Amy B. (BaileysBooks) reviewed The Shadow of the Wind (Cemetery of Forgotten Books, Bk 1) on + 491 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
Even though this book was originally written in Spanish, nothing has been lost in the translation. This was an incredibly captivating, well written, and hauntingly beautiful book.
The plot is incredibly complex but is not hard to follow. It reminded me of those Russian nesting dolls...of plots within plots within plots. The story of the characters continues to unwind and intertwine until the very final pages. And while there is always a lot going on, the author manages to tie everything together in the end with plausible realism and no loose ends.
This is also a booklover's book. Anyone who treasures reading will marvel at the concept of "The Cemetery of Forgotten Books" and will watch with both horror and fascination as the entire collective works of Julian Carax are systematically tracked down and burned.
This book, while not what I consider to be fast-paced, was steady and suspenseful. The emotion of the characters is something that you feel keenly. Character development was exceptional. It is something of a hybrid of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "One Hundred Years of Solitude" and Arturo Perez-Reverte's "The Club Dumas." It is easily one of my new favorite books for the way that I couldn't put it down, for the way it stayed with me for a few days after I finished it, and for the disappointment I felt when I had no more of it to read.
This is an exceptional book and I cannot recommend it enough.
The plot is incredibly complex but is not hard to follow. It reminded me of those Russian nesting dolls...of plots within plots within plots. The story of the characters continues to unwind and intertwine until the very final pages. And while there is always a lot going on, the author manages to tie everything together in the end with plausible realism and no loose ends.
This is also a booklover's book. Anyone who treasures reading will marvel at the concept of "The Cemetery of Forgotten Books" and will watch with both horror and fascination as the entire collective works of Julian Carax are systematically tracked down and burned.
This book, while not what I consider to be fast-paced, was steady and suspenseful. The emotion of the characters is something that you feel keenly. Character development was exceptional. It is something of a hybrid of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "One Hundred Years of Solitude" and Arturo Perez-Reverte's "The Club Dumas." It is easily one of my new favorite books for the way that I couldn't put it down, for the way it stayed with me for a few days after I finished it, and for the disappointment I felt when I had no more of it to read.
This is an exceptional book and I cannot recommend it enough.
Nicole P. (silvergirl) reviewed The Shadow of the Wind (Cemetery of Forgotten Books, Bk 1) on + 24 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
This book has everything that makes reading wonderful: a beautiful setting, interesting characters, an intricate plot, lots of suspense, some surprising twists, romance, history, humor, and truth. Plus my new favorite insult: "fascist buttock polisher." I think that anyone who loves to read will love this book. And if you don't, you're a fascist buttock polisher.
Amy B. (BaileysBooks) reviewed The Shadow of the Wind (Cemetery of Forgotten Books, Bk 1) on + 491 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
Even though this book was originally written in Spanish, nothing has been lost in the translation. This was an incredibly captivating, well written, and hauntingly beautiful book.
The plot is incredibly complex but is not hard to follow. It reminded me of those Russian nesting dolls...of plots within plots within plots. The story of the characters continues to unwind and intertwine until the very final pages. And while there is always a lot going on, the author manages to tie everything together in the end with plausible realism and no loose ends.
This is also a booklover's book. Anyone who treasures reading will marvel at the concept of "The Cemetery of Forgotten Books" and will watch with both horror and fascination as the entire collective works of Julian Carax are systematically tracked down and burned.
This book, while not what I consider to be fast-paced, was steady and suspenseful. The emotion of the characters is something that you feel keenly. Character development was exceptional. It is something of a hybrid of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "One Hundred Years of Solitude" and Arturo Perez-Reverte's "The Club Dumas." It is easily one of my new favorite books for the way that I couldn't put it down, for the way it stayed with me for a few days after I finished it, and for the disappointment I felt when I had no more of it to read.
This is an exceptional book and I cannot recommend it enough.
The plot is incredibly complex but is not hard to follow. It reminded me of those Russian nesting dolls...of plots within plots within plots. The story of the characters continues to unwind and intertwine until the very final pages. And while there is always a lot going on, the author manages to tie everything together in the end with plausible realism and no loose ends.
This is also a booklover's book. Anyone who treasures reading will marvel at the concept of "The Cemetery of Forgotten Books" and will watch with both horror and fascination as the entire collective works of Julian Carax are systematically tracked down and burned.
This book, while not what I consider to be fast-paced, was steady and suspenseful. The emotion of the characters is something that you feel keenly. Character development was exceptional. It is something of a hybrid of Gabriel Garcia Marquez's "One Hundred Years of Solitude" and Arturo Perez-Reverte's "The Club Dumas." It is easily one of my new favorite books for the way that I couldn't put it down, for the way it stayed with me for a few days after I finished it, and for the disappointment I felt when I had no more of it to read.
This is an exceptional book and I cannot recommend it enough.
Helpful Score: 1
This is an OK book to read, but I hated it in audio. The narrator made every middle-age plus man sound like a smarmy version of Ricardo Montalban, and it caused me to abandon listening and actually read it.
Vanessa L. (VanessaL) reviewed The Shadow of the Wind (Cemetery of Forgotten Books, Bk 1) on + 26 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 1
This is my all-time favorite book. I love it so much that I get extra copies to loan out to friends, and I've never recommended it to anyone who didn't end up loving it. In fact, I ran out of copies and had to order another one! As you read the book, you fall in love with the main character, Daniel, and with the beautiful city of Barcelona. It manages to be both fantastical and relatable at the same time. The book is translated from the Spanish, but the translation is a work of art.
