The shadow of the wind (Carlos Ruiz Zafón, 2001)

Title: The shadow of the wind

Original title: La sombra del viento

Writer: Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Year: 2001

Country: Spain

Language: Spanish

★ ★ ★ ★ ✩

The shadow of the wind is one of the most-successful Spanish books of this century. It has been translated into 36 languages and it has won several awards all around the world.

It is the first one of a series of books that takes place in Barcelona during the first half of the 20^th Century, followed by The angel’s game, The prisoner of the sky and a forth one non-written yet.  They are a special mixture of genres: mystery, adventure, love, supernatural…, and the result is an amazing combination of all of them. Every book of the series has its own story, but they are all beautifuly connected through characters, subplotes and, of course, the mystical Cemetery of Forgotten Books.

Daniel Sempere works in his father’s bookshop. One day, he is taken to the secret Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a really old library hidden in the ancient part of the city. Inside, there are copies of almost every book of the planet, and there is a great tradition: each person may take out one book on his first visit. He chooses The Shadow of the Wind by Julián Carax. After reading it, he tries to look for other Carax’s books, but they all have disappeared in mysterious circumstances.

Soon, a mysterious man called Laín Coubert –the same name used in the book to name the Devil– wants to get the book, but Daniel does not want to sell it to him… And yes, the story keeps on surprising and entertaining the reader, who will find it hard to stop reading!

The first chapter is available online in the official Carlos Ruiz Zafón webpage.

Have you already read it? Have you read the following books?