Too many to name just one: The Thorn Birds by Coleen McCullogh, Half of A Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Song of A Captive Bird by Jazmin Darznik, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles, Captain Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis De Bernieres, All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doer, The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne and Educated by Tara Westover. I just couldnt choose one. They changed me in more ways than one.
West Like Lightning by Jim DeFelice. Historical non-fiction. I was wanting a book about the American West during its development, and while the subject is the Pony Express, it covered nearly everything I wanted to read about, including the gold rush, the Donner party, and legendary lawmen and outlaws.
The Book Thief by Zusak, not what I normally read but it’s haunted me (in a semi good way) since May. I’ve read many great books this year, but that one is by far the best.
Where the Crawdads Sing. Such a great story, amazing characters, beautiful scenic imagery. It gave me a reading hangover. Nothing has lived up to it yet.
I went into it thinking it was going to be a good book on leadership and innovation book but it turned out to be a much more entertaining than I expected.
@Natalie I am about 100 pages to finish. I am already anticipating how my life will be changed for knowing these men and their lives and this story. I cannot recall having ever been so affected by a novel before. I want to find a blog where I can discuss so much of it with others…
Strange the dreamer by Laini Taylor because it was a very well-written book with great world-building and a great plot which had a good twist (I felt like I was there and I connected to Lazlo as a character). Also The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden-very beautiful descriptive language, original use of Russian folklore as part of the story, great and interesting plot and great characters that I want to read more about (as it is the first of a series). I think when I have read the girl in the tower by Katherine Arden will also become a favourite this year.
Yes I have read her other books-they are great! Her other books were the reason why I tried Strange the Dreamer in the first place. I have just picked up the 2nd book of this series Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor along with The Labyrinth of the Spirits by Carlos Ruiz Zafón as holds from my library. I’m reading Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J Maas at the moment and afterwards I have to decide which of these great books to read next. If you know any other great fantasy writers like Laini Taylor and Katherine Arden please do let me know. I did try Naomi Novik and I hated Uprooted (I didn’t finish it at about 70% of the way through)-but I gave her a second chance and read Spinning Silver which was so much better than Uprooted.
I think you would like Katherine Arden’s The Bear and the Nightingale (which is the 1st of a series) because it is quite different from a lot of fantasy books as it draws on Russian folklore and is quite different. Strange the dreamer is more high fantasy and worldbuilding-focused with less of a focus on romance. Strange the dreamer may not have such a cross-genre appeal because of this. Does anyone else agree with me about Strange the Dreamer or do you think it might have cross-genre appeal?
Legendary by Stephanie Garber and The Rook by Daniel O’Malley Both have wonderful world building. Normally I’m not one for fantasy but The Rook was absolutely amazing
What a question! What a consideration! I had to think about this, to recall what was this year. The first to come to mind was Richard Yates’ The Easter Parade. I was already a huge fan of his after reading Revolutionary Road and his story collection Eleven Kinds of Loneliness. Being honest I was unsure if would be as good as RR. But boy is it ever! So powerful and full of sympathy, hard and real and deep and heartbreaking. Such a clearly written picture of these women in that age. There was also James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room and I felt a similar reservation, despite its reputation, after having read his Go Tell It On The Mountain and Another Country. I was blown away by the power of his writing (again), the humanity, tragedy. Like The Easter Parade it brilliantly tells of people and a place. I’ve not long read Naomi Mitchison’s Blood of the Martyrs, a novel about Christians in Rome during Emperor Nero, and I loved it for the detail of Rome and the Christians, how Christianity and Jesus were seen by both Christians and others. (There is more than one instance where Christianity is called atheism.) As good in its way as her The Corn King and the Spring Queen. So, one of those i think ??
So hard a question. Paris Seamstress by Natasha Lester, The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah, Before I let you go by Rimmer, This is How it Always is by Frankel. No five stars for me yet this year but solid 4.5
Wow, I’ve read a few good ones but I’d have to say the entire Cemetery of Lost Books series by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, beginning with The Shadow of the Wind. All four are brilliant.
