Play Book Tag discussion

When Daniel Sempere is ten years old his father, a bookseller in 1945 Barcelona, takes him to see a bookseller's secret - The Cemetery of Forgotten Books. There, Daniel is allowed to choose one book to take away and read and he chooses The Shadow of the Wind by Julian Carax. Fascinated by the book, Daniel tries to find out more about the author but there is some mystery and someone else wants the book. Through the following years, danger mounts to Daniel, and his friends and family, in his search for the reclusive author.

When I first started this I thought it was going to be a young adult story because of the young boy but it develops nicely into a good mystery. Some of the events are violent and barbaric but there's also some surprising humour. Up until about halfway I felt that it was at least a four star book, maybe even five, but then I started to feel that it went on too long. I had guessed all the plot lines and just wanted it to end so I could see if I was right so I had to downgrade it to a three.

Very Interesting review. I had checked this book out of the library and never even started it because it was so long - others were ahead of it. I gave it back. From your review, I think I will skip it now. A good beginning is nice but is it worth reading the whole book? I am too old to read trash books. I think this one becomes trach at the end, doesn't it? You guess the plot lines. It was long. It got worse rather than better. And a good mystery can be found elsewhere. Is there any reason to recommend it to an old 78 year woman who loves to read? Thanks for this honest review. peace, janz

Peacejanz wrote: "Very Interesting review. I had checked this book out of the library and never even started it because it was so long - others were ahead of it. I gave it back. From your review, I think I will skip..."

Hmm, you've put me on the spot now! I think I would say that it is still worth reading for the historical context and the writing style, which is good. I don't know about you but I've read a lot of mysteries and it can be hard to find a plot twist which I haven't seen before! I definitely don't feel that it was trash. I've struggled on with too many books which I felt that, having started, I ought to finish and I didn't feel that with this one but I did skim read a few of the later chapters in order to reach the finale.

For me the highlight was the history coupled with the location so richly presented and entwined in the story. I had read several novels in last few years that touched on Spain's history. This one filled in some gaps and pulled together for me all the bits I had picked up. I gave it 4 stars but totally agree that it dragged, etc. Not sure I will continue the series.

ShazM wrote: "Peacejanz wrote: "Very Interesting review. I had checked this book out of the library and never even started it because it was so long - others were ahead of it. I gave it back. From your review, I..."

Oh, I do understand the "give it up" situation. I decided this last night when I realized I was dragging through a mystery that had good reviews from some. I never seemed to get much from it. Finally, said to self, "Why are you reading this?" and self could not give me a good reason. It had won no awards, some people liked it, the author seemed to be fairly popular. Those are no reasons for me to keep using my valuable time (who knows how much more time I may have?) to drag through this book? So, back to the return to library pile. Thanks for your review and your answers to my question. Happy reading. peace, janz

I really loved it - 5*****. Like Theresa, I particularly liked the locations in Barcelona, a city I have visited and locations which I recognized and could easily picture.

Five stars an all-time favorite for me!

Put me in the “loved it” column.

OK - I have put it back in the TBR stack - next year is a new year to start books. Too many of you love it and how can I not read it? Thanks for the comments. peace, janz