Tooke's world building is wonderful! The mysterious and magical scene is set from the very opening with the birth of Ema, a 12th child for the Vaskova family, on the 12th of December at midnight just as her maternal grandmother passes away.

Lots to enjoy with a large eccentric family, the descriptions of Prague, midnight meetings between Ema and her friend Silvie who is encourages fighting fear by embracing curiosity and adventure.

The premise of a murder having occurred at the Midnight Guild - a society with factions between curators and acolytes - is great, but I did get a little confused as to who was who in some of the guild scenes.

Overall I'd recommend this and would be interested in following characters in another adventure.

I thought that this was a great original story. A bit darker then children might be used to. So a great start to the more gothic and darker books for children. So a great transition books. That said thou it isn't scary at all. Just a little darker then they might be used to. Overall a good storyline too.

A coming of age story that grips you from the opening sentence.
Gothic, bohemian and just a sprinkle of romanticism. The story takes you on an adventure walking the line between the living and the dead, between the night and the morning.
Illustrations at the start of each chapter help to create the world. Appealing particularly to children around 11-14 years the tone and presentation is appropriate to the reading level.
One of those books I wish was around so I could have read it as a child, but would still read now as an adult.

An excellent family read. There was enough action, adventure and mysteries to keep everyone interested and involved in the story. We talked about it all the following day. As soon as we had finished the younger ones wanted to read it again , always the sign of an impending family classic.

I really loved this book, it had a great atmosphere around it and a lot of mysteries to solve! I really liked the characters, especially Ema, the main character (so often in books, i find the main character a bit dull, but not so in this one!).
There was a real feel of Sherlock Holmes in this book, but only towards the end, when everything is being pieced together. Ema has some fantastic abilities, not limited to just being able to observe situations very closely.
Overall, it was a great read. I found it hard to put down.

This book was so good.
Was unputdownable. Filled with friendship, unconditional love and acceptance.
Watching the friendship between Ema and Silvie is so lovely they really help and support each other.
Fast paced and witty this book is amazing you will not be disappointed.