Customer Reviews

The Toymaker

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The Toymaker is an amazing read. From the very beginning we are treated to things such as evil carnival sideshows, and toys that come to life with the hearts of living things. At the heart of it all is young Mathias, who we meet as a virtual prisoner of a conjurer he believes to be his grandfather. Mathias has been told that old Gustav has a secret, and when the old man finally dies, off we go on an adventure to discover the secret and all that it entails. On the way, there is death, torture, grave digging, creepy dolls that can tell when someone is lying and finally a nail biting climax when all is revealed in it's Lovecraftian splendor.

It's hard for me to envision this as a children's book in that it is at times incredibly violent, and the images the author so vividly creates are very horrific. As an adult reader, I found this story very creepy and enough to induce more than a few shivers. I have always been creeped out by evil carnivals, and the whole prospect of an evil toymaker that gives his dolls human hearts is terrifying to me on numerous levels. Perhaps kids won't find it as terrifying, but I'm just not sure. Young horror and fantasy fans ages 12 and up will no doubt find this a delightful read much as I did. I would just be hesitant to place it in the hands of a 9 year old as the publisher's age recommendation shows. This is edge of your seat fantastic storytelling that is not to be missed.