The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, #2
The Angel's Game
by Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Contents
Act One - City of the Damned — Chapter 8
Overview
David tours and rents the eerie tower house on Calle Flassaders, transforming it into his writing lair despite chaotic electrical work. He throws himself into City of the Damned, straining his health. On the serial’s first anniversary, Andreas Corelli sends a congratulatory letter and returns David’s bloodstained childhood copy of Great Expectations, deepening the mystery.
Summary
David enters the long-desired tower house at 30 Flassaders with a property manager, an auditor, and a secretary. Inside, abandoned rooms appear frozen in time, as if the occupants fled mid-life. The tower study’s panoramic views and a waiting Underwood typewriter convince David to sign a ten-year lease on the spot.
He begins installing electricity, but Otilio and his crew bungle holes, misread plans, and delay progress, turning repairs into farce. Despite the mess, David is exhilarated to inhabit the house he has imagined for years and equips it to pursue a quiet life of books and work.
As Ignatius B. Samson, David launches City of the Damned and maintains a punishing pace to meet his contract. He isolates himself for weeks, living on coffee and cigarettes, suffering headaches, ringing ears, and unsettling dreams of ink crawling beneath his skin, yet he refuses to slow down or see a doctor.
On the serial’s first anniversary, David steps out for a rare break and finds an envelope bearing the angel seal. Andreas Corelli congratulates him and includes a gift: the very copy of Great Expectations David once cherished and lost, still marked with his blood. The return of this impossible book reaffirms Corelli’s reach and reignites the mystery surrounding him.
Who Appears
- David MartínNarrator; rents the tower house, writes obsessively as Ignatius B. Samson, suffers headaches, receives Corelli’s letter and returned book.
- Property managerSkeptical overseer during the house tour; facilitates rental despite misgivings.
- AuditorCheerful representative with keys; opens rooms and promotes the house to David.
- SecretaryAccompanies the tour with an oil lamp, highlighting the house’s gloom.
- OtilioHead electrician; bungles the installation, blames bad plans, delays work.
- RemigioOtilio’s mate; his tapping collapses a wall, exposing the house’s odd construction.
- Pedro VidalPatron; sends servants to help set up the house, underscoring his influence.
- Andreas CorelliMysterious benefactor; sends a congratulatory letter and returns David’s bloodstained Great Expectations.
- Señor SempereBookseller from David’s past; originally gifted the Great Expectations copy now returned.