Starred Review for Publishers Weekly

Originally published in 1993, Ruiz Zafón’s (<EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">The Shadow of the Wind) first novel, unavailable in English in the U.S. until now, is a melancholy horror tale that explores the implications parents’ choices can have for their children. During WWII, Max and Alicia Carver, 13 and 15, move with their family to a coastal Spanish village and meet an older local boy named Roland. As the three spend their time diving and exploring the town, they become aware that an unsettling force is lurking nearby. Visits to Roland’s adoptive grandfather fill in the story of the Prince of Mist, who has been bargaining for souls for decades. As the children learn more about the mysterious figure, they find themselves in greater danger. In gorgeously translated prose, Ruiz Zafón maintains a sweet, believable relationship among the characters when dealing with mundane concerns (a conflict over cleaning out a room full of spiders could be taken from any contemporary family film), but still conveys a sense of adventure and danger. The bittersweet ending suits the theme and setting, offering both hope and tragedy without any pretense of fairness. Ages 12–up. <EMPHASIS TYPE=""ITALIC"">(May)

Horn Book (Sun Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)

In 1943, thirteen-year-old Max's family moves from the city to the seaside to get away from the war. There he and his older sister meet a mysterious young man; soon after, tragedy befalls their younger sister and a frightening presence haunts Max. Zafsn paints an effectively eerie setting in this chilling ghost story.

School Library Journal Starred Review (Thu Jul 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)

Gr 5-8 In 1943, Max, 13, and his older sister Alicia are befriended by Roland, the grandson of a reclusive lighthouse keeper, when their family moves to a house on the coast to avoid the war. Max discovers a strange garden of sinister statues and a series of home movies showing that the statues change positions and expressions. Then, when his younger sister is hospitalized after an encounter with a strange presence that precipitates a fall down the stairs, he becomes aware that something sinister is afoot. The mystery deepens as Roland takes Alicia and Max diving to the ruins of an old shipwreck and the story of the ship and its mysterious passengers is revealed by the lighthouse keeper. Max begins to realize that something from beyond the grave is active in their midst and that it has an agenda that nothing on Earth can stop. In the end, someone will have to pay the price for a bargain made with the &4;evil one&4; long ago. The Prince of Mist hooks readers from page one. It is a combination of mystery, suspense, and supernatural thriller. The author keeps readers guessing all the way till the end in a story that&9;s fresh, frightening, and beautifully translated. Awesome.— Debra Banna, Sharon Public Library, MA

Voice of Youth Advocates (Thu Apr 28 00:00:00 CDT 2022)

When MaxÆs dad convinces the family to move out of the city to a house on the ocean to escape World War II, the family is less than enthusiastic. The family grudgingly moves, but unfortunately, the house has secrets, as do the grounds, and Max and his sisters Alicia and Irina begin to experience odd events. Max can see an old graveyard from his window, and the mystery further deepens when he investigates and finds that the statues are not as they appear. After Irina falls down the stairs in a freak accident, Alicia and Max are left to fend for themselves. During one of their trips to town, Max meets Roland, the son of the lighthouse keeper. The three soon become friends, and Roland shows Max and Alicia the wreck of the Orpheus, a ship whose flag contains the same unusual symbol Max sees in the cemetery. As the skies darken and the ship resurfaces, will the three teens escape with their lives? Zafon is a master storyteller. From the first page, the reader is drawn into the mystery and suspense that the young people encounter when they move into the Fleischmann house. The mists and the angry, stormy sea further add to the storyÆs intensity. As the lighthouse keeper and his grandsonÆs story is slowly revealed, the suspense becomes palpable. This book can be read and enjoyed by every level of reader, and teachers who are looking for a good read-aloud will keep the audience on the edge of their seats with this tale.ùLynn Evarts.

ALA Booklist (Wed Sep 01 00:00:00 CDT 2010)

Best-selling adult author Zafón published this first novel in Spain in 1993. Previously unavailable here and now translated seamlessly, this atmospheric tale is set in 1943 in an unspecified seacoast village. On Max Carver's thirteenth birthday, his father announces that the family is moving to a village for safety. Their new home has a tragic past and a garden filled with sinister statues that begin to haunt the children's dreams. Then Max and his older sister Alicia strike up a friendship with a local boy, Roland, who takes them diving around a wrecked ship in the harbor. Roland's grandfather, the town lighthouse keeper and sole survivor of the wreck, reveals the sinister connections between the wreck, the garden, and a relentlessly evil figure, Cain, called the Prince of Mist. Permeated with a delicious sense of looming menace, the story lines converge inexorably in a terrifying climax. Intelligent and eerie, Zafón's story will create nightmares and admirers.