain became a successful democracy." European History Quarterly "Its consistently cogent analysis establishes Spanish Politics as an invaluable and welcome addition to the literature on modern Spain." Political Science Quarterly "Encarnación has written a lucid, concise and elegant book about Spanish politics. Theoretically informed and rigorously comparative, this remarkable study will be of interest to both Hispanists and democratization scholars." Diego Muro, King's College London "Encarnacion convincingly argues that the young Spanish democracy has reached a level of institutional stability that allows for policy issues to be hotly debated, adopted, and implemented, without any fear of a coup d'etat staged by former supporters of the Franco regime. The progressive reforms adopted by the left-leaning Zapatero government since 2004 are offered as evidence of the new democratic stability in Spain; arguably the new democratic stability will also allow space for conservative forces to try and undo those reforms in future elections and parliaments. In the end, Encarnacion leaves the reader with the optimistic impression that Spanish democracy will remain robust, stable, transparent, and durable in the years ahead." Paul Christopher Manuel, New Hampshire Institute of Politics at Saint Anselm College "Omar Encarnacion's vivid and comprehensive analysis of Spain's post-Franco democracy provides a highly engaging examination of the country's politics which serves as a fine introduction to Western Europe's fifth largest country while also providing seasoned observers of Spanish politics and society with much food for thought. Encarnacion skillfully weaves together an analysis of the country's present with an examination of its conflictual past and of historical memory, using this lens to highlight Spain's successes, paradoxes and disappointments." Robert M. Fishman, University of Notre Dame