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Loading... The Angel's Game (original 2008; edition 2010)by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
Work detailsThe Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (2008)
 perkybookworm | May 8, 2013 |  Such a beautiful book to read, so evocative I felt like I was dreaming. The first book I have read in a long time that made me mourn when I'd finished it; I loved it. (  ) Hera | Apr 29, 2013 | I first read this book back in 2009 when it first came out (in the English translation) and re-read it recently in anticipation of reading the latest book in the cycle. Zafon creates a fantastic, Gothic-infused world in Barcelona where the novel takes place complete with mystery, intrigue, doomed love and a dose of horror. The meditation on the writer's craft was especially interesting to me and like the first time around, I could not put the book down because I needed to read what happened next. You could read the rest of my thoughts on the novel over at my blog: http://www.rulethewaves.net/blog/?p=5206 ( ) caffeinatedlife | Apr 26, 2013 | This is the second in Carlos Ruiz Zafron's series of mysteries/thrillers set in Barcelona. This book takes place prior to his first volume, The shadow of the Wind and centers around a young writer named David Martin who makes his living writing sensationalist novels about the city. The product of a troubled childhood, he has managed to make a success of himself through his writings. An encounter with a mysterious stranger, a Psarish publisher named Andreas Corelli, culminates in an offer of a lifetime. He is to write as book about a new religion that will change people's hearts and minds and in exchange collect a fortune. His advance allows him to move into a long-abandoned house know as the Tower house. The house, however, seems to harbor deep and sinister secrets; secrets that become more frightening when he finds photographs and letters hinting at the mysterious death of the former owner of the house. Combining a labyrinth of a plot with magical realism, we wonder what is real and what is imagined and whether or not David has made a pact with the Devil. This is a question the reader will keep asking himself right up to the last page of the novel. Zafron has turned in a tour de force with this novel. (  ) etxgardener | Apr 24, 2013 | First off, the translator of this book did a masterful job. I found that the prose was simply magnificent, and that's a credit to both the author and the translator...there were many turns of phrases that were exceptional. Perhaps it's because it was written in a different language, but the analogies in particular struck me as perfect and never cliched. I also really enjoyed the David Martin character. I felt as if I really was inside his head for about 4/5 of this book. His conversations with Isabella were likewise priceless and often hilarious. I remember thinking around page 100 or so that I felt a connection with the character, and I often don't feel that way when I'm reading a book. I also really enjoyed the plot for again about 4/5 of the book, and I was looking forward to where it was headed. But the reason this gets 3 stars from me is the last 100 pages. The rest of this book was so strong that I'm going to chalk up my dislike of the ending and general confusion at those last 100 pages to me not understanding Zafon's genius. Even after I read the epilogue I simply did not get it. Was Martin Correlli? Did Correlli exist at all? Whose soul, exactly, did Marlasca steal, and why was he so intent on having one in the first place? I understand the witch had told him that death would pass him by if he offered a soul in exchange, but why did Marlasca want to escape death? As I understood it, he missed his dead son, and it would seem he would want to bring him back, rather than live forever. And what was going on with Correlli bringing Cristina back to Martin in the end? I just didn't understand, and I said, I assume this is my failure, not Zafon's. Nevertheless, it can't get a higher rating from me as a result. I really did enjoy the first 430 or so pages, and I probably will try Shadow of the Wind at some point, as others have said they liked that better. But my enjoyment was tempered by my disappointment in those last 100 pages. (  ) Raven9167 | Apr 13, 2013 |
 The result is a twisty, sarcastic ode to books, with a satisfying dollop of religious theory thrown in for good measure. On its surface, "The Angel's Game" is a thriller laden with Gothic elements, but readers who need a traditional denouement with answers neatly laid out will come away disappointed. (I definitely had a little moment of "Wait! What? Huh???" at the end.) But while the plot payoff may not be what readers are expecting, the novel itself is such a pleasure to read that the characters could have ended with a rendition of "The Sun Will Come Out Tomorrow," played on cowbells and a zither, and I would have shrugged it off. “Faust” this isn’t. Ruiz Zafón’s flamboyant pulp epic is something altogether sillier, a pact-with-the-devil tale whose only purpose is to give its readers some small intimation of the darker pleasures of the literary arts, the weird thrill of storytelling without conscience.  Game is a multi-layered confection that combines undying love, magical realism, meditations on religion, the importance of books and a love affair with the vibrant city of Barcelona. Zafon hits the reset button on what it means to be a great writer. His visionary storytelling prowess is a genre unto itself.  The early pages of the novel, focusing on the travails of a writer coming of age, call to mind Mario Vargas Llosa's Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter. But we are not in the nuanced world of literary fiction; calamities pile up on poor Martin's head as they only can in a genre novel. He writes a book for his friend, another aspiring writer, only to see it praised by the same critics who pan his own novel; his girl abandons him and marries his best friend; and he is diagnosed with a brain tumour. The Angel's Game draws the reader into nothing more than a world where people who read, write, or collect books are shown to be special; it peddles narcissism. On the pretext of transporting readers to another time and place, it contracts their world. While much of this novel is highly enjoyable, at some latter point the tongue withdraws from the cheek. In wrapping up a host of absurd sub-plots, somewhere in there the writer loses his sense of humour. When the book ceases to be self-conscious about its own manipulations, it stops being fun. This won’t bother some readers; some will happily dive into the mysticism up to the neck. But others will miss the drollery and sophistication with which the novel began, and for these readers Zafón’s straight resolution will disappoint.
