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corrompido 's review for:
The Angel's Game
by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Truly excellent book, even though I had a few quibbles with the ending. Not so much that I thought that the ending arrived at a bad conclusion (I actually loved the way in which it ended,) but that I was confused on one or two points. It is also quiet possible that I missed something obvious in the last few pages however, since things moved very quickly towards the end.
Despite those issues, still an amazing book. Almost makes me want to go re-read his first book, Shadow of the Wind, which I remember likely greatly but don't remember it having a huge impact on me.
The book itself follows an author living in Barcelona during the early 20th century. David Martin, the protagonist, came from nothing and simply loves literature and writing books. As the story progresses he is made an offer to write a book that he is wary to take, but eventually does. He grapples with that choice and its impact on his life throughout the rest of the story. I would say more, but I don't want to give away too much as this story is in many ways an old horror tale with a number of surprises throughout.
Several things made this book a really enjoyable experience. Zafón did an excellent job of transporting the reader to that time and place without falling into the easy post-modern trap of winking at the reader for knowing what ideas of the time were archaic. Secondly, not only is the writing excellent, but I really got the sense that this book was written for people who love books in such a manner that it transports them to another world. Most of the characters in the story take books that seriously, and Zafón does a wonderful job capturing how important books can be to an individual.
I don't normally go for "horror," stories, but the way in which the dread of this story slowly builds was just really well done. The characters never acted stupidly or in an ignorant manner, in fact I can't say I'd choose too differently in many of the situations, which made the horrific parts that much more so.
Go read it.
Despite those issues, still an amazing book. Almost makes me want to go re-read his first book, Shadow of the Wind, which I remember likely greatly but don't remember it having a huge impact on me.
The book itself follows an author living in Barcelona during the early 20th century. David Martin, the protagonist, came from nothing and simply loves literature and writing books. As the story progresses he is made an offer to write a book that he is wary to take, but eventually does. He grapples with that choice and its impact on his life throughout the rest of the story. I would say more, but I don't want to give away too much as this story is in many ways an old horror tale with a number of surprises throughout.
Several things made this book a really enjoyable experience. Zafón did an excellent job of transporting the reader to that time and place without falling into the easy post-modern trap of winking at the reader for knowing what ideas of the time were archaic. Secondly, not only is the writing excellent, but I really got the sense that this book was written for people who love books in such a manner that it transports them to another world. Most of the characters in the story take books that seriously, and Zafón does a wonderful job capturing how important books can be to an individual.
I don't normally go for "horror," stories, but the way in which the dread of this story slowly builds was just really well done. The characters never acted stupidly or in an ignorant manner, in fact I can't say I'd choose too differently in many of the situations, which made the horrific parts that much more so.
Go read it.