“The Prisoner of Heaven” by Carlos Ruiz Zafon – Connections from the Deep Past

With his unforgettable Gothic image of Barcelona Carlos Ruiz Zafon has made many fans around the world, and thankfully it's a city he keeps on going back to in his The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series, which also includes The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game.

Before delving into this third book in the series, The Prisoner of Heaven, it should be mentioned that at the start, Zafon intended to write a collection of books that were connected by their themes and characters and could be read in any order, making for an interested journey that could begin at any point the reader chose.

However, as his writings took shape the plan changed a bit, and while the first two books can be read in whatever order you please, I'd venture to say that is no longer true for this third book. It uses characters, locations and events that were extensively covered in the previous books, and going into this one blind will certainly make it far less enjoyable.

In any case, the story this time is a bit shorter and feels somewhat more moderate as the focus is placed on both Daniel Sempere and David Martin, without of course forgetting what is perhaps the greatest connection between the two men, Fermin Romero de Torres, the former's bookstore employee and best friend.

To give a taste of the story, it takes place in 1958 (the present day in the book's world) and things kick off as a suspicious stranger leaves Fermin a sort of gift, one that finally pushes him to unburden himself of the past he drags around with him.

Finding Daniel, Fermin proceeds to take him back almost twenty years into the past, 1939, and tells him the story of his imprisonment during the Great War... a time when he met David Martin, whose impact on his life was incalculable.

As mentioned above, this novel feels a bit more tame when compared to the other ones, focusing a lot more on telling the story behind those three characters rather than having them solve some sort of great mystery.

We already know these characters, and the large amount of details we get into their past only serve to flesh them out even more, adding to their complexity and relatability.

Naturally, Zafon also makes the city of Barcelona into its own character once again, and it feels more alive and organic than ever, seemingly being this gargantuan, pulsating, breathing beast that's omnipresent and always watching.

The author's prose, as is always the case, is filled with beautiful imagery, metaphors and symbolism that almost gives it a slightly surreal feeling at times, as if you're witnessing a dream rather than waking life.

There is no filler to speak of, and every sentence has its place in the story; words which at first feel insignificant often acquire some meaning and power when some thought is given to them. As a result, this makes for the kind of book that can be read again and again, showing you something new every time.

If there were criticisms to give about this book, I'd say that compared to the other two, it feels a bit short and lacking in excitement. Events-wise, the plot doesn't really entrance and captivate the reader like it did previously, instead putting the characters, their inner worlds, and the connection between them on the forefront.

In other words, it shifts gears and goes a bit slower than what you'd expect based on the other entries in the series.

All in all, while the third book in the series deviates a bit from what we've expected and adopts a slower approach with greater focus on the characters, it pulls it off extremely well to give a moving and insightful story that fans of the author (and The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series) will most assuredly enjoy.

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Carl Ruiz Zafon  Personal site Carl Ruiz Zafon is a Spanish novelist whose first work, El Principe de la Niebla (The Prince of Mist) earned him the Edebe literary prize for young adult fiction. His subsequent novels, which included El palacio de la medianoche and Marina have eventually earned Zafon the the honor of being the most successful contemporary Spanish author, with his books having been published in over 45 countries and translated in 40 languages.