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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Adoro lo stile di Zafon.. La storia è interessante e ha sempre quel tocco di mistero che a me piace!
Grande differenza dagli altri romanzi di Zafon che ho letto è la città.. Nei libri con ambientazione spagnola la città era un personaggio aggiunto, che in qualche modo era partecipe della storia che si stava svolgendo.. In questo caso, la città di Calcutta non riesce ad essere niente di più che uno sfondo per la storia.
Altra nota dolente, il finale.. è vero che ti tiene incollato fino in fondo perchè DEVI scoprire cosa succederà, ma l'ho trovato un po' debole..
Grande differenza dagli altri romanzi di Zafon che ho letto è la città.. Nei libri con ambientazione spagnola la città era un personaggio aggiunto, che in qualche modo era partecipe della storia che si stava svolgendo.. In questo caso, la città di Calcutta non riesce ad essere niente di più che uno sfondo per la storia.
Altra nota dolente, il finale.. è vero che ti tiene incollato fino in fondo perchè DEVI scoprire cosa succederà, ma l'ho trovato un po' debole..
Atvirai, tai įvertinu knygą su geru avansu. Skaudančia širdim turiu pripažinti, kad mano lūkesčiai buvo sutrypti. Antroji Niebla trilogijos dalis (neturinti absoliučiai nieko bendro su pirma knyga ir vienintelis juos jungiantis dalykas tai auditorija, kuriai jos skirtos), buvo nusivylimas. Taip trūko visko už ką aš myliu Zafon. Buvau pasiruošusi įkristi į dar viena nuostabiai sukurtą visapusišką pasaulį ir nerti į nuotykius, bet tėškiausi veidu į grindis.
Nors galima atpažinti autoriaus braižą, bet taip trūko jo genialaus sąmojo, daugiasluoksnio siužeto, kompleksiškų personažų.
1932-tieji Calcutta. Benas ir jo draugai užaugę našlačių namuose, sukurė slaptą draugų klubą, kuriame pasižada visada padėti vienas kitam ir neturėti paslapčių. Suėjus 16metų jiems metas palikti savo "namus" ir pradėti savarankišką gyvenimą. Jie susirenka paskutiniam susitikimui jų įprastoje vietoje, The Midnight Palace. Tą naktį Ben sutinka savo sesę dvynę, apie kurią nieko nežinojo ir jie visi kartu bando atskleisti, kokia yra jų tikroji istorija.
Ši yra trečioji Zafon YA knyga kurią skaičiau ir pirmoji, kuri tikrai jautėsi labai vaikiška. Tiek Marina tiek The Prince of Mist labai patiko ir buvo subalansuotos ir suaugusiam skaitytojui. The Midnight palace gausu fantastinių, net magiškų elementų, tačiau labai trūko įtikinamo jų pagrindimo, logikos, sistemos. Viskas buvo gana primityvu, gal tai praslystų pro skainatį vaiką, bet man jau buvo sunku įsijausti ir patikėti tuo sukurtu pasauliu. O iš patirties žinau, kad nors ir nesu fantastikos megėja, Zafon iki šiol puikiai sugebėjo mane įtraukti į jo nerealius nuotykius ir patikėti visais baubais.
Veiksmas vyksta Kolkatoje (anksčiau Kalkuta), bet apart kelių rajonų pavadinimų, nebuvo sukurta jokia vietos atmosfera. Gal autorius nebuvo pats susipažinęs su vietove ir pabijojo leistis į detales. Nes kai jis rašo apie gimtąją Barseloną, tai atrodo žino viską iki kaulelių, todėl ir skaitant pasineri į visas jos gatveles, lengvai iškyla jos vaizdai.
Pati istorija ir mintis buvo įdomi, skaitėsi lengvai, bet overall viskas plokščia, daug logikos spragų, ne iki galo išaiškintų dalykų, tarsi būtų parašęs kažkas, kas imitavo Zafon braižą. Tikrai nesiūlyčiau pradėti pažinties nuo šios knygos. Mano rekomendacija būtų nepakartojama jo Marina.
Nors galima atpažinti autoriaus braižą, bet taip trūko jo genialaus sąmojo, daugiasluoksnio siužeto, kompleksiškų personažų.
