The best book I read this month was the last in a cherished series by Spanish author Carlos Ruiz Zafón. The Labyrinth of the Spirits closes out Zafón’s Cemetery of Forgotten Books quartet, and it did not disappoint.
The Cemetery of Forgotten Books series is set in Barcelona at various points in history. Books—the writing of them, the reading of them, the preservation of them—is a key part of every story. The other thread that connects the books is the Sempere family, which owns a bookstore in the Spanish city. The Semperes start in the background of Labyrinth of the Spirits, which follows a woman named Alicia Gris as she pursues the truth about the disappearance of a government minister. Her search eventually leads to the Semperes’ bookstore.
What I loved most about Labyrinth was the way it tied together the three previous books in the series, which were each set in different times and focused on different characters. That made for a sweeping epic, by far the longest book in the series, and I was swept away. It had the same adventurous spirit as Shadow of the Wind, the spirit that made me fall in love with the Cemetery of Forgotten Books.
Labyrinth of the Spirits has a vast cast of characters, and at times, I struggled to keep track of them. Having read the previous books in the series helped, though. I strongly recommend reading the first three books before this one. You don’t have to read them in any particular order, but since I’m partial to it, I suggest starting where Zafón started: with The Shadow of the Wind.