I'm sensing a pretty big twist coming up. I've got a few ideas but I'm going to hold my own council for the time being.
This is the kind of book that stays with you (or with me). Spoiler Unbelievable story. At first, I was lured in with the writing. I have always said there are great writers and then there are great storytellers. Ernie Cline and Justin Cronin are great writers, IMHO. Tolkien was a great storyteller. This guy comes close to being both. The only person I can say with 100% certainty that is both was Robert E. Howard, but I digress. I was tricked, in a good way, into believing this book had a hint of fantasy in it. That Lain Coubert was really some supernatural entity and Carax's books held some otherworldy power... or something. I'm actually glad that didn't happen and that everything was real. I knew, or deducted, early on that Carax wasn't dead. I thought he would turn up as someone we were introduced to (which he was I guess... ). There were a lot of characters and, if I had to give a complaint, it was that I was sometimes confused by not only the number of people we met, but that the names all sounded vaguely similar to me, a non-Spanish speaker. I thought Carax may be the old watchmaker or the teacher or the bookseller or... well, who knew. Even having an inkling that he wasn't dead and he was somewhere in the periphery of the story, I was still surprised at his 'reveal'. Oh, and I loved the way he was revealed. Zafon could have easily given us this instance in some dramatic fashion, such as Coubert approaching Daniel and saying, "No. I AM JULIAN CARAX!" or something. It's an easy writer trick, we see it all the time. But to reveal it slowly, via Nuria's letter, was such a great touch. The mystery was so good, so detailed. I KNEW something was up and couldn't work it all out. Fumero was such a great villian, Fermin such a great foil. The tragedy of Carax's life was so sad it would have made Sophocles blush. The ending, while story-bookish, was perfect. I thought Daniel would die, or Bea, and the tragedy would be repeated. But the fact that he lived, and lived happily, somehow made Julian Carax's life seem a little less horrible. Carax saw himself in Daniel, and Daniel lived to be happy. Which was nice. I could go on and on with what I liked.
Very glad I finished as well, because I reallllly enjoyed the 2nd half of the book. It is one that will definitely stick with me. Spoiler You can see many of my comments I had while reading. Here are some more, some in response, some are just random... Random thoughts: I agree with you about the many characters, because that threw me off quite a bit as well. I found myself going back and re-"reading" many times to make sure I didn't miss anything. Confused why Thomas was "gone forever" I mean, Daniel knocked up your sister, sure. However, he also married her and treated her awesome. What else would you want as a brother? I'm shocked he didn't let Daniel explain and instead kicked the shit out of him. Like what happened to Fumero, but wish he was also discovered for being a corrupt officer in death. His character left a lot to be desired imo. I definitely hated him, but was curious as to how he got in his position given his murder/attempted murder during childhood. I also realize he was the beneficiary of a war, but still, just seemed a little far fetched. Still don't know who Clara represented in Carax's life - if anyone. In fact, I think she could be completely left out of the story in an abridged version of the book. That whole part looking back, now seems kind of like a waste. Please explain if you disagree, because I don't fully see how she served a purpose that truly affected the stories conclusion. I also thought someone would die. After what I wrote earlier in the thread about Daniel saying he'd die, I figured he meant that figuratively. Like he was reborn into a new person, most likely via an identity change. All I can think about for now... PS. Did Carax ever discover that he and Penelope were kin?
Just in case yall didn't know, after this he wrote a prequel called The Angel's Game and then a sequel called The Prisoner of Heaven and then a free short story on Amazon about the history of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books called The Rose of Fire
Was under the impression that the only thing that tied them all together, aside from the setting, was the Cemetery of Forgotten Books. (i.e. no characters, aside from the bookseller, overlap). Am I incorrect? Gin Buckets Spoiler I don't think Carax knew he and Penelope were siblings.
Spoiler I think I saw Daniel's name in the description of The Prisoner of Heaven but I didn't read much for fear of spoilers
You really need to read the books, reading back over some of your posts you're butchering names/spelling Spoiler Julian broke her boss Sanmarti's neck for all of his sexual harassment and the first owner of the Aldaya's house was Jausa
Spoiler I thought Julian was still alive but it wasn't until towards the end I figured out he was the burned man. I didn't believe that Daniel would die, but I was worried Bea would much like Penelope. I'm glad she didn't though. I loved the parallels between Julian and Daniel's story and I'm glad that Julian got redemption by helping Daniel's story turn out differently than his own. Julian's full story told through Nuria's letter was tragically beautiful, like some Romeo and Juliet type shit (executed much much much much better than whatever Wool was trying to do). Really loved the book. Went back and forth between giving it 4 and 5 stars on Goodreads. Ended up going with 4 but I wish I could give it 4.5.
Started this book last night (after I got 5 pages in to Cloud Atlas and bailed) and was pretty bored, actually fell asleep twice in the first 5%. Finally hit the part where we first meet the man with the burned face and got hooked. Now at the part where Daniel and his dad hire the homeless guy. I'm already starting to see where several plot lines may be coming together, with the kid's quest to find Carax, the Devil guy, and the Inspector who shot Clara's dad. Can't wait to get to the heart of the story, since things seem like they are just opening.
It is an awesome book. You have to get lost in it, though. It's immersive and doesn't carry the same weight if you are a bystander waiting for a story to unfold. Enjoy the language, the guy is a superb writer.
About 60% in after last night. I do enjoy the story, it seems like all the characters flow together in some elaborate plot underlying the story which makes me want to keep reading, but the Bea/Daniel love story seems kinda, meh? idk, Daniel's a dick for fucking his only friend's sister. Only thing that is ruining the book for me, we have a book that is centered around the POV of Daniel, the main character, but suddenly hearing about the past from other narrators we can magically see inside these people's thoughts and minds, and see private moments between characters who AREN'T the secondary narrators. Drives me fucking crazy reading flashbacks from characters, for instance: the priest, who knows all the innermost thoughts of all of his friends at once. Can't get over it. Otherwise excellent so far but not as good as advertised for me
Good book, somewhat enjoyed it, but again, hearing about Carax's life through non-Carax narrators and hearing desires/secret moments between characters who werent the narrator from the nanny, priest or the bookstore assistant just killed it for me. In one of the flash back narrations it gets mentioned that Fumero was masturbating while thinking of the idea of stabbing the bookstore assistant repeatedly in the chest. Who the fuck would know this other than Fumero, so why is it part of a letter/story about the past?? Idk, good but not great, enjoyed the way Daniel and Carax lives mirrored each others, and liked the characters and plot. Still though, worst of TMB book club selections that I've read, but I've skipped Wool and Cloud Atlas, which I can't get more than 5 pages into ATM. On to read UTD now. Sorry for typos, on mobile/work
I just finished shadow of the wind. Late but as I promised. Anyway, it was fantastic. Great characters but the language was amazing. I can only imagine how it would be to read it in Spanish. The aesthetic portrayed of the tension from the war as we hit the height of the story I thought was exceptionally well done. There were some really great passages and lines worth highlighting as well. Did anyone read the prequel?