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The Labyrinth of the Spirits

(El cementerio de los libros olvidados #4)

Carlos Ruiz Zafón

4.49 · Rating details · 28,898 ratings · 3,730 reviews

The internationally acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author returns to the magnificent universe he constructed in his bestselling novels The Shadow of the Wind, The Angel’s Game, and The Prisoner of Heaven in this riveting series finale—a heart-pounding thriller and nail-biting work of suspense which introduces a sexy, seductive new heroine whose investigation shines The internationally acclaimed, New York Times bestselling author returns to the magnificent universe he constructed in his bestselling novels The Shadow of the Wind, The Angel’s Game, and The Prisoner of Heaven in this riveting series finale—a heart-pounding thriller and nail-biting work of suspense which introduces a sexy, seductive new heroine whose investigation shines a light on the dark history of Franco’s Spain
In this unforgettable final volume of Ruiz Zafón’s cycle of novels set in the universe of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, beautiful and enigmatic Alicia Gris, with the help of the Sempere family, uncovers one of the most shocking conspiracies in all Spanish history.

Nine-year-old Alicia lost her parents during the Spanish Civil War when the Nacionales (the fascists) savagely bombed Barcelona in 1938. Twenty years later, she still carries the emotional and physical scars of that violent and terrifying time. Weary of her work as investigator for Spain’s secret police in Madrid, a job she has held for more than a decade, the twenty-nine-year old plans to move on. At the insistence of her boss, Leandro Montalvo, she remains to solve one last case: the mysterious disappearance of Spain’s Minister of Culture, Mauricio Valls.

With her partner, the intimidating policeman Juan Manuel Vargas, Alicia discovers a possible clue—a rare book by the author Victor Mataix hidden in Valls’ office in his Madrid mansion. Valls was the director of the notorious Montjuic Prison in Barcelona during World War II where several writers were imprisoned, including David Martín and Victor Mataix. Traveling to Barcelona on the trail of these writers, Alicia and Vargas meet with several booksellers, including Juan Sempere, who knew her parents.

As Alicia and Vargas come closer to finding Valls, they uncover a tangled web of kidnappings and murders tied to the Franco regime, whose corruption is more widespread and horrifying than anyone imagined. Alicia’s courageous and uncompromising search for the truth puts her life in peril. Only with the help of a circle of devoted friends will she emerge from the dark labyrinths of Barcelona and its history into the light of the future.

In this haunting new novel, Carlos Ruiz Zafón proves yet again that he is a masterful storyteller and pays homage to the world of books, to his ingenious creation of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, and to that magical bridge between literature and our lives. ...more

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Published September 18th 2018 by HarperCollins Publishers (first published November 17th 2016)

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Jun 05, 2020 Petrik rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Recommends it for: Everyone

Shelves: favorites, masterpieces

I have a Booktube channel now! Subscribe here: https://www.youtube.com/petrikleo

An absorbing literary masterpiece embedded with every range of emotions.

“Tell our stories to the world, and never forget that we exist so long as someone remembers us.”

To express how much I loved The Labyrinth of the Spirits, and the entirety of The Cemetery of the Forgotten Books, is a challenging task that I never predicted would ever happen to me, but attempt it I shall. I think it’s a seriously missed but redeem ...more

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Aug 31, 2018 Paromjit rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure, fantasy, historical-fiction, netgalley, mystery

The gothic universe created in The Shadow of the Wind, and the following alleyways forged in the sequels culminate in this finale, where all the threads connect to illuminate the horrors, secrets, and terrors of the harrowing and heartbreaking years of the Spanish Civil War and Franco's dictatorship that overturned democratic rule, aided and abetted by the Catholic Church. I loved The Shadow of the Wind and the universe it established with The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, but the following two b The gothic universe created in The Shadow of the Wind, and the following alleyways forged in the sequels culminate in this finale, where all the threads connect to illuminate the horrors, secrets, and terrors of the harrowing and heartbreaking years of the Spanish Civil War and Franco's dictatorship that overturned democratic rule, aided and abetted by the Catholic Church. I loved The Shadow of the Wind and the universe it established with The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, but the following two books, I was disappointed in, I liked them but they fell far short when it came to emulating the brilliance of the first. Mostly, I loved this, it's atmospheric with its beautiful prose, Zafon expertly constructs the labyrinth of secrets, the magic of books, with its intrigue, friendship, love and family. However, if I am to be honest, there is an unevenness to the narrative, and the last part of the book, in my eyes, is the weakest. We are introduced to the seductive and enigmatic 29 year old Alicia Gris, losing her parents in the relentless bombing of Barcelona in 1938 by the fascists, left with injuries and pain that is to affect her mobility for life. For over a decade, Alicia has worked for Leandro and the political police in Madrid. She wants out, but has to take on one last assignment, find Culture Minister, Mauricio Valls, who has disappeared, along with his driver, presumed kidnapped by enemies.

