Arturo Pérez-Reverte Gutiérrez is a Spanish novelist and journalist, born on 25 November 1951 in Cartagena. He gained considerable experience as a war correspondent, working for RTVE for 21 years from 1973 to 1994. His first novel, El húsar, was released in 1986 and is set during the Napoleonic Wars. Pérez-Reverte is renowned internationally for his "Alatriste" series of novels. He has been a member of the Royal Spanish Academy since 12 June 2003.