Carlos Ruiz Zafon will make you feel like you are being told a story around a campfire with his shadowy tale of two twins that were separated at birth for their own protection in 1930s Calcutta.While Sheere’s grandmother raises her, Ben is dropped off at an orphanage where he eventually forms the Chowbar Society, a secretive group of friends that vow to acquire as much knowledge as possible in order to build a better world in addition to protecting each other at all costs.Each member of the society has a particular skill such as Isobel, the only girl and brains of the group, Roshan, the locksmith, and Siraj who specializes in haunted houses.The trouble all begins when they turn the adult age of sixteen and get released from the orphanage.Sheere and her grandmother show up to reveal the reason for Ben’s separation and warn him of the dangers, most notably the creepy villain Jawahal, which lie ahead.Fans of Cornelia Funke’s The Thief Lord will particularly enjoy this atmospheric mystery.
Recommended by Carrie Shaurette, Librarian, New Jersey