Valls was the governor of Montjuic prison, where a number of writers were imprisoned, including David Martin and Victor Mataix, the writer of The Labyrinth of the Spirits, a take on Alice in Wonderland for his daughter, but where the heroine, Ariadna, descends into Barcelona's underworld to encounter horror after horror, imagined out of Spain's actual realities of that period. Torture and murder were the norm in the prison, and strangely, Valls had a copy of an edition of Mataix's banned novel which he was perusing. Alicia cottons on that her assignment is not what it purports to be, and she, along with others face deadly dangers by those who have a vested interest in ensuring the dark deeds, secrets and corruption of the fascist regime remain buried. Spain, Barcelona, The City of the Damned, steeped in the blood letting, with its proliferation of secret police, the widespread fear of the likes of Major Fumero and the good looking but monstrous Hendaya, is a place where lies and fiction have the greatest agency, and the truth is to be doubted and ruthlessly suppressed.

The Sempere family with its secrets and bookshop return, with Daniel harbouring bitter consuming thoughts of revenge for what happened to Isabella, his mother. Fermin, comic, saviour and philosopher, and the unwavering and resolute Alicia were my favourite characters, both connected to each other and the Semperes. The love of books, the joys of reading are central to Zafon's quartet of novels, as indeed is writing, the need to throw light on the darkest of shadows of Franco's fascist regime with his inner cabal and acolytes, defined by their kleptocracy, butchery, corruption, murdering en masse with impunity, and their avarice. The gloom of Barcelona begins to lift with Franco's death, and chinks of light begin to filter through as slow faltering steps take place as Spain begins to move on from its nightmarish history. Overall, this is bewitching and beguiling storytelling documenting the unbearable, emotionally heartbreaking inhumanity of Spain's fascist past which I must recommend highly, despite its imperfections. Many thanks to Orion for an ARC. ...more

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Nov 01, 2018 Lucy Langford rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

4.5****
The hope every maker of tales carries within: that readers will open their hearts to these little creatures made of ink and paper, and give them a part of themselves so they can be immortal, even if only for a few minutes.

An absolutely amazing and spellbinding book to finish off the "Shadow of the Wind" quartet. This book draws on old characters and new, strung together into a intricate interconnected web of a plot that had me absolutely gripped. We get to see the beloved Barcelona in all 4.5****
The hope every maker of tales carries within: that readers will open their hearts to these little creatures made of ink and paper, and give them a part of themselves so they can be immortal, even if only for a few minutes.

An absolutely amazing and spellbinding book to finish off the "Shadow of the Wind" quartet. This book draws on old characters and new, strung together into a intricate interconnected web of a plot that had me absolutely gripped. We get to see the beloved Barcelona in all its glory and walk the streets with mystery and political intrigue and espionage.

This book starts with the disappearance of Mauricio Valls, a prominent figure from previous books, who overlooked Montjuic Castle where numerous people "disappeared" and were tortured and killed. Sent to find Valls, this book introduces the alluring Alicia Gris whose last assignment it is is to find Valls so that she can then be granted utter freedom from working as an investigator. From this investigation Alicia is introduced to new mysteries and secrets and questioning who she can trust. Alicia Gris has the stand offish personality and a secret dark past rivaling that of Lisbeth Salander, but also has the brave and brash actions and inquisitiveness of Clarice Starling; she has easily become one of my favourite investigators in a novel. Through this novel she is entangled with the Sempere family and its secrets, as well as being placed into the illusive and shadowy literary labyrinth, including that of the seemingly magical 'Cemetery of Forgotten Books.'

Carlos Ruiz Zafon writes with such beauty and descriptiveness, mirroring that of the first book "The Shadow of the Wind". Although this was a large book , Zafon’s writing had me completely ensnared in the plot that I only put it down when I felt too tired. He brings both beauty and humour, as well as tragedy to his writing.

The great thing about Zafon’s books is that you do not need to read the previous ones to understand the plot. Everything can easily be picked up from one novel. The exceptional thing about this last novel however, is that he has brought together all the different plot lines and characters from previous books, and has clarified and finished them up with no loose ends... a very satisfying ending to an intriguing set of literary thriller books.

