The Shadow of the Wind

Barcelona, 1945. Bookseller Sempere takes his son Daniel to the Cemetery of Forgotten Books, and the boy adopts The Shadow of the Wind by Julián Carax. Daniel learns that someone is burning every Carax book and, with Fermín's help, digs into the author's past while Inspector Fumero hounds him. A letter from Nuria Monfort reveals the truth: Julián loved Penélope Aldaya without knowing they were half-siblings; she died in childbirth, locked up by her family, and Carax became the faceless man burning his own books. In the final showdown at the Aldaya mansion, Fumero dies and Daniel survives. In the epilogue, Daniel marries Bea in 1956, their son is named Julián, and in 1966 he goes with his father to the Cemetery.

1. Behind the scenesA worldwide bestseller

   The Shadow of the Wind came out in 2001 and has sold more than 25 million copies, in over 36 languages.

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2. Behind the scenesA hit in English

   Lucia Graves's English translation came out in 2004. It sold more than a million copies in the UK alone.

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3. Behind the scenesA labyrinth with many doors

   Zafón said the books in the series can be read in any order or on their own. Each one is a different door into the same labyrinth of stories.

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4. ReferenceThe author's favorite

   Fermín Romero de Torres, the beggar who ends up working at the bookshop, was Zafón's favorite character. He said Fermín was the one with the most of himself in him.

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5. SetupA name taken from a book

   Notice the name of the faceless man hunting Carax's books: Laín Coubert. It's the name of a character in one of Carax's own novels.

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