Prisoner of Heaven – Review

4.7/5.0 Another Atmospheric read from Zafon.

Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon.

Again Zafon brings 20th century Barcelona to life, with an atmosphere that will hold your attention on every page. Where I loved Shadow of the wind and was disappointed with Angels Game, this one really brought it all back. The dark beauty of the streets of Barcelona where anything is possible and there are dark deeds going on around every corner. We meet Daniel again and catch up with him as a man, taking care of his wife and son. Beautifully written and always a joy to catch up with his and his friend Fermin.

It has left an opening for a fourth book which I really need to read now…

The Blurb –

The third in the cycle of novels that began with The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel’s Game, The Prisoner of Heaven returns to the world of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books and the Sempere & Sons bookshop. It begins just before Christmas in Barcelona in 1957, one year after Daniel and Bea from The Shadow of the Windhave married. They now have a son, Julian, and are living with Daniel’s father at Sempere & Sons. Fermin still works with them and is busy preparing for his wedding to Bernarda in the New Year. However something appears to be bothering him. Daniel is alone in the shop one morning when a mysterious figure with a pronounced limp enters. He spots one of their most precious volumes that is kept locked in a glass cabinet, a beautiful and unique illustrated edition of The Count of Monte Cristo. Despite the fact that the stranger seems to care little for books, he wants to buy this expensive edition. Then, to Daniel’s surprise, the man inscribes the book with the words ‘To Fermin Romero de Torres, who came back from the dead and who holds the key to the future’. This visit leads back to a story of imprisonment, betrayal and the return of a deadly rival.

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