blomreads's review against another edition
5.0
É sem duvida, mais um vez um livro para estrelas.
Com a segunda leitura deste livro eu nunca achei que eu ficasse a gostar mais dele do que eu já gostava. A primeira leitura foi sim uma leitura de 5 estrelas, pelas personagens, pela escrita do autora sem dúvida. Mas desta vez, eu consegui perceber certas coisas que antes me tinham passado ao lado e foi uma leitura tão mais enriquecedora.
Záfon continua a trazer os seus elementos mágicos para um comum Barcelona tornando todo o processo de leitura super maravilhoso. Temos claro, óptimas personagens e um enredo de chorar pelo quão entrelaçado e imaginativo é.
Eu diria que este livro é mais virado para o mistério, e é também thriller.
A personagem principal, David, um escritor comum que adquire uma casa um pouco assustadora e faz negócio com um editor francês esquisito que não parece humano. E que personagem! David é sem dúvida uma das personagens mais complexas que eu já li até hoje, doce, simpático e trabalhador, mas por vezes parecia que ele era bipolar e que sofria de transtorno de duas personalidades, ao estilo bem conhecido de jekyll and hyde.
A Isabella é mais uma óptima personagem que traz todo o calor e carinho que é necessário mesmo com a sua dose de irreverencia.
É bom, nestes livros, passarmos por lugares já conhecidos como é o caso da livraria Sempere e Filhos, tão querida do livro "A Sombra do Vento".
A revelação final foi uma que eu já não me lembrava e eu não estava à espera. Foi tão bem desvendada que até dá arrepios só de pensar.
É um livro maravilhoso, uma saga fantástica que aconselho a todos lerem!
Com a segunda leitura deste livro eu nunca achei que eu ficasse a gostar mais dele do que eu já gostava. A primeira leitura foi sim uma leitura de 5 estrelas, pelas personagens, pela escrita do autora sem dúvida. Mas desta vez, eu consegui perceber certas coisas que antes me tinham passado ao lado e foi uma leitura tão mais enriquecedora.
Záfon continua a trazer os seus elementos mágicos para um comum Barcelona tornando todo o processo de leitura super maravilhoso. Temos claro, óptimas personagens e um enredo de chorar pelo quão entrelaçado e imaginativo é.
Eu diria que este livro é mais virado para o mistério, e é também thriller.
A personagem principal, David, um escritor comum que adquire uma casa um pouco assustadora e faz negócio com um editor francês esquisito que não parece humano. E que personagem! David é sem dúvida uma das personagens mais complexas que eu já li até hoje, doce, simpático e trabalhador, mas por vezes parecia que ele era bipolar e que sofria de transtorno de duas personalidades, ao estilo bem conhecido de jekyll and hyde.
A Isabella é mais uma óptima personagem que traz todo o calor e carinho que é necessário mesmo com a sua dose de irreverencia.
É bom, nestes livros, passarmos por lugares já conhecidos como é o caso da livraria Sempere e Filhos, tão querida do livro "A Sombra do Vento".
A revelação final foi uma que eu já não me lembrava e eu não estava à espera. Foi tão bem desvendada que até dá arrepios só de pensar.
É um livro maravilhoso, uma saga fantástica que aconselho a todos lerem!
butteredpopcourt's review against another edition
4.0
Pretty interesting book. I didn't realize it until after I started reading it, but this book is kind of like a prequel to "Shadow of the Wind". Cool!
ankatriendr's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
eallan's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
4.75
ssloeffler's review against another edition
4.0
The writing is delicious, and the story exciting. I can see it being a movie -- a scary one!
yorkslass70's review against another edition
4.0
Gothic horror, romance, crime, mystery, this book has a bit of everything. You may think that sounds like a bit of a mish mash, but I was pleasantly surprised and thought that all the different elements fit well together. It was a page turner with plenty of twists and turns and was it a happy ending or not....I'll let you decide.
sarakomo's review against another edition
2.0
2021: What the actual fuck just happened in this book?
Okay, so presumably you've made it here because you just finished [b:The Shadow of the Wind|1232|The Shadow of the Wind (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #1)|Carlos Ruiz Zafón|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1597921581l/1232._SY75_.jpg|3209783], had a great time, and decided to add The Angel's Game to your TBR. I am here to say STOP, DO NOT DO THAT, STAY AWAY ENTIRELY! I have never been so whiplashed by a sequel / prequel of a book I truly loved.
The first act of The Angel's Game sets up an interesting premise, although I have been fatigued by the number of novels based on religion that I've read recently. I thought that perhaps that frustrated me more than usual here, until I reread a passage that reminded me that no, this was worthy of frustration: "The main pillar of organized religion, with few exceptions, is the subjugation, repression, even the annulment of women in the group. Woman must accept the role of an ethereal, passive, and maternal presence, never of authority or independence, or she will have to suffer the consequences. She might have a place of honor in the symbolism, but not in the hierarchy. Religion and war are male pursuits. And anyhow, woman sometimes ends up becoming the accomplice in her own subjugation." Cool.
