Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Daniel’s father faithfully retains a longtime friend of the family, Fermin Romero del Torres, who works in the bookstore. Fermin finds himself confronted with a threatening shadow from his past as he fills out paperwork in preparation for his marriage. Keeping a low profile has become a way of life for men of a certain age in post-war Spain, and the country has suffered 20 years of brutality under the boot of dictator Generalissimo Francisco Franco. Daniel knows little about Fermin’s past other than he, like other dissidents at the end of the bloody revolution, had paid for his loyalty to the losing side by being shackled in the notorious dungeon fortress that looms above the city. Those who survived (and their numbers were few) were barely able to stagger through the gates, each leaving a part of their sanity and very souls in the infamous torture chambers. None had ever escaped. 

A mysterious old man, badly crippled, appears at the book shop to purchase a wedding gift for Fermin, who is away for the day. The old man selects a very expensive rare edition of Dumas’ The Count of Monte Cristo, enters an ominous inscription on the title page, and signs his name “Fermin Romero del Torres,” the same name as Daniel’s friend. Intrigued, Daniel follows him through the streets of Barcelona to a sleazy hotel in the red light district.  He returns to the store and shows the book to Fermin, who is shaken when he sees the inscription and his own name written by another. Daniel presses him for more details, and Fermin reluctantly confides in him. Times are still very dangerous as Franco retains his fanatical grip on Spain. The fact that this man, who Fermin knows and fears, is still alive and privy to his whereabouts could threaten the bridegroom’s life and future family.

THE PRISONER OF HEAVEN is the third in a promised four-part saga centered on the Cemetery of Forgotten Books.Zafon writes that none is a sequel to the other and that each novel stands alone and can be read in any order. Barcelona comes vividly, albeit darkly, to life through Zafon’s masterful storytelling ability in each of these first three books. One would be mistaken to ascribe any single genre or style to describe each volume, because although the setting and people are the same, none is told in the same manner. It is a testament to Zafon’s genius that he doesn’t fall into the pit of mimicking himself with each new rendering. 

The city of Barcelona lends itself to dark themes with its Gothic towers and bloody history.  THE SHADOW OF THE WIND could almost be described as a Gothic novel with its mystery, romance and suspense. THE ANGEL’S GAME, on the other hand, leans toward a psychological, supernatural thriller ala magic realism, while THE PRISONER OF HEAVEN is a historical novel depicting the life and misfortunes of a man who fought on the wrong side of a revolution. Invoking the atmosphere of Dumas, Dickens, Poe and Garcia Marquez, Carlos Ruiz Zafon retains his originality and will hold his rightful place among the storytelling masters of literature.

"La Barcelona más verdadera es la de esos años, y por eso me gustó esculcarla", señaló a la edición digital del diario Folha de Sao Paulo el autor de la saga "El cementerio de los libros olvidados", la trilogía que comenzó con "La sombra del viento" y que continuó con "El juego del ángel" y "El prisionero del cielo".

Para Ruiz Zafón, Barcelona, donde nació hace 48 años, es la ciudad en la que están su "cuna y raíces".

"Es la ciudad de donde vengo y a la que tarde o temprano termino volviendo y siempre me pareció, desde pequeño, que el alma de la ciudad y la esencia que percibo de ella es la ciudad que se desarrolla desde la Revolución Industrial hasta el final de la Segunda Guerra", apuntó.

En "El prisionero del cielo", los personajes Daniel Sempere y su amigo Fermín, los héroes de "La sombra del viento", regresan de nuevo a la aventura para afrontar el mayor desafío de sus vidas en la Barcelona de 1957.

"Es un período extraordinariamente rico en todos los ámbitos, con grandes esperanzas, tragedias y una evolución tremenda de la sociedad", subrayó el autor.

La trilogía, cuyo último libro comenzó a publicarse en Brasil, ha vendido 25 millones de ejemplares en todo el mundo.

Ruiz Zafón se refirió también al actual momento por el que pasa la economía española.

"Vivo la mitad del año en Barcelona y la mitad en Los Ángeles, por eso puedo ver de cerca la gravísima situación que vive mi país y su entorno en Europa", comentó.

Según el escritor, "son días muy difíciles y la sensación que tengo es de que se aproximan otros peores y la situación me produce una gran preocupación y una gran tristeza, porque el resultado es que muchos errores están siendo pagados por personas que no los cometieron", aseveró.

Seattle bestselling author Garth Stein (The Art of Racing in the Rain) led the conversation with the Spanish bestselling author. The two touched on readers' attention spans in the era of multitasking and texting, the weather (Zafon was happy to take credit for Seattle's sunshine), and Wagner before delving into discussion of The Prisoner of Heaven and his previous two novels related to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, The Shadow of the Wind and its prequel The Angel's Game.

Stein's enthusiastic and informed questions led to rich and illuminating answers from Zafon. Hints at the structure of the quartet ("If you think you know what will happen [in the fourth book], you don't..."), deep thoughts about history and cities, musings about labyrinths, and ruminations about Barcelona as a character were some of my favorite parts of the night. Zafon was fluent, funny, and charming.

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