The memories we bury under mountains of silence are the ones that never stop haunting us. ...more

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Jan 18, 2020 Nayra.Hassan rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: death, favorites

So write what has never been said. Let your heroes do what no one has done

Zafon responds to us denouncing: Have you ever met someone who did or wrote what was not written yet? I write your life: as a reader

The circle of labyrinth is closed.. and every writer leaves a part of his soul lost forever between his lines; destinies are intertwined and ends intertwine between vengeance and poetic justice؛ sacrifice and eternal friendships;

We leave the cemetery of the forgotten books. With three authors So write what has never been said. Let your heroes do what no one has done

Zafon responds to us denouncing: Have you ever met someone who did or wrote what was not written yet? I write your life: as a reader

The circle of labyrinth is closed.. and every writer leaves a part of his soul lost forever between his lines; destinies are intertwined and ends intertwine between vengeance and poetic justice؛ sacrifice and eternal friendships;

We leave the cemetery of the forgotten books. With three authors, three officers, three owners of the Sempre Library, three women , three girls, and three miscreants.
And unforgettable tramp ,a guard and a demon and don' t forget the black Hand
And a Narrator assures us by lines of Zafun : "It is the sincere pain that we live alone"

It does not matter what you will write, but what is important is how you will write it. *
There are two ways to read this : maze

To read it as a lengthy, independent "thriller" novel about the secrets and ugliness of the Spanish Civil War and its heroic investigator and investigator are exploring what should not be known in a framework of action

Or read it as the end of the largest literary epic on literature and libraries ... And as we patiently search for geeks for a rare book, you will desperately search for the fate of the heroes I loved and an explanation of everything that has turned a blind eye in their Fate

IN the last days of the year
1959 We go behind: Weiss, Spain's rascal Minister of Culture, to Barcelona to search for the author: David Martin, and the minister disappears without a trace;

so our new heroine, Alicia Grace, with her older handsome policeman: Bargas, leave behind, a complex relationship arising between them that started with hostility and turned into a friendly and harmonious

During their research journey, we will get acquainted with the author of the Gothic fantasy series, which is Victor Matiax; we will wander between the secrets and mysteries of Barcelona, the dark Gothic that has become a curse of blood;
our weapons are : A rare book, Lethal booklet; numbers on a paper and antique ink pen

*Answers are always in the past *

The cemetery of the forgotten books does not have a single entrance as we thought; it is possible that you would fall on it from the ceiling if you were your name Alithia and an angel at nine years old with a bomb that detonated your waist and left you with the imprint of the pain that kills the soul; thus Alithia gained her connection with the book: Alice In the land of wonders, books are literally saved by them ... not figuratively like our former heroes

I liked the surviving Alythia with the Seven Spirits

and Iridiana, the firm and gloomy and I liked Vargas more than all,
I finally understood Fermin.
More importantly, Daniel became a fully-fledged mature hero and finally deserved the title: Champion of the Series

Wars pollute everything but cleans the memory *

But the novel remains a literal masterpiece, on the Spanish Civil War, repression, enforced disappearance, and imprisonment during Franco's era ... and it is a superb sequel to the prisoner of Heaven.

And do not forget the will of all those who are lost in the grave of the cemetery: one must make his mistakes, not the mistakes of others.
Forever the past will remain our reality no matter how we intervene to fix its results .. We will not cancel what happened, no matter how ugly.

Arabic review
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... ...more

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Nov 06, 2018 Sean Gibson rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

It’s hard to know exactly what to say about a story that’s about stories that are, in turn, about stories.

Ruiz Zafon’s magical (if occasionally frustrating) Cemetery of Lost Books quadrilogy defies easy categorization. Is it a thriller? Well, it’s certainly suspenseful. A mystery? It’s got unanswered questions in droves, and people trying to tease out answers. A romance? It’s got passion aplenty, and meet-cutes galore. Historical fiction? Intricate details of the Spanish past abound, and Barcel It’s hard to know exactly what to say about a story that’s about stories that are, in turn, about stories.

Ruiz Zafon’s magical (if occasionally frustrating) Cemetery of Lost Books quadrilogy defies easy categorization. Is it a thriller? Well, it’s certainly suspenseful. A mystery? It’s got unanswered questions in droves, and people trying to tease out answers. A romance? It’s got passion aplenty, and meet-cutes galore. Historical fiction? Intricate details of the Spanish past abound, and Barcelona is as much a character as any human. Literary fiction? The prose (aided in no small part by the brilliant work of translator Lucia Graves) saunters sumptuously across the page, overwritten at times, perhaps (but, when was the last time our most pyrotechnic literary lights were masters of understated style?), but so gorgeously atmospheric that you just want to get lost on it, even if, in so doing, you lose one of the occasionally perplexing plot threads.

In short, it’s all of these things, and never more so than in Labyrinth, where Ruiz Zafon brings to a close the twisty story he launched in THE SHADOW OF THE WIND.