1932-tieji Calcutta. Benas ir jo draugai užaugę našlačių namuose, sukurė slaptą draugų klubą, kuriame pasižada visada padėti vienas kitam ir neturėti paslapčių. Suėjus 16metų jiems metas palikti savo "namus" ir pradėti savarankišką gyvenimą. Jie susirenka paskutiniam susitikimui jų įprastoje vietoje, The Midnight Palace. Tą naktį Ben sutinka savo sesę dvynę, apie kurią nieko nežinojo ir jie visi kartu bando atskleisti, kokia yra jų tikroji istorija.
Ši yra trečioji Zafon YA knyga kurią skaičiau ir pirmoji, kuri tikrai jautėsi labai vaikiška. Tiek Marina tiek The Prince of Mist labai patiko ir buvo subalansuotos ir suaugusiam skaitytojui. The Midnight palace gausu fantastinių, net magiškų elementų, tačiau labai trūko įtikinamo jų pagrindimo, logikos, sistemos. Viskas buvo gana primityvu, gal tai praslystų pro skainatį vaiką, bet man jau buvo sunku įsijausti ir patikėti tuo sukurtu pasauliu. O iš patirties žinau, kad nors ir nesu fantastikos megėja, Zafon iki šiol puikiai sugebėjo mane įtraukti į jo nerealius nuotykius ir patikėti visais baubais.
Veiksmas vyksta Kolkatoje (anksčiau Kalkuta), bet apart kelių rajonų pavadinimų, nebuvo sukurta jokia vietos atmosfera. Gal autorius nebuvo pats susipažinęs su vietove ir pabijojo leistis į detales. Nes kai jis rašo apie gimtąją Barseloną, tai atrodo žino viską iki kaulelių, todėl ir skaitant pasineri į visas jos gatveles, lengvai iškyla jos vaizdai.
Pati istorija ir mintis buvo įdomi, skaitėsi lengvai, bet overall viskas plokščia, daug logikos spragų, ne iki galo išaiškintų dalykų, tarsi būtų parašęs kažkas, kas imitavo Zafon braižą. Tikrai nesiūlyčiau pradėti pažinties nuo šios knygos. Mano rekomendacija būtų nepakartojama jo Marina.
“Those places where sadness and misery abound are favoured settings for stories of ghosts and apparitions.”
I think I can sum up my disappointment in this book in a sentence:
Fantastic ideas that are described in breathtakingly beautiful prose but never explained properly.
This isn’t going to be a long review because I had the same problems with this book as I did with The Prince of Mist.
There was just not enough explanation and, it might just be me, but I couldn’t get over that. I’m trying so hard not to delve into spoilers but so many crazy things happened throughout which would have been brilliant (and were certainly unique!) had I just been given a reason as to why they were happening. Without this, I just couldn’t believe it and I wasn’t sure that I understood the majority of it.
I don’t mind suspending my disbelief and I love magical realism (it’s my favourite kind of realism!) but only when what’s happening makes sense.
And, to me anyway, parts of this story didn’t.
But anyway, enough of the negative stuff, let’s move on to the positives.
Because there were tons of things I liked about this book.
First up I’ve said it before and I’ve said it again I love love looooove how Mr RZ constructs a sentence. Seriously, his prose is just absolutely stunning.
I’ve never been to Calcutta and I don’t know what the streets look like or how the mist rolls off the Hooghly River but with passages like this:
I am instantly transported there. Just gorgeous.
I also think that, aforementioned problems aside, Mr RZ definitely knows how to tell a thrilling story. Even though I didn’t understand a few bits, the ending was so gripping! I’ve said before that I love authors who aren’t afraid to put their characters (and readers for that matter!) through the ringer and Mr RZ is definitely not afraid to do this.
I was afraid, however, because I’m sure he has a list of all my worst nightmares and just throws them all in to spite me!
And then there are his characters. Even though I did get a bit annoyed by the fact that the adults are conveniently absent throughout this whole story, I loved that the children are the focus of the book. With such a colourful cast, it was easy to imagine yourself in that dilapidated house and I liked how his children actually act like children, too. Too often in MG/YA books, the children are impossibly ‘mature’ but in both of the books I’ve read by Mr RZ his characters are still children in the best sense: full of wonder, full of imagination, and members of secret clubs that require a password and only permit special girls to join!
My favourite character was Ben with his love for “complex puns” and his love for writing plays that are described as “a phantasmal piece of gibberish in which everyone died, including the stagehands.”
Ha!
I know I seem to have written a lot without actually saying anything, so I apologise. I enjoyed this book a lot more than I did The Prince of Mist because there seemed to be a lot more depth to the story and the setting was absolutely gorgeous.
I’d definitely recommend this book to people who don’t need to know every single thing and who can just sit back and enjoy the book for what it is.
