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covergirlbooks's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
This book is creepy. It’s gothic in atmosphere and tone, and at times feels like a man on the run story, but then the horror elements start to stack up on you the further you go in the novel. It get’s shockingly violent. I think that’s part of the reason why it’s been called maze-like.
This is a prequel to The Shadow of the Wind, but I find most blogs recommend reading it second. I think having the context of some of the places and next generation of the cast put me in a good place for the read.
In this story, we’re following the budding writer David Martín. David began by writing sensational serialized stories for a demanding publisher under a pseudonym. His dream is to write a novel of his own. But when he finally gets the time to commit to the endeavor, his grueling writing habits are self-destructive. At the novel’s completion, his health is wrecked, and the publisher trashes the release, greedy for him to resume the lucrative serials once more.
Desperate to live and for his writing to live on in memory, David accepts a mysterious book contract from a sinister figure. Later, when he grows suspicious of his new boss, and reluctant to complete the work, David starts to pick up the trail of the previous writer who struck the same bargain. This turns out to be a dangerous game, because the closer he gets to the answers, the tighter the conspiracy draws around David and those he holds dear.
The male gaze is still a factor in this book, and the female characters are either in a state of need or malicious toward the main character. This is softened in contrast to The Shadow of the Wind, ever so slightly, by the friendship David develops with Isabella.
This is a prequel to The Shadow of the Wind, but I find most blogs recommend reading it second. I think having the context of some of the places and next generation of the cast put me in a good place for the read.
In this story, we’re following the budding writer David Martín. David began by writing sensational serialized stories for a demanding publisher under a pseudonym. His dream is to write a novel of his own. But when he finally gets the time to commit to the endeavor, his grueling writing habits are self-destructive. At the novel’s completion, his health is wrecked, and the publisher trashes the release, greedy for him to resume the lucrative serials once more.
Desperate to live and for his writing to live on in memory, David accepts a mysterious book contract from a sinister figure. Later, when he grows suspicious of his new boss, and reluctant to complete the work, David starts to pick up the trail of the previous writer who struck the same bargain. This turns out to be a dangerous game, because the closer he gets to the answers, the tighter the conspiracy draws around David and those he holds dear.
The male gaze is still a factor in this book, and the female characters are either in a state of need or malicious toward the main character. This is softened in contrast to The Shadow of the Wind, ever so slightly, by the friendship David develops with Isabella.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Murder
Moderate: Misogyny, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Police brutality
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual harassment
alyssainnc's review against another edition
4.0
Not quite as good as Shadow of the Wind, but still beautifully written. The story itself was engaging though a bit convoluted. Not disappointing at all.
bookwhore37's review against another edition
5.0
A fast paced adventure about love, loss, and what we believe in and why we need to believe that words, especially ones we write down, have the power to change the world.
bethanygladhill's review against another edition
4.0
Very compelling, though not quite as good as I wanted it to be. Suspenseful, yet a little predictable.
aubers's review against another edition
3.0
I was hoping to love this book like I loved Shadow of the Wind, but, well, I didn't. It starts out promising, but somewhere about halfway through I got a little tired of listening to the narrator whine about everything, and having him pave a path that makes you believe one thing is going to happen, then spins you around. The "twists" in the plot felt heavy-handed.
I do have to say, I love the way Zafon describes the city of Barcelona and I would definitely read another of his books, but this was not my favorite.
I do have to say, I love the way Zafon describes the city of Barcelona and I would definitely read another of his books, but this was not my favorite.
dervin01's review against another edition
5.0
Carlos Ruiz Zafon is a masterful writer and nowhere is this more evident than in The Angel's Game, his follow up to The Shadow of the Wind. The story of David Martin is rich with historical context, intrigue, mystery, love, and literary prowess. Zafon constructs a world in Barcelona that is so real, you can imagine yourself in every place he describes, from Martin's castle-like home to the Cemetary of Forgotten Books and Sempere's bookstore. He takes the idea of a story within a story to its logical extremes here, as his main character makes his living as a writer and spends most of the book consumed with his greatest work, commissioned by a shadowy figure that only he sees. In the end, the reader is driven to the brink of destruction with David and you are left with the feeling that Zafon is easily one of the greatest storytellers of our time.
