The Shadow of the Wind

4 stars. This book was intricately written and beautiful to read, although I also have a feeling that perhaps the translations don't do the original text justice. The pacing was just about right for most of the book, except when it slowed down somewhat around the halfway mark. The ending was satisfying and felt proportionate to the thrill of the rest of the book.

Ultimately, this book was juicy and soap-opera-ish following in the traditions of Spanish predecessors like The Count of Monte Cristo. It uses its pretext of being a book about books pretty well and it's not just some gimmick that only serves as a hook, but I also kinda wish that that theme was more intricately bound to the central plot and mystery. Nevertheless though, it was overall thoroughly entertaining and I spent at least one night unable to stop reading because I just had to find out what was going to happen next.

Daniel made a pretty good protagonist. We first begin following him when he's an innocent 10 year old boy, and follow him through some embarrassing and cringey pre-pubescent years. He develops his first crush and though the way he sets about it is undoubtedly cringey as you might expect of a character that age, there's also something sympathetic about the way Zafron writes him - I certainly commiserated with Daniel as much as I rolled my eyes at his adolescent antics.

Perhaps my favourite character in the book is Fermin, a boisterous former beggar who has more personality than his skeletal frame might hint at. One of the most memorable parts of the book for me is when he compared men to lightbulbs and women to heating irons in terms of how quickly these two genders are sexually aroused. Or perhaps this gem:

“That woman is a volcano on the point of eruption, with a libido of igneous magma yet the heart of an angel.”

I don't know how accurately this has been translated but I'm just here for it.

If you like book about books, or just want a thoroughly engaging and exciting historical mystery with juicy drama, this book is absolutely for you.