Just because I’m not one of those people, doesn’t mean that you won’t be. Give it a try just for his prose, if anything!
You can read this review and lots of other exciting things on my blog here.
I think I can sum up my disappointment in this book in a sentence:
Fantastic ideas that are described in breathtakingly beautiful prose but never explained properly.
This isn’t going to be a long review because I had the same problems with this book as I did with The Prince of Mist.
There was just not enough explanation and, it might just be me, but I couldn’t get over that. I’m trying so hard not to delve into spoilers but so many crazy things happened throughout which would have been brilliant (and were certainly unique!) had I just been given a reason as to why they were happening. Without this, I just couldn’t believe it and I wasn’t sure that I understood the majority of it.
I don’t mind suspending my disbelief and I love magical realism (it’s my favourite kind of realism!) but only when what’s happening makes sense.
And, to me anyway, parts of this story didn’t.
But anyway, enough of the negative stuff, let’s move on to the positives.
Because there were tons of things I liked about this book.
First up I’ve said it before and I’ve said it again I love love looooove how Mr RZ constructs a sentence. Seriously, his prose is just absolutely stunning.
I’ve never been to Calcutta and I don’t know what the streets look like or how the mist rolls off the Hooghly River but with passages like this:
“The further he went, the more the station made of glass and steel seemed to melt into the city- a jungle of marble mausoleums blackened by decades of neglect; naked walls once coated in ochre, blue and gold, their colours peeled away by the fury of the monsoon, leaving them blurred and faded, like watercolours dissolving in a pond.”
I am instantly transported there. Just gorgeous.
I also think that, aforementioned problems aside, Mr RZ definitely knows how to tell a thrilling story. Even though I didn’t understand a few bits, the ending was so gripping! I’ve said before that I love authors who aren’t afraid to put their characters (and readers for that matter!) through the ringer and Mr RZ is definitely not afraid to do this.
I was afraid, however, because I’m sure he has a list of all my worst nightmares and just throws them all in to spite me!
And then there are his characters. Even though I did get a bit annoyed by the fact that the adults are conveniently absent throughout this whole story, I loved that the children are the focus of the book. With such a colourful cast, it was easy to imagine yourself in that dilapidated house and I liked how his children actually act like children, too. Too often in MG/YA books, the children are impossibly ‘mature’ but in both of the books I’ve read by Mr RZ his characters are still children in the best sense: full of wonder, full of imagination, and members of secret clubs that require a password and only permit special girls to join!
My favourite character was Ben with his love for “complex puns” and his love for writing plays that are described as “a phantasmal piece of gibberish in which everyone died, including the stagehands.”
Ha!
I know I seem to have written a lot without actually saying anything, so I apologise. I enjoyed this book a lot more than I did The Prince of Mist because there seemed to be a lot more depth to the story and the setting was absolutely gorgeous.
I’d definitely recommend this book to people who don’t need to know every single thing and who can just sit back and enjoy the book for what it is.
Just because I’m not one of those people, doesn’t mean that you won’t be. Give it a try just for his prose, if anything!
You can read this review and lots of other exciting things on my blog here.
slow-paced
Un libro muy entretenido, al principio me asustó ya que solo tenía 3 o 4 capítulos y a mi me gustan los libros de capítulos cortos, pero se me hizo una lectura muy amena y entretenida, estuve en suspenso hasta el final...
What a GREAT Teen novel!! yeah, I read Teen fiction - but only when it is written by incredible authors who are smart and don't dumb down the story line. This is Teen fiction because the main characters are teens, and not because it is meant for a teen audience.
Anyways - if you have never read Carlos Ruiz Zafon, he is a really smart writer who gets the hooks into you on page one or two and doesn't let go. Every time I've picked up one of his novels I've been hooked. All I want to do is sit and read the book. This was no different.
Calcutta, two orphans separated at birth and being hunted down...that is all I'm going to say.
(by the way, it took me longer than one day to read this but since GoodReads doesn't let you change the date you start a book...)
Anyways - if you have never read Carlos Ruiz Zafon, he is a really smart writer who gets the hooks into you on page one or two and doesn't let go. Every time I've picked up one of his novels I've been hooked. All I want to do is sit and read the book. This was no different.
Calcutta, two orphans separated at birth and being hunted down...that is all I'm going to say.
(by the way, it took me longer than one day to read this but since GoodReads doesn't let you change the date you start a book...)
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
adventurous
relaxing
fast-paced