ARC Review: The Midnight Palace by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

Book Cover from Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Midnight-Palace-Carlos-Ruiz-Zafon/dp/0316044733/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1303140818&sr=8-1

FTC Disclosure:  I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in the hopes that I would provide a review. I did not receive any compensation for my review.

Product Description from Amazon

In the heart of Calcutta lurks a dark mystery....
Set in Calcutta in the 1930s, The Midnight Palace begins on a dark night when an English lieutenant fights to save newborn twins Ben and Sheere from an unthinkable threat. Despite monsoon-force rains and terrible danger lurking around every street corner, the young lieutenant manages to get them to safety, but not without losing his own life. . . .

Years later, on the eve of Ben and Sheere's sixteenth birthday, the mysterious threat reenters their lives. This time, it may be impossible to escape. With the help of their brave friends, the twins will have to take a stand against the terror that watches them in the shadows of the night--and face the most frightening creature in the history of the City of Palaces. 

 This book did not have the passion and exciting pace that I normally find in young adult books. I've seen it listed in a few places as part of the series with The Prince of Mist. That might explain why I often felt as though I was missing a great deal of the story.  This book just didn't interest me. I had to force myself to finish and based on the reading habits of the teens that I provide Reader's Advisory for - I'm afraid they would feel the same way. 

Some of the "story telling" by characters was just too long. The author seemed to have spent more time just throwing in details without truly connecting them to the story.  The characters felt underdeveloped as well.  It was difficult to make a connection with the characters in order to care about what happened to them.


 I had considered reading The Prince of Mist in hopes that it would help me understand this story better.  However, my to read list is too long to add a book when it is questionable that it would be enjoyable to me or my patrons.