4.00/5.00 A good intriguing read.
The Angel’s Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.
I had read and fallen in love with Shadow of the Wind by this author and still I revisit that book every year and fall in love with it all over again, so how could I not read the follow up. Well I say follow up, but technically it’s a stand alone book that comes under the ‘Cemetery of forgotten books’ series. The Angel’s Game is again a beautifully written novel, if sometimes a little wordy, that takes you back to the streets of Barcelona with all of its darkness and intrigue.
I would recommend reading this book BUT do not rush through it, digest and enjoy this work. I don’t believe it was meant to be a quick, fun read, it’s much deeper than that. Having said that, for me it doesn’t hold the magic of ‘Shadow of the Wind’ but I did enjoy it and I love the relationship between all the characters, bringing in the characters from his first book.
Enjoy.
The Blurb –
From the author of the international phenomenon, The Shadow of the Wind, comes The Angel’s Game, a new page-turner about the perilous nature of obsession, in literature and in love.
“The whole of Barcelona stretched out at my feet and I wanted to believe that, when I opened those windows, its streets would whisper stories to me, secrets I could capture on paper and narrate to whomever cared to listen . . .”
In an abandoned mansion at the heart of Barcelona, a young man, David Martín, makes his living by writing sensationalist novels under a pseudonym. The survivor of a troubled childhood, he has taken refuge in the world of books and spends his nights spinning baroque tales about the city’s underworld. But perhaps his dark imaginings are not as strange as they seem, for in a locked room deep within the house lie photographs and letters hinting at the mysterious death of the previous owner.
Like a slow poison, the history of the place seeps into his bones as he struggles with an impossible love. Close to despair, David receives a letter from a reclusive French editor, Andreas Corelli, who makes him the offer of a lifetime. He is to write a book unlike anything that has ever existed—a book with the power to change hearts and minds. In return, he will receive a fortune, and perhaps more. But as David begins the work, he realizes that there is a connection between his haunting book and the shadows that surround his home.
Once again, Zafón takes us into a dark, gothic universe first seen in the Shadow of the Wind and creates a breathtaking adventure of intrigue, romance, and tragedy. Through a dizzingly constructed labyrinth of secrets, the magic of books, passion, and friendship blend into a masterful story.
S C Richmond 