Pick just one hmm. How about Song of Achilles (Miller), and Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache series abs The Record of a Spaceborn Few as having the longest lasting ripples
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. The writing is extraordinary and the characters are so well thought out and written. This book really stuck with me.
It is so difficult to choose just one, I seem to have found so many good reads this year. If forced to pick I would say “Three things about Elsie” by Joanna Cannon. The writing is lovely, the characters well-developed and the story itself is beautifully told.
It’s more than one book, but for me it’s Winston Graham’s Poldark series. Addicting storyline and beautiful writing. I’ve read 11 of the 12 since January and will begin the last one soon.
You will absolutely love it. It’s a trilogy and the third book is going to be out soon! I’d love to hear what other books you’ve liked! Add me on Goodreads?
The Saviors Champion because it was badass, plenty of action, fast paced and never dull. You feel like you’re right there in the story, you become invested in the characters. And yeah, the romance isn’t crazy or over the top. It’s real and amazing.
Ready Player One for the nostalgia and my husband also loved it, so it was fun to talk about with him. Thirteen Reasons Why because it stuck with me for a long time after and made me think about some of my actions in high school.
My faves this year: Where the Crawdads Sing; Pachinko; The Optimist’s Guide to Letting Go; George and Lizzie; Young Jane Young; Before We Were Yours; Marilla of Green Gables
Fire Fly Lane by Kristin Hannah, The Rumor, Erin Hilderbrand, The Stolen Marriage, Diane Chamberlain,Every Note Played, Lisa Genova and Need to Know by Karen Cleveland.
“The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.” It was suggested to me because I absolutely loved The Dresden Files, and I have to say it was one of the best books I’ve read.
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine and also The Likeness by Tana French; it reminded me of The Secret History, my favorite read of last year. (I was very late to THAT party!) ??
The Calculating Stars: A Lady Astronaut Novel by Mary Robinette Kowal…it is an alternative history of the world and the space program beginning in the early 1950s with a meteor that hits the world…It got the gender, religious, and racial issues spot on for that time…It generated a lot of discussion between myself and my sister who read it at the same time….
ANATOMY OF A SCANDAL by Sarah Vaughan. I was captivated by this novel from the first page. It’s very well-written and takes place in Britain spanning from the early 1990s to 2016. I loved the intrigue it offered, too. ?
The Hearts Invisible Furies by John Boyne was an “unputdownable” book that I read this year… one minute it would have you laughing, literally the next you’d be crying ? a really emotional, but brilliant read ??
The Silence of the Girls This is basically the story of the Illiad as told by the women enslaved in the war. It is a point of view I have never read in all the books about wars I have ever read. It should be required reading for everyone.
I would have to say my favorite books this year are those in the Jack the Ripper Victim Series by Alan M. Clark. These are not your everyday Ripperologist speculations on the murderer of women but extremely well written historical fiction probing the possible lives these women lived. They were human beings that had families, husbands, children. They are written in a way that empowers them as women and doesn’t demean them as victims. The attention to historical detail is nothing less than amazing. The books are: A BRUTAL CHILL IN AUGUST, SAY ANYTHING BUT YOUR PRAYERS, OF THIMBLE AND THREAT, APOLOGIES TO THE CAT’S MEAT MAN, and THE PROSTITUTE’S PRICE. The first four books can be read in any order. I tried to read them in the order in which they were killed. The final book, no matter the order you read the others, should be saved for last.
My favourite book I hadn’t read before is Regatta by Libby Purves. I like it because it has some great characters and a good story. The setting is lovely too.
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, because it’s a natural predecessor to the Agatha Christie mysteries I’ve loved forever. An unknown narrator wakes up in the wee hours of the morning, in the dirt and with no memory or either himself or his surroundings. What he does know is the name Anna and the fact that he hears a woman screaming for help. SO MUCH FUN
#1 The Overstory by Richard Powers. Others I thought were excellent: Red Clocks by Leni Zumas The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber The Passage trilogy by Justin Cronin
“Educated” a memoir by Tara Westover: Her inner strength she had to cultivate to withstand all forms of indoctrination that’s hindering Author’s finding her voice and becoming her “self” was moving and heroic. Must read.