Whenever someone asks me to recommend a book, I try to ascertain whether they’re the kind of person who likes stories. I don’t mean whether they like stories in the specific sense—clearly, if they’re asking me for a book recommendation, they read, and so they must like some kind of story (I’m less dumb than I sound, I prom…well, I was going to say “I promise,” but that may not be entirely true; is it, however, in this instance)—but rather whether they like stories as an abstract concept. That is, story as idea. As shorthand for a narrative construct wherein anything and everything is possible, and the only thing that matters is how quickly and deeply you can engage with it, how fully realized its world and characters are, and whether, when it concludes, your heart is full and some aspect of the story—a scene, a line, a character, an idea—lingers at the top of your mind for days, or even weeks. If I determine that they are, in fact, the kind of person who likes stories, I invariably recommend SHADOW OF THE WIND.

To those same people, if they managed their way through THE ANGEL’S GAME and THE PRISONER OF HEAVEN—both entertaining in their own right, but far less exemplary embodiments of story—I strongly urge you to envelope yourself in LABYRINTH and not only complete the journey, but revel in its intricately intertwined story threads, teased out by a master storyteller at the height of his powers. LABYRINTH is utterly immersive, and whether you love or hate the characters (and if you don’t love the irrepressible Fermin Romero de Torres, you are either 1) dead, in which case I applaud your ability to continue to read, and implore you to teach me your secret; or 2) someone on whose chair I’d very much like to plant a whoopee cushion), you’ll get lost in the twisting, mysterious streets of a Barcelona that simultaneously exists in the past and never existed.

Is it a flawless story? By no means. In particular, there is a pervasively misogynistic point of view evinced by numerous male characters that feels jarring, even if it’s not necessarily an inaccurate characterization. But, no story is perfect, nor is any character (except maybe for Sam-I-Am; dude was persistent). This one however, comes close to perfectly embodying what a story should be, and it’s well worth the journey for those willing to give themselves over to it. ...more

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Oct 11, 2018 Marialyce rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: library

5 amazingly wonderful stars
My reviews can be seen here: https://yayareadslotsofbooks.wordpres...

This book is the fourth and the last installment of the series that started with The Shadow of the Wind published in 2001 and which went on to be a best seller. Continuing this series was another outstanding book The Angel's Game followed by The Prisoner of Heaven. All of these presented to the reader the underbelly of Barcelona during and after the terror reign of Franco. The characters written of in 5 amazingly wonderful stars
My reviews can be seen here: https://yayareadslotsofbooks.wordpres...

This book is the fourth and the last installment of the series that started with The Shadow of the Wind published in 2001 and which went on to be a best seller. Continuing this series was another outstanding book The Angel's Game followed by The Prisoner of Heaven. All of these presented to the reader the underbelly of Barcelona during and after the terror reign of Franco. The characters written of include the wonderful young boy, Daniel, who lost his mother at so young an age, the gregarious and wise Fermin, the evil Fumero and a cast of others as they plot murder, and destroy any and all who stand in their path. All the characters of both this book and the others give one a glimpse into not only the times they inhabited, but also a fine and circumspect look into themselves.

In this outing a new character is introduced, Alicia. She is the very epitome of a strong woman, battling the forces of evil that had invaded Spain while a dictator held ultimate power. She is a part of the secret police and agrees to one final case to investigate that of the disappearance of Mauricio Valls, the cultural minister of Spain. Aided by her partner, Juan Manuel Vargas, she discovers a hidden book in Valls' desk. This book leads Alicia and others down a path to the horrors of her childhood, the atrocities of the regime, as well as into The Cemetery of Lost Books, which allows her to confront her past. It also brings her into contact with Daniel and the Sempere family and bookstore.

This book is at times mystical, there is always present that layer of corruption, that mist inspired look into Barcelona that pushes you forward into a complicated, intricate plot that holds one in as the over eight hundred pages are read. The scenes keep coming at you, holding you enthralled and the dialogue so often witty and humorous, propels you into an affinity with the characters.

This is truly a masterpiece, as were all the books in this series. Mr Zafron has been able to weave a story so intricate, so alluring that I felt a bit sad that this journey with Daniel was brought to an end. I most heartily recommend this book, this series for all the reasons we read books. Truly this is true "Reading is dreaming with eyes open." In this book, this author has truly tapped into a world of dreaming, relevance, and treasure.

Thanks go out to my local library for providing me with this truly awesome book. ...more

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Apr 05, 2019 Jenna rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, historical-fic, out-of-europe

~~This book was too freaking long.~~ This book was freaking amazing and not nearly long enough!

