It follows (and is narrated by) David Martín, a young writer who is approached by a mysterious figure to write a book.

It is a prequel to The Shadow of the Wind, also set in Barcelona, but during the 1920s and 1930s. The English edition, The Angel's Game, was also translated by Lucia Graves. Ruiz Zafón's next novel, El juego del ángel, was published in April 2008. La sombra del viento garnered critical acclaim around the world. The novel has sold millions of copies worldwide, with more than a million copies sold in the UK.

In 2001 he published his first adult novel La sombra del viento ( The Shadow of the Wind, Lucia Graves' English translation published in 2004), a Gothic mystery that involves Daniel Sempere's quest to track down the man responsible for destroying every book written by author Julian Carax. He was also the author of three additional young adult novels, El palacio de la medianoche (1994), Las luces de septiembre (1995) and Marina (1999). Ruiz Zafón's first novel, El príncipe de la niebla 1993 ( The Prince of Mist, published in English in 2010), earned the Edebé literary prize for young adult fiction. Ruiz Zafón died of colorectal cancer in Los Angeles on 19 June 2020. In the 1990s he moved to Los Angeles where he worked briefly in screen writing. Ruiz Zafón began his working life in advertising. His grandparents had worked in a factory and his father sold insurance. Carlos Ruiz Zafón ( Spanish pronunciation: 25 September 1964 – 19 June 2020) was a Spanish novelist known for his 2001 novel La sombra del viento ( The Shadow of the Wind).

Carlos ruiz zafón the prince of mist