As in all books by Zafon, I loved this one. It had its little quirky um-where'd-that-come-from? moments, but I loved it nonetheless.

The synopsis at Waterstones.com reads as follows:

1916, Calcutta. A man pauses for breath outside the ruins of Jheeter's Gate station knowing he has only hours to live. Pursued by assassins, he must ensure the safety of two newborn twins, before disappearing into the night to meet his fate. 1932. Ben and his friends are due to leave the orphanage which has been their home for sixteen years. Tonight will be the final meeting of their secret club, in the old ruin they christened The Midnight Palace. Then Ben discovers he has a sister - and together they learn the tragic story of their past, as a shadowy figures lures them to a terrifying showdown in the ruins of Jheeter's Gate station.

Note: I am not sure if this is a spoiler, though I don't think it really is, but I'm giving you a fair warning anyway, as it has a lot to do with the foundation of the story.
The first part of this book was a bit shaky, I will have to admit. How many times have we heard of the story of a newborn child (or children, or baby/ies) whose parents were murdered in cold blood by an evil person/being, but which child, by some fortunate twist of fate, is rescued by a benevolent character (who may or may not end up dying anyway), and who leaves such child somewhere (at the doorstep of another benevolent character, maybe?) where the child grows up, shielded from the past and clueless that, upon reaching a certain age, he/she and the evil murderer of his/her parents will resurface? I'm thinking Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book and, of course, the most obvious example, J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter. Almost always, a token - something - will be left in the possession of such child that will help in the discovery of his past. Well. Go figure.
Okay, it's safe to continue reading the rest of the review now.

The little "showdown" and "game" towards the end, too, was a bit tacky. If you've been dealing with an apparently invincible enemy, with demonic powers and super-strengths, the "game" would not be something that you'd expect.

Notwithstanding the somewhat predictable foundation of the plot and the tacky little parts scattered in the storyline, I enjoyed this book immensely. I've read all of Zafon's previous works, and always, the part which I look forward to - the best thing about his novels, for me - is the suspense. The mystery. The eerie atmosphere that prevails throughout the story. The creepiness of the narrative that makes the hair at the back of my neck stand up on end. Yes, I'm a scaredy-cat, but still.