Reviews

I received this book as an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed here are my own.

When I saw that Zafon had released a fourth in The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series and that the book was available on Netgalley, I eagerly requested it and couldn't believe my luck at being approved! Having only read The Shadow of the Wind at that point, which I loved, I was fascinated by where the story might go by the fourth book. I set about reading the second and third books in the series: The Angel's Game and The Prisoner of Heaven. It was at this point that, when researching the series, I learnt they could be read in any order. What a great idea!

Reading The Labryrinth of the Spirits was a mixed bag for me: it was a return to many of the characters that I'd come to love over the course of the series so far but it really was far too long a book and parts of it really dragged, particularly the middle portion where it felt like a detective novel; not something I'd expected from this series. Whilst Alicia's search for the truth was a long and winding path, I found myself getting bored by the level of detail. So at this point, I would've rated it three stars as I was about 60% in and had, at several points, considered giving up with my review being just that. However, having persevered -- driven by a combination of having loved the other books and wanting to do justice to having been given an ARC -- there finally seemed to be progression at the rate I wanted. When one of the characters meets an unexpected end (sadface), things really started to feel like they were moving quickly and I was once more engrossed! The ending was bitter sweet: the sweetness of the return of yet more characters from elsewhere in the series and a resolution of some plot lines, but also the feeling that the series was now complete. Overall, I think the second half of the book did make it enjoyable: I was reminded how much I loved this series and the characters, I truly appreciate Zafon's ability to weave together multiple threads and I enjoy his writing style. So ultimately, I would rate it four stars, but I almost didn't finish!

tricia's review against another edition

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5.0

I appreciate the inclusion of the real life tragedy of Spain’s

stolen children

, but I couldn’t find it in me to care about Alicia, Vargas, Valls, etc which made the first two-thirds a chore.

Victoria

was more compelling than Alicia and should’ve been the focal point of the story.
Nevertheless I love the Sempere family and friends too much to rate this any less than 5 stars.

goonerette's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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