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huntland's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
2.75
Too many characters.
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexual content
Moderate: Police brutality
lee_ann_a's review
adventurous
mysterious
slow-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? No
3.5
Daniel and his father own a bookshop in post-WWII Barcelona. One day Daniel is introduced to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, where he uncovers a brilliant novel by one Julian Carax. He wants to read more by this author, and his hunt for the books opens up an investigation that will change the course of his entire life.
This book gives me that chilly Autumn night under a blanket with a hot beverage feel, when you can hear the tree branches tapping on the window in the rain. Even the title makes me feel that way, I suppose this is why it’s in the gothic category, eh? I would venture to say this is not for the casual reader. There are LOTS of words. Ok ok, I know all books have lots of words but this one has an abundance. I mean that to say, the language is flowery and descriptive, to a fault at times. I saw somewhere they consider this novel to be at a 6th grade reading level, pardon? It might be the translation, and I consider myself intelligent and well-read, but I had to use kindle to look up the definition of several words. No shame there. Alright then.
Part of the charm of this novel is that there’s a great deal of tongue in cheek humor laced through the story, along with a little romance, and lots of mystery with surprising twists. It’s a journey through years of time, which I generally love. The characters are quirky and three dimensional. But it’s heavy. Not so much the subject matter but the reading itself. At times I felt as though I was slogging through some of the (not always relevant to the plot) story lines. At times I was ready for it to be over. But overall I enjoyed it and was glad I saw it through to the end .
effect's review against another edition
4.0
What a book. Never lost its momentum. Every part, every dialogue, every little twist was interesting— even though I'm not used to reading lengthy books, I finished it all without once getting bored of it. My only complaint is how a detailed description of some woman's breasts or ass occurs like every 3 pages... If you could manage to brush those aside The Shadow of the Wind is a fairly good mystery-historical fiction. All in all, I would suggest you to stop whatever you're doing and read this right now.
mellomorissa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ngdrc's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
valarivas's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
4.5
tartaruga_b's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Este libro narra la aventura en la que se enfrasca Daniel, el protagonista, al querer develar el misterio detrás de la obra de Julián Carax, un escritor poco conocido y cuyos libros están siendo reducidos a cenizas. Es así, como Daniel se encuentra en medio de una cacería al hallar un ejemplar de la obra de Carax dentro de "El Cementerio de los Libros Olvidados".
Esta es una novela que combina el misterio y el romance de una forma extraordinaria, lleno de intrigas, secretos y misterios por resolver, te envuelve por completo.
Esta es una novela que combina el misterio y el romance de una forma extraordinaria, lleno de intrigas, secretos y misterios por resolver, te envuelve por completo.
jasonwalko's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I’m struggling to find the words for what this novel did to me. The words in these pages profoundly affected me in ways that I haven’t really experienced since I was a kid. This is a NOVEL-ass novel in no uncertain terms. I laughed, I cried, I felt fear, tension, anger, hope, loss, sadness, joy, and basically everything else on the wide spectrum of human emotions. It does everything that a novel should do and does it all unbelievably well. No matter what your taste in books is, you’re going to fall in love with some element of this book, be it the strong characters, the mystery of the main plot, the beautiful writing, or the incredibly tense and satisfying conclusion. There’s something in here for everyone, and if you love fiction novels, you will love this. Seriously struggling to find anything to criticize about this book. Some sections might go on for a bit too long but there really isn’t an ounce of fat here. Everything has its purpose and seeing it all come together is truly a rewarding experience for the reader with plenty of “oh shit” moments throughout. I don’t even want to talk about the actual plot because there isn’t enough room here to talk about it here and honestly the less you know going into it, the better. It’s just such a dense and satisfying narrative to sink your teeth into. This thing is a treasure.
Strong recommend to anyone who is looking to rediscover their love of reading.
Moderate: Sexual assault and Domestic abuse