For the first 250 pages or so, I just could not get into this book. I was cursing the author and publisher for such a lengthy book. Too long, too much information. 805 pages?? -- Could we really not edit it down a bit? Would it hurt something to leave out some of the characters' stories or details of their lives? Would the reader curl up and die if a few of the descriptions and back stories were left ou ...more

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Jul 09, 2019 Maxwell rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: owned, translated

[4.5 stars] What a bittersweet moment: ending a series you adore, especially the follow up to a book you love with your whole heart. There's no way a book like that can live up to what you've conjured in your mind, but Zafon came close. At times it was a bit overwrought and dragged slightly, but I loved the conclusion and any time it connected to the other books in the series. Re-reading this series will absolutely reward itself, and I imagine I might even enjoy the different installments more u ...more

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Apr 16, 2020 Anna Luce rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: 2020-reviews, covers-i-love, skimmed, inane-protagonists, disappointing-reads, 7-not-for-me, ebooks-overdrive

★★✰✰✰ 2 stars

From the blatant sexism pouring through each page to its bloated plot, The Labyrinth of the Spirits offers an inadequate conclusion to what I considered to be an entertaining series. If anything this disastrous farewell has made me reevaluate the whole Cemetery of Forgotten Books series. I vaguely remember finding the female representation in these books to be somewhat questionable. The women are passive, mere love interests. So, initially I was pretty excited to read The Labyrinth ...more

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Sep 16, 2020 Ingrid rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I thoroughly enjoyed this last book in the series. Very complicated web of stories that I wouldn’t be able to reproduce. I feel I should go back and read the whole series again to fully appreciate them.

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Sep 16, 2018 Lou rated it really liked it · review of another edition

'The Labyrinth of the Spirits' is the fourth and final installment in the Cemetery of Forgotten Books series. I don't mind telling the world that this happens to be one of my favourite series of all time, and Carlos Ruiz Zafon is very much criminally underrated in my view. Having loved the previous three books, I was hoping to be completely blown away once again by Zafon's superb storytelling ability. It's safe to say he didn't let me down, and this lived up to my incredibly high expectations. O ...more

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Sep 24, 2018 Gabrielle rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: magical-realism, ouch-my-feels, historical, reviewed, ereader, read-in-2018, own-a-copy

Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s “The Shadow of the Wind” is arguably my favourite book (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... I have multiple editions, and every time I see it at a used bookstore, I buy it and give it to someone because the sight of this book alone on a shelf makes me want to find it a good and loving home. Every time a new installment of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books series came out, I ran to the bookstore to get a copy and locked myself in to devour it. To say that my expectations an Carlos Ruiz Zafon’s “The Shadow of the Wind” is arguably my favourite book (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show... I have multiple editions, and every time I see it at a used bookstore, I buy it and give it to someone because the sight of this book alone on a shelf makes me want to find it a good and loving home. Every time a new installment of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books series came out, I ran to the bookstore to get a copy and locked myself in to devour it. To say that my expectations and excitement were high for “The Labyrinth of Spirits” would be an understatement; this is the final part of the story, the book that brings this beautiful neo-Gothic saga full circle, and it feels like I had waited years (seven, to be exact) to find out how the story ends.

From the very first page, I was immediately sucked in that lovely, familiar atmosphere: Zafon’s beloved Barcelona and its beautiful buildings, enveloped in mist and mystery. I was reunited with sweet Daniel Sempere and the incomparable Fermin Romero de Torres, but I also made a new friend with the enigmatic Alicia Gris. A survivor of the Mussolini bombings, she is a gifted investigator whose life is inextricably linked to Daniel and Fermin’s stories: she is assigned to solve the disappearance of Minister Mauricio Valls, a case in which her most important clue is a strange book – part of an extremely rare series known as “The Labyrinth of Spirits”. In the course of her investigation, she will unearth many secrets about a couple of doomed writers who were prisoners at the Montjuic Castle during the war, and how their stories deeply affected the lives of a small family of book-sellers...

Alicia is a fascinating protagonist: Zafon has not written a tough female characters before (Isabella in “The Angel’s Game” being the notable exception), and I was happy to find Alicia to be strong, smart, flawed and complicated. I loved her sharp observations, her tough character and her interactions with Vargas. Alicia sees the world with more lucidity than most people, and while she is reckless and manipulative when it comes to getting the job done, her hardened exterior shields her many wounds.

All of Zafon’s characters have suffered a cruel loss, and have been changed by their grief. “The Labyrinth of Spirits” digs deeper than the other books of the series into how the Civil War essentially took a wrecking ball through people’s lives, and how surviving the aftermath of such an event put everyone in a situation where good people can turn bad very easily. His stories-within-stories are beautifully convoluted, but not confusing: they illustrate the world contained within each character perfectly, and how intimately connected each story is to the other.

I saw some reviews that mentioned not liking the final part, "The Book of Julian", and I can see why, as it tries to bring a bit of reality into Zafon's mist-shrouded Neo-Gothic world, but I liked it. I like to think it's a bit autobiographical... I personally thought this was the perfect conclusion to what very well may be my favorite series of books.

