Book Review: The Prince of Mist by Carlos Ruiz Zafón

UK Paperback,
Orion Children's Edition

Title:
The Prince of Mist
(Niebla Series #1)
Original Title:
El Príncipe de la Niebla
Author:
Carlos Ruiz Zafón
Source:
Bought
Publication History*:
ESP Paperback 1993 by Edebé
UK Hardback May 4th 2010 by Little, Brown
UK Paperback April 11th 20101 by Little, Brown
Genre:
Middle Grade, Fantasy, Horror
Rating:
5/5*****

Review:
This book reminded me very much of Neil Gaiman's Coraline. Not from the plot side, but from the way it was crafted. Like Coraline, The Prince of Mist was intended for a middle grade audience, but manages to scare adults as well. I enjoyed the clever use of tools like the clocks, the strange cat, the garden with the moving statues, the old film reels and the mysterious weather occurrences.
The Prince of Mist is not the super-fast-paced, scare-you-out-of-your-panties kind of book but the slowly-creeping-up-your-spine kind (sorry for the weird descriptions, it's had to put my finger on the whole thing). The Books starts rather harmless, with Max's family moving from the big city to a small town beach house. It's there that strange things start to happen. Throw in an old legend about a villain that is elusive as the mist and you have your perfect creep story.
But the book also deals with the changes that come with growing up and taking on your own responsibilities.

While the book is rather short and some parts would have strived further with more development, you can clearly see Zafón's talent and this makes for an excellent debut. I can't wait for The Midnight Palace and September Lights to be published by Orion, too.


*There are so many different editions listed, and with the original being published in 1993 in Barcelona, Spain it was had to track them down and impossible to list them all. The most popular editions are from Weidenfeld & Nicolson, Orion and Little, Brown and are available in the US and UK alike.