Keeper of the Hourglass is the story of Peter Nichols and his time in Heaven.

Peter is 10 years old and is literally bullied to death. He goes to Heaven and is given a task of reading the life stories of others as some kind of penance. Heaven in this story is a dreary, lonely, and punitive place where Peter for some reason has to work his way to the next level.

Although Peter is 10 years old, this is not a children's book. The presentation of Heaven is anything but heavenly. The worst part is the horrible fate given in this book to those who have committed suicide. I saw no mention of murderers, rapists, or child abusers and what their fate would be, but those who committed suicide were required to suffer horribly.

For those of us who have lost loved ones to suicide, this will be unacceptable.

I think the author is a very good writer, but the story did not work for me, and the treatment of those who have committed suicide is unforgivable.

I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley. My review is voluntary.

Peter is ten years old. He discovers that he has no idea where he is. He finds out that he is not in the heaven that he thought he would be in. Peter is given a job in the conservatory that contains lifebooks where each person’s life is represented. He will be turning a page of each booklife so that person can move on with their life. Peter finds this to be so boring. He wants to go back to his parents and be with them. He wants to see them no matter what. Will he see his parents? If he does, what will happen? Peter makes a friend who is more than what he appears to be.

The discoveries and adventures made this an intriguing novel for me to read. It’s an interesting description about the place where Peter is. Coping with everyday life, grieving due to the loss of a loved one, and friendship are themes in this novel. It is written with a genuine feeling of warmth and understanding.

Understanding and accepting death is a hard thing to do , especially if you are a ten year old boy .

When Peter wakes up in a strange place he is more confused than he has ever been. After some confusing conversations Peter is faced with the truth . He has died and is now in the first stage of the afterlife .

He is at the Conservatory. Peter is told his job is to work with the LifeBooks but he only has one goal . To get back home to is parents . The story follows Peter’s journey through sadness, anger, discovery and acceptance as well as battle with evil .


I really enjoyed the concept of heaven / the afterlife in this book. It paints a unique picture of all lives are linked in some way .

I feel this book is better aimed at younger readers as it is written from the point of view of a child . However reading it as an adult was still a lovely experience.

The author has balanced the wonderful aspects of life with the darker elements of grief and death amazingly . To be reminded of how it felt to be a child trying to understand something as life changing as death was a eye opening experience.

Overall I enjoyed the book. As I said before I do feel that it is better suited for younger readers as they will be able to relate to is more that I did as an adult. Some parts felt a little rambly to me but then again , as it is written from the point of view of a ten year old it is exactly how I would expect a ten year olds thoughts to be .

Many thanks to Netgalley, Black Rose Writing and G.L Garrett for my copy of this book to review .

This is a truly beautiful book that plays with the themes of life, death and time in a clever and imaginative way and also challenges the concept that paths of pre defined.
An excellent book that I would highly recommend to any fantasy lover not just the recommended YA group.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a perfect introduction for younger readers to ideas of fantasy. Peter is ten when he dies and finds himself in a new world. Having a ten-year-old try to cope with the concept of death is pretty tough, and makes the first part of the book rather long and without anything really happening, but it allows for a lot of world-building. I love the concept of the books and the library. Having a ten-year-old myself, I would have been tempted to make the protagonist a little older in order to be able to deal with a bit more complexity and perhaps suit the task in front of him a little more, but it is a nice story for younger readers, or even to read together.