Zafon’s novels are love letters to books, to the magic of reading and its power to change your life. His prose is absolutely exquisite, and his gift as a storyteller, capable of spinning a gorgeous and intricate yarn, which makes this 800-page book feel like it was over much too soon. If you have enjoyed the previous books of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books series, do not miss this one. If you love books, darkly seductive stories, beautiful but haunting images seared in your brain, and if you can take having your heart broken by a good book, read it! ...more

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Jun 24, 2019 Andrew Smith rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley

I suppose you could read this novel as a standalone piece, and the same could be said of the other three books in this series. But to me that just doesn’t make sense. Equally nonsensical to me is the author’s assertion that the books can be read in any order. Really? I’ve read many series in random order and sometimes that works just fine but occasionally you come across one that relies quite heavily on a pre-knowledge of prior events or of characters who have graced the pages in an earlier epis I suppose you could read this novel as a standalone piece, and the same could be said of the other three books in this series. But to me that just doesn’t make sense. Equally nonsensical to me is the author’s assertion that the books can be read in any order. Really? I’ve read many series in random order and sometimes that works just fine but occasionally you come across one that relies quite heavily on a pre-knowledge of prior events or of characters who have graced the pages in an earlier episode and whose back story you are totally oblivious. This can really compromise enjoyment of the tale you’re currently immersed in. And I think that this is very much the case here. So unless you’ve already dipped your toe into the tales of The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, do yourself a favour and start at the beginning and work your way through. You might want to take some notes too, because there are a lot of characters and many linkages you’ll need to keep track of. Do this and I believe you’re in for an absolute treat!

The stories cover a period spanning 1919 – 1992 and at the core is the Sempere family who run a bookshop in Barcelona. It’s hard to pin down which genre you’d place the books in – they seem to embrace fantasy, mystery, magical realism, historical fiction and crime fiction too. There’s certainly a good sprinkling of Spanish history here, particularly in the focus on the banning and the burning of books and the missing children of the Franco years. The time frame is jumpy and this doesn’t make it any easier to keep a clear track of events, but this also gives the overall tale width and depth. A sense of not quite knowing what’s going on becomes the norm. The characters are engaging and range from the angelic to the completely repulsive. It’s dark most of the time, particularly in this last book.

For the record, this final chapter focusses on a new character called Alicia Gris who is employed by the Secret Police to track down the missing Culture Minister, Don Mauricio Valls. Reader of the earlier books will know that Valls is a self-serving egomaniac and that, in truth, the world would be better place were he to be permanently removed from it. Alicia is joined by a partner who has been foisted upon her, called Vargas, and together they dive deep into the murky underworld of Barcelona. The chemistry between the two is expertly developed and I quickly found immensely enjoying their interactions. The plotting is clever too, as I’d grown to expect, and overall the story is told in a way that is both charming and completely captivating. I won’t go into the detail of the book other than to say that all loose ends are tied off here and – if you’ve been paying attention throughout the series – it all ultimately makes sense.

If I have a bone to pick it would be that the language (translated from the author’s native Spanish) is sometimes a little flowery and maybe some scenes are a little protracted. But if that’s my only complaint in over 800 pages here, and in 2000 plus pages across the the four books, then I feel that I’m possibly being a little picky. It really is a magnificent body of work. The stories are big enough to block out the world around you as you slip deep into the world Zafon has created and full of characters who become more, much more, than just names in the pages of a book. A poetic, gothic masterpiece of gargantuan proportions. I’m just sad I’ve reached the end of it.

My sincere thanks to Orion Publishing Group and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. ...more

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Jul 23, 2020 Royce rated it it was amazing

Shelves: best-books-of-all-time

Instant masterpiece. Reading The Cemetery of Forgotten Books is just like putting a jigsaw puzzle together--the more you read, the more you get a whole new perspective on the lives of the characters. Passionate leading and supporting characters that are all equally meticulous and obsessed with literature. Even the setting itself--Barcelona, beautiful and gloomy, is just as majestic as any of the characters in the series. Perfect gothic environment.

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Oct 14, 2018 Kat rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

It's always a pleasure to read one of Zafon's books! I enjoyed being back in the atmoshpere of his gothic Barcelona full of mysteries and twists and turns you don't see coming! I met favorite characters from the previous books and was happy to meet new characters which I loved during this story! This book had it all and made me laugh, cry, angry and emotional while reading it. Zafon is an excellent storyteller and once again he proved it in the last instalment of The cemetery of forgotten books ...more

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Apr 05, 2019 Irma Sincera rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Some people have Harry Potter books, I have my Cemetery of Forgotten Books and Fermin. The writting, the humor, the characters, the plot - pure perfection. I am really sad that this is the final book in the series, deep down I hope that will change :( . Couldn't put down this book, 800 pages was nothing, I wanted more... ...more

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Jun 15, 2020 TS Chan rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, physical-owned

The Labyrinth of the Spirits is one of the best books I've ever read. It has it all - evocative history, engrossing mystery, atmospheric setting, compelling characters, incredible emotional depth - wrapped up in writing so beautiful that it moves your soul.

