I have a confession to make. When it comes to mysteries, I’m a page-turning machine. I’m a speed-reader. A skimmer, even. I know. Horrible habit. A habit that was only encouraged by the intricate subplots and interwoven narratives of Carlos Ruiz Zafón’s The Shadow of the Wind. This book for me was like crack to an addict. Zafón’s novel is about a young man named Daniel from Barcelona in the 1940-50s and his obsession with Julian Carax, the author of his favorite book (also titled The Shadow of the Wind), but this just brushes the surface. Ever-looming in the background are tension-fraught dualities: between Francisco Franco’s Nationalist regime and the leftist intelligentsia (personified by the ruthless police inspector Fumero who is pursuing Daniel’s homeless friend Fermín), between Daniel’s desires for an older blind seductress and his best friend’s younger sister, and between the disturbingly parallel lives of Daniel and Carax.
There’s no question about it, this book has a powerful forward momentum that compelled me to keep reading – and even read again. Zafón’s pacing is perfectly suited to the plot – the action-filled scenes read faster than quiet ones, yet (perhaps because there is so little action) throughout the book you can’t escape the feeling of a heavy-handed melodrama. Zafón tries to break up the over-the-top gothic storytelling with lighthearted interludes, but never successfully alleviates the feeling that Daniel, and Zafón, are taking themselves very seriously.
Fortunately, the heavy tone is counterbalanced by the light agility with which Zafon intertwines the threads of his characters’ stories. But for a book with so many twists and turns along the way, I have to admit I’m little disappointed by the predictability of some of the book’s final revelations. For me, the best solution to a mystery is the one that’s plausible, but not predictable. Sadly, a few of the major puzzles are too easy to answer. Given the number of questions raised during Daniel’s quest for answers, though, there are surprises enough.
On the whole, Zafón pleasingly blends mystery, thriller, romance, and humor in his intricately spun novel, but at times stumbles over his own story with overly melodramatic language.
It should be noted that Zafón’s novel was originally written in Spanish, and the English version I read was translated by Lucia Graves. Zafón has since written a sequel (also translated by Graves into English) called The Angel’s Game, which fills in the backstory of the mysterious Julian Carax. You can bet I’ll be reading it.
Final Grade: B+
Don’t forget to check back in a few days to see what Sina and Kim thought of The Shadow of the Wind!
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Popularity: unranked [?]
