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TSotW was chock-full of elements that could (I would think) push the story beyond a mere novel to the status of a compulsive page-turner: a mysterious villian, buried family secrets, standoff of good & evil (fermin & fumero), coming of age, beautiful descriptions of Barcelona, spiced with humor...
Yet I never felt a compulsion to continue reading. Two to four chapters, and I felt satisfied. I set it down and returned later, perhaps the next day. Maybe this is a book to be savored rather than devoured. I loved the translation, for the most part, and concur that the portrayal of post-war Barcelona is one of the best aspects of the story.
Others here are spot-on in their criticism of over-reliance on artificial revelations. It felt like the author belatedly realized, "Oh my, I need to bring this story to a close. How can I do that? Aha! I'll put it all in a letter!"
Anyway, an enjoyable and often beautiful story. I'm glad to have read it and yet I wouldn't recommend it to a friend, not with the vast ocean of other, amazing books available.
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