The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon

This had been waiting in my 'To Be Read' pile for quite some time. I have no idea why it took me so long to get around to. I loved it. It's a literary mystery, that takes in a selection of genres, from the gothic to romance. Set in Barcelona in the years following WWII, it follows Daniel Sempere as he tries to unravel the mystery of the author Julian Carax and the book Daniel finds in The Cemetary of Forgotten Books, Carax's final novel 'The Shadow of the Wind'. It's well-written and full of fantasticly drawn characters, from the menacing Inspector Francisco Javier Fumoro to the eccentric beggar turned bookshop assistant Fermin Romero de Torres that people Daniel's adventures. The narrative skips back and forth between what happened to Carex, told by the people Daniel encounters, and Daniel's story, full of danger and love. There are riddles and untruths as Daniel and Fermin attempt to unravel the secrets and solve the mystery of Carax's life and those of their own.