Scan barcode
A review by cynicalworm
The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
2.0
This book is a major disappointment.
Originally drawn in by the rave reviews and the concept introduced in the first chapter, after laboring through this book, I have discovered that the "cemetery of forgotten books" is merely one of many corpses found in the cemetery of abandoned side-plots.
In response to those shouting "but it's a gothic novel!", no literary genre excuses carpet-bombing the reader with exposition at random turns.
For those about to make the same mistake I did, let me warn you that the entire novel is wrapped up through 85 straight pages of a post-humous tell-all letter addressed to the protagonist, followed by three chapters that read like post-scripts written in response to an editor's sticky notes.
The Shadow of the Wind is a novel that is better forgotten.
Originally drawn in by the rave reviews and the concept introduced in the first chapter, after laboring through this book, I have discovered that the "cemetery of forgotten books" is merely one of many corpses found in the cemetery of abandoned side-plots.
In response to those shouting "but it's a gothic novel!", no literary genre excuses carpet-bombing the reader with exposition at random turns.
For those about to make the same mistake I did, let me warn you that the entire novel is wrapped up through 85 straight pages of a post-humous tell-all letter addressed to the protagonist, followed by three chapters that read like post-scripts written in response to an editor's sticky notes.
The Shadow of the Wind is a novel that is better forgotten.