"Stories have no beginning and no end, only doors through which one may enter them."

I finished reading this book earlier last week and before I had the opportunity to pen my review in praise of such magnificence, I was shocked by t ...more

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Aug 24, 2018 Claudia rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, mystery-suspense

Long awaited last volume of The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series finally brings everything together in a unputdownable story. Every loose thread from the previous volumes is tied up in a revelatory finale. Secrets deep hidden emerge to surface. Evil seems unleashed in a Barcelona still recovering after the war horrors.

Treason, deceit but also friendship and loyalty are intertwined in a mystery story which will keep you long awake at night.

CRZ has built a gothic world full of mystery, suspense ...more

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Oct 02, 2018 Brittany (UnderTheRadarBooks) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Better than I ever could have hoped. Will forever be my favorite book series.

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Dec 06, 2020 Algernon (Darth Anyan) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2020, favorites

The fourth installment, fierce and enormous, spiced with perfumes from all the earlier ones, would lead us at last to the center of the mystery, uncovering all the puzzles with the help of my favorite fallen angel of mist, Alicia Gris. The saga would contain villains and heroes, and a thousand tunnels through which the reader would be able to explore a kaleidoscopic plot resembling the mirage of perspectives I’d discovered with my father in the heart of the Cemetery of Forgotten Books.

Such a l ...more

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Nov 25, 2018 Christine rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: stuff-i-think-of-as-good-fiction, historical, terrific-mainstream, suspense-thriller

I love this book, but let me tell you what it isn't. The three previous novels in this series all had a gothic feel that made the mysteries in their pages feel personal in scope. Despite the backdrop of Franco's Spain, the true backdrop was a house or a shop. The third installment, The Prisoner of Heaven, gave us a foreshadowing of the shift from place to regime, but kept the focus on Fermin.

In this final installment, those mysterious places still exist but they are overshadowed by the regime. ...more

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Sep 24, 2016 Jessica Jeffers rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: authors-of-color, edelweiss

This was good....but it didn't need to be 600 pages long. Sorry, it kind of dragged in spots. Full review to come.

HOLY SHIT BALLS, I GOT AN ARC.

...more

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Oct 28, 2018 Artemis rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: about-writing, angels, gritty, historical-fiction, mysticism-of-life, romance, mystery, action, sequels, geek-culture

Content warning: sexual assault.

No.

What in the seven circles of Barcelona was that?

Throughout reading 'The Labyrinth of the Spirits', the most-anticipated, final book of the brilliant, breathtaking 'The Cemetery of Forgotten Books' series, I was intrigued by the characters, but mostly I was bored by the slow pacing and quite frankly mundane events stringing along a rather dull mystery plot.

I tried to care, I really did, but maybe it had been too long since I'd read the previous book in the seri ...more

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Jan 05, 2017 Juan Quibrera rated it liked it · review of another edition

Mmmmm I got mixed feelings for this one. I love Carlos Ruiz Zafon, his writing and -most of all- his characters. The Shadow of the Wind is, still today, one of my all-time faves. However, this concluding novel felt...well, uneven. Some of it was brilliant, some of it was extremely corny, albeit very nostalgic. The plot (for the biggest chunk of the book) was quite convoluted and -in my opinion- contrived. There were far too many characters and a lot of filler scenes. And the book was just unnece ...more

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Sep 21, 2016 Beatrix rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: all-time-favorites, beautiful-writing, strong-females, favorites, cultural, favorite-series, 2017-favorites, inspiring, read-in-2017, books-i-ll-never-forget

(see English review below)

Lavirint duhova je još jedno remek djelo gosp. Safona, koje je mnogo mračnije i komplikovanije od svih prethodnih knjiga ovog serijala. S obzirom da kada je prvi dio napisan ova knjiga nije bila planirana, Safon je odlično uklopio sve dijelove. Lavirint duhova povezuje i objašnjava prethodne tri knjige, ali i ima posebnu priču.

Radnja se dešava 1959. i počinje u Madridu gdje upoznajemo nove likove, no nekih 200ak stranica kasnije radnja se premješta u Barselonu. Najznač ...more

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Jan 23, 2020 Cathy rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

WOW. A creepy, gothic setting... Murder, romance, crime, violence, betrayal, politics, mystery, oh and a loveable toddler - did I miss anything? This story takes place in postwar Barcelona, and while fictional, incorporates historical fact. This is the fourth and final book in the Cemetery of Forgotten Books series. Highly recommended!

