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donnied's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
ppetra1020's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
laurenaimie's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
skhan11's review against another edition
2.0
Not as good as shadow, looking forward to prisoners. More pulp than literary endeavour hear and I found some of the character work a little shallow.
piphoff's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
themeadowofashtrees's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
obanlord's review against another edition
5.0
WOW simplemente eso, una especie de magia, lo cotidiano siendo eso y destacando como solo podría hacerlo Carlos Ruiz Zafón , maestro, que gran historia
melismay's review against another edition
5.0
Wat kan Carlos Ruiz Zafon toch een prachtige werelden scheppen! Met mooie zinnen weet hij je helemaal mee te nemen in zijn Barcelona.
knuckledown's review against another edition
4.0
I didn't enjoy this quite as much as The Shadow of the Wind, and it took me awhile to figure out why. At first I suspected that my memory of The Shadow of the Wind might be stronger than my actual experience of reading the book. Eventually I decided that was not the case. Instead, I think it was a simple matter of ease. Like or not, a story with a strong romantic element and a happy ending is going to be easier to absorb than a story with psychologically disturbing elements and an ambiguous ending.
That being said, I still liked this book a lot. Even in translation, Carlos Ruiz Zafon's prose is some of the most beautiful in contemporary fiction. He can render a mood like no other, and he truly understands the magic of books.
The first half was probably my favorite. I guess I enjoy reading the history of a fictitious writer in 1920s Barcelona. David is never the most cuddly of narrators, but he's easy to root for in the first act in particular. The introduction of his assistant Isabella is the book's most optimistic and entertaining portion. Perhaps one problem that I had with novel's progression was that Isabella always felt so much more alive to me that Cristina, who is supposed to be David's tragic love. Honestly I never felt Cristina's appeal enough to want them to be together.
I know I will continue thinking about this book in the days and weeks to come. After finishing it, I had to flip through it again, looking for remembered passages and making sure I had all the pieces fit together correctly. For me, that is a mark of quality writing.
That being said, I still liked this book a lot. Even in translation, Carlos Ruiz Zafon's prose is some of the most beautiful in contemporary fiction. He can render a mood like no other, and he truly understands the magic of books.
The first half was probably my favorite. I guess I enjoy reading the history of a fictitious writer in 1920s Barcelona. David is never the most cuddly of narrators, but he's easy to root for in the first act in particular. The introduction of his assistant Isabella is the book's most optimistic and entertaining portion. Perhaps one problem that I had with novel's progression was that Isabella always felt so much more alive to me that Cristina, who is supposed to be David's tragic love. Honestly I never felt Cristina's appeal enough to want them to be together.
I know I will continue thinking about this book in the days and weeks to come. After finishing it, I had to flip through it again, looking for remembered passages and making sure I had all the pieces fit together correctly. For me, that is a mark of quality writing.