Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

97 reviews

astrocate's review against another edition

Go to review page

medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Le mie opinioni sono di certo influenzate dal fatto che ho letto questo libro non per volontà personale ma per obbligo scolastico; in ogni caso, ho trovato il volume piuttosto noioso e non ho riscontrato alcun interesse nei confronti degli avvenimenti dei personaggi, la cui caratterizzazione ho trovato piuttosto blanda, fatta eccezione per la figura di Fermìn.
Ci sono stati dei passaggi e delle idee narrative particolarmente interessanti, come quello della biblioteca dei libri dimenticati, che però non sono stati approfonditi a dovere.
La storia di Juliàn Carex sarebbe stata di certo più avvincente se raccontata in modo diverso e più breve.
Il libro è descritto come un mistery, ma in realtà il lettore si ritrova con ben pochi elementi, e vengono svelati colpi di scena impossibili da prevedere e a tratti forzati, come
la fratellanza fra Juliàn e Penélope
.
Un'altra cosa che non mi ha convinto è la questione delle età: alla fine del libro
Daniel dice di avere un figlio di dieci anni quando ha quasi trent'anni. Quando si è sposato, dunque? A diciotto anni, prima di prestare servizio militare? Con Bea, una donna che conosceva così poco?
. 
Non mi è parso particolarmente realistico, così come non mi è parsa realistica la faccia tosta del protagonista nell'andare a chiedere a sconosciuti informazioni su Carax, e la disponibilità dei suddetti nel fornirgliele.
In sintesi, i presupposti del romanzo sono molto avvincenti, con uno sviluppo che, a mio parere, lascia un po' a desiderare.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

schwabbelliese's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny mysterious reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

 Zafón writing is captivating as well as thoghtfull and even funny at times. This (his first) novel shows that he has talent.
What I did have issue with was the overall pacing of the book. It is, to put it simply, just weird. The time span inbetween events is often hard to follow and fully comprehend.  And I just feel like that is super unnecessary.

The novel was definitly drawn out too long for a plot that wasn't really that complicated.
It was also rather obvious that the bookburner was Carax all along
. While large parts of incidental and semmingly unneccesary mentions/descriptions or conversations certainly the worldbuiling and add character to Zafóns 1960's Barcelona, the book could have been at least 50 pages shorter without forfeiting any of it's charm.

The female characters were rather out of touch and of little depht or impotance. Mostly just existing so the male charcters could fawn over them for reasons that if existent at all, aren't illustrated very well. And even tough it seems obvouis that Zafón uses a specific image of or attitude towards women to embed his story even deeper in it's historical setting, he still could have put more effort in.



Expand filter menu Content Warnings

wiktoria88's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

sarasbooks's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

The story is set in Barcelona in 1945. Daniel is brought by his father to a library called "Cemetery of Forgotten Books". He discovers a mysterious book entitled "The Shadow of the wind" by an author called Julián Carax. The boy is so interested in this book that he wants to find other work by the same author. But he finds out that he may have the last of Carax' books. They all have been destroyed. Daniel wants to know the truth behind Carax' story. What secrets does the past hold and how will they influence this boy's life?

This book was intense and made me feel all kinds of emotions. I cried, i laughed, i got angry, i was amazed, i was scared, everything happened in this book. This book is so rich in its poetic language that i felt like i had to memorize every line. That's how beautifully this is written.

I'm not gonna lie, there was a moment when i felt a little bit overwhelmed, because of how intense it got. But i'm so happy i kept on reading because of how elaborate the story was. It's not at all superficial. Everything is thought through.

I would say there are some trigger warnings. Some parts were hard to read, so keep that in mind. If you're looking for a light, happy read, this is not the book for you. This story doesn't spare gruesome details and exposes the truth with brutality. But if you are looking for an intense story, full of detail and that will make you feel something, this is it.

I loved that it's a book about books. About readers, the love for reading and writing. It's also a story about love, family, friendship, grief.

"Books are mirrors: you only see in them what you already have inside you."

"Every book, every volume you see here, has a soul. The soul of the person who wrote it and of those who read it and lived and dreamed with it. Every time a book changes hands, every time someone runs his eyes down its pages, its spirit grows and strengthens."

"Memories are worse than bullets."
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

bitterseason's review

Go to review page

adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.25

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

samantha_blue's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

jasneave's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark informative mysterious tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

sherbertwells's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark reflective tense 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? No

2.0

On the streets of fascist Barcelona, a boy unravels the mystery behind his favorite book. Some stories can survive the fact that their authors don’t really understand women; in this one the plot threatens to buckle under its own accumulated misogyny.

“I imagined Julián Carax at my age, holding that image in his hand, perhaps in the shade of the same tree that now sheltered me. I could almost see him smiling confidently, contemplating a future as wide and luminous as that avenue, and for a moment I thought there were no more ghosts there than those of absence and loss and that the light that smiled on me was borrowed light, real only as long as I could hold it in my eyes, second by second” (147)
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

mesi_reads's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

lyricallit's review against another edition

Go to review page

mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

Sigh. I was 1/3 of the way through and was befuddled as to where it was going. I really enjoyed the touches of magical realism but felt that style was abandoned in favor of gothic melodrama. I liked the way certain characters mirrored others in the past and the trope of authorship/stories, as the novel at times became a nesting doll of stories-within-stories.

Ultimately though I got really tired with the portrayal of women. All the women are secondary/tertiary characters who are usually victims who serve to further the mens' plots or to reveal a man's vile abuse. Especially since
MUCH of this heartbreak would have been avoided if Sophie had just  TOLD Julian who his biological father was! So... Cool. Let's just lay the blame there
. I am truly unclear as to the relevance of Clara Barceló to the overall story. She is an objectified fantasy to a teen boy with a savior complex (to "save" or care for a "blind girl"), who ultimately
becomes a bitter hag who can't even be around other women, presumably out of petty jealousy. Truly the book could have left her out completely and still attained its goals, so I am frustrated by what may just be an attempt to get back at a woman who scorned the author? And as for Bea, she is credited by Carax with saving his life and Daniel's but again, not sure how other than being the reason everyone was at the castle that night -- again, merely a convenient plot point.
 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings