One of those rare novels which combines a brilliant plot with sublime writing.
(SUNDAY TIMES)
The best book of the year. Irresistible. It's erudite and accessible to anyone. It will take its place in the great tradition of coming of age novels in which the secrets and curses keep on appearing like in a Russian doll.
(LE FIGARO)
The Shadow of the Wind undoubtedly wonderful. The plot is masterfully and meticulously constructed with extraordinarily skilful language... A love letter to literature aimed at readers who love fiction as much as its young protagonist.
(ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY)
If someone thought that the genuine gothic novel had died in the 19th century, this book will change their mind. This is a novel full of splendour and hidden trapdoors in which even the subplots have subplots. In Zafón's hands, each scene reads as though it has come out of Orson Welles' early films. You have to be a true romantic to appreciate it fully but if you are, this is an incredible read.
(STEPHEN KING)
Once more I have found a book that shows how wonderful it can be to immerse oneself in a rich, long novel... This novel has it all: seduction, risk, revenge and a mystery the author spins out masterfully. Zafón is even better than the extraordinary Charles Dickens.
(THE PHILADELPHIA ENQUIRER).
Tremendously good... the story is incredibly well rounded. The doses of humour, terror, politics and romance are well measured... and the overall effect is very satisfying. Zafón, an ex-scriptwriter, is particularly good at contrast and rhythm: the book's four hundred pages pass incredibly quickly.
(SUNDAY TELEGRAPH)
Anyone who loves terrifying, erotic, moving, tragic and suspenseful novels should run to their nearest bookshop and get hold of a copy of The Shadow of the Wind. Seriously. Go.
(THE WASHINGTON POST)
You'll put everything to one side and read all night long; you won't want to put down The Shadow of the Wind until you've got to the end.
JOSCHKA FISCHER (GERMAN VICE-CHANCELLOR)
A popular masterpiece, a contemporary classic.
(DAILY TELEGRAPH)
García Márquez, Umberto Eco and Jorge Luis Borges meet in a magical, overflowing spectacle, of unnerving perspicacity and definitive wonder, written by the Spanish novelist Carlos Ruiz Zafón.
(THE NEW YORK TIMES)
The Shadow of the Wind inaugurates a phenomenon in Spanish popular literature.
(LA VANGUARDIA)
If anyone thought that the genuine Gothic novel died in the 19th century, this book will change their mind, you have to be a real romantic to appreciate its value, but if you are then this is a wonderful read. With books like this, who needs good news or good television programs?
(Stephen King en Entertainment Weekly)
Ruiz Zafón's pages will bewitch anyone who reads them for a couple of days. The man's narrative talent is overwhelming.
(EL MUNDO)
Pure magic, there's no other way to describe this novel. History and writing, plot and tone, characters and profiles, are all excellent. You can never get away from its five hundred captivating, suspense-filled pages. The writing is special like the scent of a perfume that spreads seductively and sensually. And the aroma lasts a long time.
(HAMBURGER ABENDBLATT)
Everything in The Shadow of the Wind is extraordinarily sophisticated. The style is amazing while the plot twists and unravels with a languid grace... Zafón's novel is atmospheric, beguiling and thoroughly readable.
(THE OBSERVER)
An ambitious work, successfully combining the most varied styles (from the comedy of manners to the historical chronicle in the same central mystery) without losing an iota of its power to fascinate.
(QUÉ LEER)
Absorbing, imaginative and solidly built. The pleasure of rediscovering the eternal adolescent we all carry inside of us through reading.
(EL PERIÓDICO)
The Shadow of the Wind has everything a great story needs: love, betrayal, death, hatred and friendship. It's no surprise that it's become the book of the year.
(BERLIN LITERATURE CRITIQUE)