Too many to name just one: The Thorn Birds by Coleen McCullogh, Half of A Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Song of A Captive Bird by Jazmin Darznik, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles, Captain Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis De Bernieres, All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doer, The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne and Educated by Tara Westover. I just couldnt choose one. They changed me in more ways than one.
West Like Lightning by Jim DeFelice. Historical non-fiction. I was wanting a book about the American West during its development, and while the subject is the Pony Express, it covered nearly everything I wanted to read about, including the gold rush, the Donner party, and legendary lawmen and outlaws.
You are a Badass
Robert Galbraith’s Lethal White, A Good American by Alex George and The Gilded Hour by Sarah Donati
Labyrinth of the Spirits by Zafon, culmonation of Tge Shadow of the wind series. Wonderful.
I haven’t read it yet but I will start reading it very soon. I’m looking forward to it!
@Sharyn I am reading it right now. It is the best of the series.
The Book Thief by Zusak, not what I normally read but it’s haunted me (in a semi good way) since May. I’ve read many great books this year, but that one is by far the best.
Where the Crawdads Sing. Such a great story, amazing characters, beautiful scenic imagery. It gave me a reading hangover. Nothing has lived up to it yet.
The book thief, the glass castle, all the ugly and wonderful things, Everything everything
Hygge, Discovering the Danish Art of Happiness – wonderful ideas for content and happiness
i read mostly non fic.
The Prize by Daniel Yergin a pulitzer award winning book about the greed, politics, power in the oil industry.
Steve Jobs’ bio by Issaccson.
Fiction: Cujo by Stephen King (the only fiction I read this yr)
@TG I’m a nonfiction reader too! dm me if u have a book blog, just curious!
@Sheena hi, i dont but that is a good idea to have.
what books are u currently reading?
@TG I’m 68% through Mossad! It’s so good!
@TG I might start Small Fry next. You?
@Sheena Singapore‘s Lee Kuan Yew story. And Nudge by R Thaler.
After reading Steve Jobs’ bio I might get that Small Fry book. :)
@TG nice! Thanks for sharing
1Q84
I went into it thinking it was going to be a good book on leadership and innovation book but it turned out to be a much more entertaining than I expected.
I think Mossad is gonna be my fav book of the year. It’s only Nov. It’s still too early to tell ?
Who is this written by?
@Megan
A Little Life. It shot immediately into my Top 10, and it lives in me.
Me too
@Natalie I am about 100 pages to finish. I am already anticipating how my life will be changed for knowing these men and their lives and this story. I cannot recall having ever been so affected by a novel before. I want to find a blog where I can discuss so much of it with others…
Tammie Dougherty Pagano I know! I feel like I know these guys now. Such an incredible book. My friend has this shirt! https://www.redbubble.com/people/bpm61692/works/26171753-a-little-life-book?cat_context=u-tees&grid_pos=1&p=womens-fitted-scoop&rbs=e7d0fc43-1523-4a08-9019-42362229d1da&searchTerm=a+little+life+t-shirts
One Thousand White Women: The Journals of May Dodd is the first novel by journalist Jim Fergus. It’s American history that I’ve never known.
@Patsy I loved that book
I loved that book.
Strange the dreamer by Laini Taylor because it was a very well-written book with great world-building and a great plot which had a good twist (I felt like I was there and I connected to Lazlo as a character). Also The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden-very beautiful descriptive language, original use of Russian folklore as part of the story, great and interesting plot and great characters that I want to read more about (as it is the first of a series). I think when I have read the girl in the tower by Katherine Arden will also become a favourite this year.
Have you read laini Taylor’s other series? Daughter of smoke and bone. One of my faves.