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Jul 21, 2020 Carlos rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: adult-fiction-btw

WOW, this book left me speechless. What a nice conclusion to the series. And while this book was 800 pages long, I felt like I would not have minded if it was even longer. When you have read the other 3 books before this one and gotten to know all the characters and know their backstory you cant help but want to know how everyone will end. This book answers all those questions and more and even tells a very excellent story on top of that. I dont recommend this book if you haven't read the other ...more

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Aug 22, 2020 Mattia Ravasi added it · review of another edition

Series review

Alicia: *drinks wine*
Everybody else: OOOH SHE SO DARK ...more

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Dec 30, 2020 Kristina rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, favorites, mystery, to-write-a-review, audio-book, books-about-books, contemporary, avada-kedavra, adventure, non-muggle

"The Labyrinth of the Spirits" is a masterpiece and is very meta as a book.
I loved the feeling to be lost in this labyrinth of characters and stories.

Zafon's work is a contemporary Wonderland. The series of The Cemetery of Forgotten Books are immortal and will always be remembered.

"Stories have no beginning and no end, only doors through which one may enter them.
A story is an endless labyrinth of words, images, and spirits, conjured up to show us the invisible truth about ourselves. A story is, ...more

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Sep 06, 2019 Catherine rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 4-stars, thriller-and-mystery

1) The Shadow of the Wind ★★★★★
2) The Angel's Game ★★★★☆
3) The Prisoner of Heaven ★★★☆☆

"Stories have no beginning and no end, only doors through which one may enter them."

I have a new favorite book series. While the third book did disappoint, the last novel of The Cemetery of Forgotten Books went back to being amazing. Yes, the first book is the best, I won't argue with anyone about that, but I also loved the second and fourth books. The author has an incredible talent and created a story, a uni 1) The Shadow of the Wind ★★★★★
2) The Angel's Game ★★★★☆
3) The Prisoner of Heaven ★★★☆☆

"Stories have no beginning and no end, only doors through which one may enter them."

I have a new favorite book series. While the third book did disappoint, the last novel of The Cemetery of Forgotten Books went back to being amazing. Yes, the first book is the best, I won't argue with anyone about that, but I also loved the second and fourth books. The author has an incredible talent and created a story, a universe and characters that truly are unforgettable. It's the kind of book series that you don't want to see ending, that leaves you thinking about those novels instead of picking another book right after, the kind of book series I already know I'll read again.

This final installment has much less of a gothic vibe, which could have been disappointing for me as it was one of my favorite part of those books, but the plot and subplots are clever as always, the language is still beautiful, the historical part takes more place without being too confusing for those who don't know Spain History too much (I think so, at least, since I'm far from considering myself a specialist), and we still have the magic of books inside this book. I also loved the new character, Alicia, and the humor was just great.

My personal thoughts on how much I loved those four books: The Shadow of the Wind is the best, then The Angel's Game, then The Labyrinth of the Spirits and finally The Angel's Game. While the author said, if I remember well, that each book could be read as a standalone, I highly recommend to read them in order. It's just a beautiful and magical experience that you don't want to miss, and while I understand that each novel could be considered as a standalone that doesn't required having read the previous books, it doesn't quite makes sense to me at the same time. I don't think it's a good idea to read them in any order, but it's only my personal opinion. I cannot possibly comment on the quality of the translation, so I'll leave this to those who could read the series in Spanish. ...more

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Play Book Tag: The Labyrinth of the Spirits - 5 stars, by Carlos Ruiz Zafon	3	35	Sep 07, 2019 08:48AM
Labyrinth of the Spirits - 5 stars; Carlos Ruiz Zafon	1	15	Sep 06, 2019 06:27PM
Play Book Tag: The Labyrinth of the Spirits - Carlos Ruiz Zafon	4	24	Aug 31, 2019 09:56AM
[SPOILERS APLENTY!] What's up with the Cemetery of Forgotten Books series ending?	8	372	Jul 24, 2019 03:53AM
Goodreads Librari...: Add cover to Kindle edition of "The Labyrinth of the Spirits"	2	13	Jan 29, 2019 04:57AM
Goodreads Librari...: Please correct page count	3	29	Oct 02, 2018 07:28PM
Can't wait much longer!	3	30	Feb 07, 2018 08:48PM

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About Carlos Ruiz Zafón

Carlos Ruiz Zafón

19,953 followers

Carlos Ruiz Zafón was a Spanish novelist. Born in Barcelona in 1964, he lived in Los Ángeles, United States, since 1994, and worked as a scriptwriter aside from writing novels.

His first novel, El príncipe de la niebla (The Prince of Mist, 1993), earned the Edebé literary prize for young adult fiction. He is also the author of three more young-adult novels, El palacio de la medianoche (1994), Las l ...more