I was left with the impression that this would be a similar story to SotW, simply with a new narrator. I would define Daniel of SotW as a reliable narrator and a genuine good person that I spent the novel cheering for. I would define David of TAG as the antithesis of that. It just makes no sense why any of the characters who are involved in the "mystery" central to the book would even open up to David - he gives them no credible reason to trust him.
David's a full on creep to Isabella, his "assistant", a 17-year-old who LITERALLY shows up out of nowhere, ready to cook and clean for him, requiring no payment. Then, his best friend's driver's young daughter, who he's in love with, ends up marrying his best friend because David didn't "make a move". A couple chapters later, she divorces the bff and absconds with David abroad, because she "couldn't image life without him". Excuse me, what?! -1 for (you guessed it) not passing the Bechdel test.
As Zafón's describing one of the most pivotal scenes in the book, in which [REDACTED] drowns, he intersperses the fast paced scene with a weird tense: "I remember that I began to run." Sure, the whole narration takes place in the past, but nowhere is it indicated that David is remembering this story, or that he's recounting it to someone else. These inconsistencies appear throughout the book, and threw me off every time.
The third and final act of this wretched book involved David killing every single person he's met in the book (either by murder or manslaughter) and then the reveal that two different sets of characters are, in fact, the same people, oh and btw David is now immortal. The end. What a mess.
Okay, so presumably you've made it here because you just finished [b:The Shadow of the Wind|1232|The Shadow of the Wind (The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #1)|Carlos Ruiz Zafón|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1597921581l/1232._SY75_.jpg|3209783], had a great time, and decided to add The Angel's Game to your TBR. I am here to say STOP, DO NOT DO THAT, STAY AWAY ENTIRELY! I have never been so whiplashed by a sequel / prequel of a book I truly loved.
The first act of The Angel's Game sets up an interesting premise, although I have been fatigued by the number of novels based on religion that I've read recently. I thought that perhaps that frustrated me more than usual here, until I reread a passage that reminded me that no, this was worthy of frustration: "The main pillar of organized religion, with few exceptions, is the subjugation, repression, even the annulment of women in the group. Woman must accept the role of an ethereal, passive, and maternal presence, never of authority or independence, or she will have to suffer the consequences. She might have a place of honor in the symbolism, but not in the hierarchy. Religion and war are male pursuits. And anyhow, woman sometimes ends up becoming the accomplice in her own subjugation." Cool.
I was left with the impression that this would be a similar story to SotW, simply with a new narrator. I would define Daniel of SotW as a reliable narrator and a genuine good person that I spent the novel cheering for. I would define David of TAG as the antithesis of that. It just makes no sense why any of the characters who are involved in the "mystery" central to the book would even open up to David - he gives them no credible reason to trust him.
David's a full on creep to Isabella, his "assistant", a 17-year-old who LITERALLY shows up out of nowhere, ready to cook and clean for him, requiring no payment. Then, his best friend's driver's young daughter, who he's in love with, ends up marrying his best friend because David didn't "make a move". A couple chapters later, she divorces the bff and absconds with David abroad, because she "couldn't image life without him". Excuse me, what?! -1 for (you guessed it) not passing the Bechdel test.
As Zafón's describing one of the most pivotal scenes in the book, in which [REDACTED] drowns, he intersperses the fast paced scene with a weird tense: "I remember that I began to run." Sure, the whole narration takes place in the past, but nowhere is it indicated that David is remembering this story, or that he's recounting it to someone else. These inconsistencies appear throughout the book, and threw me off every time.
The third and final act of this wretched book involved David killing every single person he's met in the book (either by murder or manslaughter) and then the reveal that two different sets of characters are, in fact, the same people, oh and btw David is now immortal. The end. What a mess.
emroll's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
feeona's review against another edition
4.0
Sieht man dieses Buch im Vergleich zu „Der Schatten des Windes“, kann ich verstehen, dass man etwas enttäuscht ist, daran reicht es auch in meinen Augen nicht heran und wer sich eine gleichwertige oder noch bessere Fortsetzung erwartet hat, bekommt hier nicht, was er sucht. Für sich allein genommen ist dieses Buch aber wieder ein sehr mysteriöser und spannender Roman im typischen Stil von Carlos Ruiz Zafon. Wieder spielt der Friedhof der vergessenen Bücher eine Rolle, wieder spielt die gleiche Familie eine Rolle, sonst haben die Geschichten aber nichts miteinander gemein. Dieses Buch spielt in einer früheren Generation und es behandelt ein eigenständiges Thema. Mir hat es sehr gut gefallen. Ich habe zwar erst 3 Bücher von Carlos Ruiz Zafon gelesen, doch ich bin großer Fan seiner Geschichten und werde die weiteren Teile der „Friedhof der vergessenen Bücher“-Reihe auf jeden Fall lesen.