Just Finished Reading: The Watcher in the Shadows by Carlos Ruiz Zafon (FP: 1995)

Even tragedy fades – at least the Sauvelle family told themselves. When their beloved father died suddenly their world changed. With debts to be paid their fine clothes and their large house had to be given up to creditors. Without any income their mother had to look for work. For almost a year the family lived from day to day dependent on the charity of others. Until one day their luck changed for the better. Their mother had been offered a job in the country as a housekeeper for the legendary but reclusive toymaker Lazarus Jann. They had to leave their beloved Paris and travel to a small coastal town in Normandy but it was a small price to pay for the hope of getting their lives back on track, and what a place to do it. Their new home Seaview overlooked the wild Normandy coastline whilst behind it was the Cravenmoore estate, home to the enigmatic if charming Jann and his even more mysterious wife. Surrounded by an extensive forest it was the perfect place to recharge the soul and allow the children – young Dorian and his older sister Irene – to fill their young lungs with fresh air. It was perfect….. until Dorian noticed that Lazarus Jann failed to cast a shadow.

I didn’t know this at the time but this was one of the author’s earlier works and was aimed at a child readership – of around 12 to 13. Initially a little irritated by the fact I thought I’d give it a try and thought that worst case at least it would be a quick and easy read. I was wrong. Although I fairly breezed through the 246 pages in around 4 days it was far from an easy read – it was damned scary! I couldn’t help thinking that the author’s experience of early teenage literary courage was far greater than mine. At several points in the book I did think that if I had been reading this in bed at age 12 I would’ve peed my PJs! Parts of the book – no spoilers here but there’s a ‘monster’ involved – are REALLY creepy with an oppressive atmosphere that anyone with half an imagination could run with. Some parts are definitely the stuff of teenage nightmares despite the heroic nature of other parts of the narrative. Heroes abound in this book – not only Dorian who at one point threatens the ‘monster’ with a knife to protect his mother – but Irene and her recent 16 year old boyfriend Ismael as well as the children’s mother Simone who fought for her children using her heart and her head as much as her physical presence.

There’s a lot for a young teen to learn here – and not just about courage in the face of monsters. There’s love and loss, friendship and loneliness. There’s trust and keeping secrets, there’s letting go (of childhood and the past) and embracing wonder. Finally there’s that liminal space between the child and the adult and how you navigate – successfully or not – between the two. I did have a quibble or two – mostly towards the end where the ‘boss fight’ took a little too long and was a little too convoluted but such things pale beside the positive attributes of this book. For a children’s book this was very well, indeed beautifully, written. Reading the prose was like dinning on a perfectly made multi-layered richly decorated cake. All of the characters – even the minor ones – were fully fleshed out and believable. The dialogue from everyone was spot on – no rolling of eyes here. The range of atmosphere throughout flowed as if directed by the conductor of an emotional symphony orchestra. It was, in short, a delight from beginning to (mostly) the end. Being an early work – and being aimed at a younger readership – I am intrigued to read the more accomplished more adult works he has subsequently produced. He’s definitely on my follow up list. Highly recommended but you might have to read this in the daylight or be prepared to sleep with your lights on! 

Translated from the Spanish by Lucia Graves

Coming Next: 10 books of Historical Crime.