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4.07 AVERAGE
4.07 AVERAGE
Zafon has only really come to prominence internationally with his SHADOW OF THE WIND and follow-ups over the last couple of years, yet in Spain his works were published since the early 1990s.
He first wrote novels for teenagers that I have not yet read (but hopefully soon will). MARINA in a way is a bridge novel between the early stuff and his later Barcelona novels.
Again set in Barcelona (and as far as I know for the first time in his books), the novel features two love stories, one set in the presence (well, late 1970s), one in the past. It also prominently features the city's architecture and is a coming-of-age story of a teenage boy in a boarding school in the city and his friendship with a young girl and her artist-Dad. Following the strange figure of a mysterious veiled lady at a cemetery, they soon become involved in a decades long secret that features murder, mystery, intrigue..... and Frankensteinian monsters in the city's sewers!
I really love those stories with overarching themes that span various time frames. Very atmospheric, gloomy and with dark topics yet a light touch. I dare say that if you enjoyed SHADOW OF THE WIND, you're bound to like MARINA as well.
Strangely enough this book (written in 1999) has yet to be translated to English but is scheduled to do so later this year. (And maybe then the Barry Award guys will take away the "Best First Novel" award they gave to SHADOW OF THE WIND in 2005 after the author had already published a handful of novels before.)
He first wrote novels for teenagers that I have not yet read (but hopefully soon will). MARINA in a way is a bridge novel between the early stuff and his later Barcelona novels.
Again set in Barcelona (and as far as I know for the first time in his books), the novel features two love stories, one set in the presence (well, late 1970s), one in the past. It also prominently features the city's architecture and is a coming-of-age story of a teenage boy in a boarding school in the city and his friendship with a young girl and her artist-Dad. Following the strange figure of a mysterious veiled lady at a cemetery, they soon become involved in a decades long secret that features murder, mystery, intrigue..... and Frankensteinian monsters in the city's sewers!
I really love those stories with overarching themes that span various time frames. Very atmospheric, gloomy and with dark topics yet a light touch. I dare say that if you enjoyed SHADOW OF THE WIND, you're bound to like MARINA as well.
Strangely enough this book (written in 1999) has yet to be translated to English but is scheduled to do so later this year. (And maybe then the Barry Award guys will take away the "Best First Novel" award they gave to SHADOW OF THE WIND in 2005 after the author had already published a handful of novels before.)
adventurous
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Sama przedmowa jest zaproszeniem którego nie można odrzucić. Od pierwszych zdań wiedziałam, że przepadłam z kretesem i nie będę mogła myśleć o niczym innym dopóki nie poznam całej historii.
Opowiada ona o Oscarze i Marinie, ich przygodach, marzeniach i koszmarach. Pojawia się dylemat między etyką i śmiercią. Czuć gotycki klimat prosto z Frankensteina Mary Shelley. Zafon czerpał inspiracje bez skrępowania, nawet jednego z bohaterów nazwał jej nazwiskiem!
Szkoda, że nie przeczytałam jej wcześniej, na pewno lepiej bym ją oceniła mając kilkanaście lat. Książka kategorii raczej young adult, ale każdy powinien ją przeczytać.
Opowiada ona o Oscarze i Marinie, ich przygodach, marzeniach i koszmarach. Pojawia się dylemat między etyką i śmiercią. Czuć gotycki klimat prosto z Frankensteina Mary Shelley. Zafon czerpał inspiracje bez skrępowania, nawet jednego z bohaterów nazwał jej nazwiskiem!
Szkoda, że nie przeczytałam jej wcześniej, na pewno lepiej bym ją oceniła mając kilkanaście lat. Książka kategorii raczej young adult, ale każdy powinien ją przeczytać.
Yo? Otro Ruiz Zafón? Pues fíjate que si. No pensaba volverme a topar con este escritor pero la vida siempre pone de las suyas. Una historia muy rica, candela y llena de su esencia. Pensaba darle un 3.5 pero ese final estuvo muy bien logrado (casi lloro jajajajajaj). Ame la historia, quiero conocer Barcelona!
No leo muchos libros en español a pesar de que es mi primer idioma (por razones desconocidas a mí), pero me siento afortunada de haber leído este. La prosa poética de Carlos Ruiz Zafón me dejó encantada y la trama central del libro fue una extraña sorpresa. Definitivamente tengo que leer más libros escritos como este.
La única objeción que tengo es que pienso que el libro no debió llamarse "Marina". A pesar de que ella comienza la trama principal, en realidad nada de lo que pasa en la mayoría del libro tiene que ver con ella. Pero eso es solo mi opinión.
La única objeción que tengo es que pienso que el libro no debió llamarse "Marina". A pesar de que ella comienza la trama principal, en realidad nada de lo que pasa en la mayoría del libro tiene que ver con ella. Pero eso es solo mi opinión.
The fact that the book was named after the character that was the least developed in the book disturbed me a lot while reading.
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
mysterious
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:
Complicated
Un deleite leer esta novela, la capacidad de el autor al describir lugares y momentos es admirable, los personajes que ha creado en esta novela tienen alma propia, peso y fuerza casi los puedes sentir frente a ti, construyó unas escenas de acción de pelicula, el acto final arruga el corazón, posee unos giros en la historia sorpresivos, sólo algunas cosas son un poco predecibles. Es una historia que se disfruta en cada página. Genial!!!!