jstillwell's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
_mkatkat_'s review against another edition
3.0
While The Angel's Game wasn't as captivating or gorgeous as The Shadow of the Wind, it was still a solid story, beautifully translated and held my interest through all 400+ pages. I loved the end, despite it confusing the hell out of me. When I finished I immediately went to the internet trying to find other people's theories on who Corelli really was and whether or not David was insane. My favorite part about The Angel's Game was the depth it added to the story of Daniel Sempere and his father. I loved meeting Daniel's mother, she was easily my favorite character in the whole story. My favorite scene was Christina Sagnier at the sanatorium. Her breakdown and death were the creepiest parts of the story. I would love to hear people's opinions on whether or not David hurt her. I know Diego Marlasca was in the house, but what about the Angel Brooch being found in the trunk and the revelation as to who was wearing it??
km0220's review against another edition
4.0
By the time I was halfway done with the book, I almost managed to convince myself that I didn't like it. The story started off really well, became tedious around the halfway mark, and then redeemed itself as it approached the end.
I noticed that reviews for this book were mixed, which is not altogether surprising. The book is definitely way more dense and dark than "Shadow of the Wind" and the protagonist is much less likable that Daniel Sempere. Actually, I found myself missing Daniel tremendously as I was plodding through the middle part.
But the main reason I have for giving this book a high rating is the narrator David Martin. He is tormented, unsympathetic (for the most part), and sometimes downright cruel. It is pretty easy to disagree with almost all his decisions and choices. But I can imagine he was a really great character to write and, despite myself, I enjoyed reading the perspective of this complex and dark protagonist. To put it simply, it was a nice change reading about a sort of "anti" hero!
I loved all the colorful secondary characters in "Shadow of the Wind" and I felt that this book fell short in that regard. To be honest, I didn't find the players in the book very interesting, perhaps with the exception of Martin's assistant Isabella (side-note: she and Martin have some great conversations!). There wasn't a lot of character development and maybe that's why I really could not bring myself to care about any one of them. And maybe I am just dense and totally unromantic, and hence didn't get any of the "subtle" hints in the story, but I have no clue as to why or how [SORT OF SPOILER!] Martin and Cristina fall in love! Speaking of which, I found Cristina painfully tedious and feel as if all she did was slow the pace of the story.
But despite some flaws, I liked the book a lot and will probably go back and re-read it at some point. I am excited about reading "The Prisoner of Heaven" next! I love Fermin!!! :-)
I noticed that reviews for this book were mixed, which is not altogether surprising. The book is definitely way more dense and dark than "Shadow of the Wind" and the protagonist is much less likable that Daniel Sempere. Actually, I found myself missing Daniel tremendously as I was plodding through the middle part.
But the main reason I have for giving this book a high rating is the narrator David Martin. He is tormented, unsympathetic (for the most part), and sometimes downright cruel. It is pretty easy to disagree with almost all his decisions and choices. But I can imagine he was a really great character to write and, despite myself, I enjoyed reading the perspective of this complex and dark protagonist. To put it simply, it was a nice change reading about a sort of "anti" hero!
I loved all the colorful secondary characters in "Shadow of the Wind" and I felt that this book fell short in that regard. To be honest, I didn't find the players in the book very interesting, perhaps with the exception of Martin's assistant Isabella (side-note: she and Martin have some great conversations!). There wasn't a lot of character development and maybe that's why I really could not bring myself to care about any one of them. And maybe I am just dense and totally unromantic, and hence didn't get any of the "subtle" hints in the story, but I have no clue as to why or how [SORT OF SPOILER!] Martin and Cristina fall in love! Speaking of which, I found Cristina painfully tedious and feel as if all she did was slow the pace of the story.
But despite some flaws, I liked the book a lot and will probably go back and re-read it at some point. I am excited about reading "The Prisoner of Heaven" next! I love Fermin!!! :-)