Yes I have read her other books-they are great! Her other books were the reason why I tried Strange the Dreamer in the first place. I have just picked up the 2nd book of this series Muse of Nightmares by Laini Taylor along with The Labyrinth of the Spirits by Carlos Ruiz Zafón as holds from my library. I’m reading Kingdom of Ash by Sarah J Maas at the moment and afterwards I have to decide which of these great books to read next. If you know any other great fantasy writers like Laini Taylor and Katherine Arden please do let me know. I did try Naomi Novik and I hated Uprooted (I didn’t finish it at
about 70% of the way through)-but I gave her a second chance and read Spinning Silver which was so much better than Uprooted.
If you’re not usually a fantasy fan would this still be appealing? Cross genre appeal?
I think you would like Katherine Arden’s The Bear and the Nightingale (which is the 1st of a series) because it is quite different from a lot of fantasy books as it draws on Russian folklore and is quite different.
Strange the dreamer is more high fantasy and worldbuilding-focused with less of a focus on romance. Strange the dreamer may not have such a cross-genre appeal because of this. Does anyone else agree with me about Strange the Dreamer or do you think it might have cross-genre appeal?
Her first series, daughter of smoke and bone, is much more ‘cross genre’ in the sense that it encompasses some fantasy, Greek mythology, romance, etc.
Legendary by Stephanie Garber and
The Rook by Daniel O’Malley
Both have wonderful world building. Normally I’m not one for fantasy but The Rook was absolutely amazing
What a question! What a consideration! I had to think about this, to recall what was this year. The first to come to mind was Richard Yates’ The Easter Parade. I was already a huge fan of his after reading Revolutionary Road and his story collection Eleven Kinds of Loneliness. Being honest I was unsure if would be as good as RR. But boy is it ever! So powerful and full of sympathy, hard and real and deep and heartbreaking. Such a clearly written picture of these women in that age. There was also James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room and I felt a similar reservation, despite its reputation, after having read his Go Tell It On The Mountain and Another Country. I was blown away by the power of his writing (again), the humanity, tragedy. Like The Easter Parade it brilliantly tells of people and a place. I’ve not long read Naomi Mitchison’s Blood of the Martyrs, a novel about Christians in Rome during Emperor Nero, and I loved it for the detail of Rome and the Christians, how Christianity and Jesus were seen by both Christians and others. (There is more than one instance where Christianity is called atheism.) As good in its way as her The Corn King and the Spring Queen. So, one of those i think ??
More than miles by autumn Jones lake
So hard a question. Paris Seamstress by Natasha Lester, The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah, Before I let you go by Rimmer, This is How it Always is by Frankel. No five stars for me yet this year but solid 4.5
Wow, I’ve read a few good ones but I’d have to say the entire Cemetery of Lost Books series by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, beginning with The Shadow of the Wind. All four are brilliant.
Sounds interesting! Thanks!
Just Kids By Patti Smith.
I just started 13 reasons why its my favorite so far
Beartown because it made me laugh, made me cry, made me think and made me love it.
The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell
@Katherine It was so good!! ??
@Beth I loved this book soo much
Universal Tone by Carlos Santana
Educated by Tara Westover
Dean Koontz’s Jane Hawk (all 3)
Sarah Hilary’s DI Marnie Rome (either 5)
@Tone I just bought the first Jane Hawk book. Haven’t started it yet
Enjoy! ??
Non-fiction: Evicted by Matthew Desmond
Fiction: All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr
Baby Teeth. It was different, old-school.
The Hearts Invisible Furies
Union Street Bakery or Friday Night Knitting Club
Where the Crawdads Sing!!
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sword-Oblivion-Dwarfen-Brothers-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B07HHC4ZMN/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1541712515&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=the+sword+of+oblivion&dpPl=1&dpID=51t079cZjVL#mediaMatrix_secondary_view_div_1541712524925
Where the Crawdads Sing – took me a long time to get it off my mind, which is my measure of a great book!
“Beartown” Fredrik Backman. I couldn’t put it down, great characters, had to find out the ending.
Pick just one hmm. How about Song of Achilles (Miller), and Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache series abs The Record of a Spaceborn Few as having the longest lasting ripples
Cheryl Parmenter Isaak loved the Song Of Achilles, and Circe , also by Miller.
