A star ...

... Impossible to write a better novel that fell from my hand after 100 pages. Given the avalanche of praise which he is the subject I expected to spend a few hours as tasty know how to give good books. From the opening paragraphs I felt like a malaise that has continued to expand during my reading: instead of enjoying a good Bordeaux from his store, I was trying to swallow a glass of water from the tap; colorless, odorless, tasteless. For me, style is trivial (it is not the fault of the translator, excellent with Arturo Perez-Reverte), the laborious narration, stereotypical characters. A critical read on Amazon is that it is a "novel for teens," judgment also came to mind; I add that even happen to (re) read Jules Verne and to take much pleasure, like what the literature aimed at young people is certainly not to reject. But then, sorry, it just does not. I will say nothing of history, has not led to a close reading, except that the beginning I was not sufficiently hooked that I desired to know his suite and its outcome; I also think that if the storyteller is good, which is not the case here, regardless of history. To stay in the Spanish literature, see for example the first page of "Cadiz or the diagonal of the crazy" Perez-Reverte, and you will see the difference, I'm stuck in the first lines. Going back to "The Shadow of the Wind", do not hesitate to buy it (phew, I've borrowed) and read it: apparently, you have a 95% chance of having a good time; if you are among the remaining 5%, console yourself by saying that you are not entirely alone (e) ...