References to this work on external resources.
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“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.
Carlos Ruiz Zafón on The Angel's Game
Years ago, when I began working on my fifth novel, The Shadow of the Wind, I started toying around with the idea of creating a fictional universe that would be articulated through four interconnected stories in which we would meet some of the same characters at different times in their lives, and see them from different perspectives where many plots and subplots would tie around in knots for the reader to untie. It sounds somewhat pretentious, but my idea was to add a twist to the story and provide the reader with what I hoped would be a stimulating and playful reading experience. Since these books were, in part, about the world of literature, books, reading and language, I thought it would be interesting to use the different novels to explore those themes through different angles and to add new layers to the meaning of the stories. At first I thought this could be done in one book, but soon I realized it would make Shadow of the Wind a monster novel, and in many ways, destroy the structure I was trying to design for it. I realized I would have to write four different novels. They would be stand-alone stories that could be read in any order. I saw them as a Chinese box of stories with four doors of entry, a labyrinth of fictions that could be explored in many directions, entirely or in parts, and that could provide the reader with an additional layer of enjoyment and play. These novels would have a central axis, the idea of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, set against the backdrop of a highly stylized, gothic and mysterious Barcelona. Since each novel was going to be complex and difficult to write, I decided to take one at a time and see how the experiment evolved on its own in an organic way.
It all sounds very complicated, but it is not. At the end of the day, these are just stories that share a universe, a tone and some central themes and characters. You don’t need to care or know about any of this stuff to enjoy them. One of the fun things about this process was it allowed me to give each book a different personality. Thus, if Shadow of the Wind is the nice, good girl in the family, The Angel’s Game would be the wicked gothic stepsister. Some readers often ask me if The Angel’s Game is a prequel or a sequel. The answer is: none of these things, and all of the above. Essentially The Angel’s Game is a new book, a stand-alone story that you can fully enjoy and understand on its own. But if you have already read The Shadow of the Wind, or you decide to read it afterwards, you’ll find new meanings and connections that I hope will enhance your experience with these characters and their adventures.
The Angel’s Game has many games inside, one of them with the reader. It is a book designed to make you step into the storytelling process and become a part of it. In other words, the wicked, gothic chick wants your blood. Beware. Maybe, without realizing, I ended up writing a monster book after all... Don’t say I didn’t warn you, courageous reader. I’ll see you on the other side. --Carlos Ruiz Zafón(Photo © Isolde Ohlbaum)
(retrieved from Amazon Wed, 02 Jan 2013 19:28:09 -0500)
Novelist David Martin lives in an abandoned mansion in Barcelona writing baroque tales about the city's underworld. He is contacted by French editor Andreas Corelli to write a book with the power to change hearts and minds. In return he will receive a fortune, and maybe more.… (more)
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Four editions of this book were published by Audible.com.
Penguin AustraliaTwo editions of this book were published by Penguin Australia.
Editions: 1921520523, 1921656719
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Wikipedia in English
If anything, I loved this book even more. It was sufficiently creepy to make my skin crawl in places, and make me want to check the shadows in the closet before turning out the lights at night. I was less aware of the love story in this book, which isn't to say it wasn't there, because it definitely was. I just felt it was more of a subplot used, at times, as a device to propel the main story arc. The epilogue was slightly dissatisfying, but not enough to dampen my enthusiasm for how thoroughly I enjoyed this story. I can't wait to pick up more of Zafon's works. (