“Where the Crawdads Sing” by Delia Owens. Picturesque writing and character development.
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles. The writing is extraordinary and the characters are so well thought out and written. This book really stuck with me.
@Kimberly agree! The best!
It is so difficult to choose just one, I seem to have found so many good reads this year. If forced to pick I would say “Three things about Elsie” by Joanna Cannon. The writing is lovely, the characters well-developed and the story itself is beautifully told.
It’s more than one book, but for me it’s Winston Graham’s Poldark series. Addicting storyline and beautiful writing. I’ve read 11 of the 12 since January and will begin the last one soon.
A Gentleman in Moscow, The Hearts invisible furies and This is How it always Is, all wonderful.
“Red Notice” because it stripped me of my innocence.
By Bill Brower? If so, me too.
@Kimberly yes. That’s the one.
@Lloyd Unbelievablely tragic and sad story but mostly infuriating.
I really enjoyed this book and thought it was very eye opening.
Oh I’m torn. I really liked the Eat the Evidence trilogy about Pedophilic Cannibal Nathaneal Bar Jonah, but I also loved The Shape of Water.
Spinning Silver!
@Karin that’s mine too!!!
Have you read The Bear and the Nightingale?
@Karin it’s on my tbr!! I might bump it up if you loved it!!
You will absolutely love it. It’s a trilogy and the third book is going to be out soon! I’d love to hear what other books you’ve liked! Add me on Goodreads?
@Karin absolutely!! Is it just your name on there?
I think?? I’m not great at using the app!
@Karin me either lmao
I’m old and need youngsters to explain things to me! Hahaha.
The Saviors Champion because it was badass, plenty of action, fast paced and never dull. You feel like you’re right there in the story, you become invested in the characters. And yeah, the romance isn’t crazy or over the top. It’s real and amazing.
The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton is my favorite so far
@Becky added to my TBR
@Fiona I’ll bring it over tomorrow!
@Becky Thank you ?
Nightingale was the best but read it last year. Secrets of a Charmed Life or the Alice Network are this year favorites.
Ready Player One for the nostalgia and my husband also loved it, so it was fun to talk about with him. Thirteen Reasons Why because it stuck with me for a long time after and made me think about some of my actions in high school.
My faves this year: Where the Crawdads Sing; Pachinko; The Optimist’s Guide to Letting Go; George and Lizzie; Young Jane Young; Before We Were Yours; Marilla of Green Gables
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah, love the history and romance.
Fire Fly Lane by Kristin Hannah, The Rumor, Erin Hilderbrand, The Stolen Marriage, Diane Chamberlain,Every Note Played, Lisa Genova and Need to Know by Karen Cleveland.
I’m going to say Marshall Ryan Maresca’s books. 4 series (total of 8 current books) with intertwining plots.
“The Rise and Fall of D.O.D.O.” It was suggested to me because I absolutely loved The Dresden Files, and I have to say it was one of the best books I’ve read.
@Morgan I’m about two thirds done with this book. Good stuff.
Button Man by Andrew Gross
@Jim yes just read it. What a surprise. Wish my stepfather was still alive as hecwas a clothing manufacture in New York.
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine and also The Likeness by Tana French; it reminded me of The Secret History, my favorite read of last year. (I was very late to THAT party!) ??
The Calculating Stars: A Lady Astronaut Novel by Mary Robinette Kowal…it is an alternative history of the world and the space program beginning in the early 1950s with a meteor that hits the world…It got the gender, religious, and racial issues spot on for that time…It generated a lot of discussion between myself and my sister who read it at the same time….
I have yet to read something that doesn’t top Dear Martin.
A few that stood out for me: Pachinko by Min Jin Lee, Cherry by Nico Walker, The Animators by Kayla Rae Whitaker, and Katerina by James Frey
@Jason love Pachimko, leading a book club discussion on Wed
Yes I liked that one too. I just finished another really good. It’s new: The Feral Detective by Jonathan Lethem
Ready player one
ANATOMY OF A SCANDAL by Sarah Vaughan. I was captivated by this novel from the first page. It’s very well-written and takes place in Britain spanning from the early 1990s to 2016. I loved the intrigue it offered, too. ?
