The Prisoner of Heaven by Carlos Ruiz Zafon take 2

Morning, all. Since I didn't have my book in hand for my original stop on the TLC tour for Carlos Ruiz Zafon's latest, I get a second shot. Happily I do have a copy now. I also had a chance to read the new e prequel as well. "Rose of Fire" is a short little look at the origins of the cemetery of forgotten books and is a free download courtesy of Harper Collins (with an excerpt of Prisoner of Heaven included).

Now if you read my original post, then you know that I'm a big fan of Zafon's work. His writing is nothing short of fantastic (and I should commend his translator as well considering how well the works read in English). Zafon's ability to build amazing atmosphere and an intense and captivating plot filled with wonderfully imagined characters makes his books the kind you can completely lose yourself in. Trust me -- I'd started The Shadow of the Wind on audio to get me through the 20+ hour drive from Louisiana to Colorado back in 2005. While it made the drive infinitely more tolerable, three quarters of the way through a disc turned out to be defective. Fortunately we were almost at our destination and I was able to exchange my audio for a physical copy. Also fortunate that the store had plenty in stock because I'd have gone bonkers waiting for an ordered copy to arrive at that point!

The Prisoner of Heaven is set after The Shadow of the Wind. Daniel and Bea are married and have an infant son. Sempere & Sons has seen better days, but is still hanging on when a mysterious customer arrives and purchases a rare copy of Dumas' Count of Monte Cristo. Lo and behold, the copy is intended as a gift for Fermin. Daniel is skeptical of the transaction and quickly closes up shop, following the man through the city streets in hopes of discovering something to support or disprove his gut feeling that something strange is going on. When Daniel confronts Fermin over the issue, he learns that his old friend is hiding some very strange secrets in his past. And those secrets concern Daniel as well.

For your viewing pleasure (and further enticement) check out the trailer:



I should warn you that you definitely need to read both The Shadow of the Wind and Angel's Game before diving into The Prisoner of Heaven. It's been long enough since reading its predecessors that even I've had a bit of a time reacquainting myself with the characters and the overarching storyline. Nevertheless, I thoroughly enjoyed returning to Spain and Sempere & Sons. The Prisoner of Heaven was a fabulous addition to the series! Word has it that Zafon has intended this to be a four parter, in which case I will be waiting in great anticipation to see what comes next!

For more stops on the tour, visit the official TLC tour site here. For more on Zafon and his work, visit his website (above). You can also check like him on Facebook and follow him on Twitter (tweets are in Spanish).