The Hearts Invisible Furies by John Boyne was an “unputdownable” book that I read this year… one minute it would have you laughing, literally the next you’d be crying ? a really emotional, but brilliant read ??
Loved it. For me that was my favorite book from last year!
Just read it. Couldn’t agree more, definitely my best book this year.
@Louise reading it now!
The Silence of the Girls This is basically the story of the Illiad as told by the women enslaved in the war. It is a point of view I have never read in all the books about wars I have ever read. It should be required reading for everyone.
I would have to say my favorite books this year are those in the Jack the Ripper Victim Series by Alan M. Clark. These are not your everyday Ripperologist speculations on the murderer of women but extremely well written historical fiction probing the possible lives these women lived. They were human beings that had families, husbands, children. They are written in a way that empowers them as women and doesn’t demean them as victims. The attention to historical detail is nothing less than amazing. The books are: A BRUTAL CHILL IN AUGUST, SAY ANYTHING BUT YOUR PRAYERS, OF THIMBLE AND THREAT, APOLOGIES TO THE CAT’S MEAT MAN, and THE PROSTITUTE’S PRICE. The first four books can be read in any order. I tried to read them in the order in which they were killed. The final book, no matter the order you read the others, should be saved for last.
My favourite book I hadn’t read before is Regatta by Libby Purves. I like it because it has some great characters and a good story. The setting is lovely too.
The Postmistress – loved the two perspectives on the war and also the two ladies philosophies on delivering the “news”
I really liked that one
The Break, by Katherena Vermette. I read it early in the year and I still think about it. It was heart breaking and gripping.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/29220494-the-break
The book thief! <3
Commonwealth Ann Patchett
Yes!
Discovery of witches
Oh Goddess I’ve read so many good books this year. ? I can’t just pick one!
I agree! I have read lots of them that I enjoyed
Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman.Fabulous!
Grace by T. Greenwood For some reason I just really connected to this book.
Artimis by Weir
Battle Mage by Peter Flannery. Most emotional ride I’ve ever been on and by far the most complete story I’ve read.
Killing Commendatore
Sweetpea it’s like Bridget Jones meets Dexter and I loved it. I went to 2 book stores looking for the 2nd one today and ended up ordering it online.
Virgil Wander by Leif Enger. I just love Enger’s writing
Loved his “Peace Like A River ” !!
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.
The all souls trilogy… well plus the new one
Just finished Circe and loved it. An underdog heroine with everything stacked against her, and yet, at the end, finds peace from an unlikely source.
Jayber Crow by Wendell Berry
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, because it’s a natural predecessor to the Agatha Christie mysteries I’ve loved forever. An unknown narrator wakes up in the wee hours of the morning, in the dirt and with no memory or either himself or his surroundings. What he does know is the name Anna and the fact that he hears a woman screaming for help. SO MUCH FUN
Why the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. It’s beautifully described and the main characters are well developed.
@Mary one of my book clubs just picked it for our April book. Hope I like it
@Sharyn I hope you do too! Let us know what you think of it when you finish it!
The Hate you Give because it’s relevant and eye opening.
#1 The Overstory by Richard Powers.
Others I thought were excellent:
Red Clocks by Leni Zumas
The Book of Strange New Things by Michel Faber
The Passage trilogy by Justin Cronin
“Educated” a memoir by Tara Westover:
Her inner strength she had to cultivate to withstand all forms of indoctrination that’s hindering Author’s finding her voice and becoming her “self” was moving and heroic. Must read.
Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik! It’s so gorgeous and atmospheric!!
I was so sad when it was over.
A tie. The Heart’s Invisible Furies and The Nightingale. Both top notch.
Thanks for all these suggestions. So many books. So little time. Sigh!!!
Shadow of the Wind.
@Marscha Hope you read the rest of the books. The 4th, Labyrinth of the Spirits is a Masterpiece