I enjoyed every single page of this book and I probably won’t stop talking about it for a while. Thomas Taylor created a beautiful little universe with Eerie-on-the-Sea that has everything a bookworm could wish for: A set of original characters ranging from the formidable hotel owner to the collector of shiny pebbles and other mysteries that can be found on beaches, fascinating objects like the so-called Cameraluna and a glowing pink egg, and, of course, there is a library that will get you exactly the book you need, whether you want it or not. It’s a compelling book told in a funny and magical fashion. Everything about it grabbed my attention: the atmospheric seaside setting, the dreamy old small town with its odd but adorable inhabitants, and the promise of a fantastic adventure. I do not read a lot of Middle-Grade books, but ever since I first heard of Malamander, I knew I could not miss out on this one.

And Herbert and Parma should hope that this monster stays a legend, too. Herbie and Violet are going to uncover one secret or another that has been hiding in Eerie-on-the-Sea, and for some reason, they all seem connected to the legend of a sea-monster. When Violet Parma stumbles into the Hotel, closely followed by a mysterious and scary man with a hook for a hand, she asks Herbie to help her find her parents who went missing in a long and wintery night many years ago. If anyone at the hotel loses something, Herbie will find it and keep it safe for them in his Lost-and-Foundery that has existed for many a century and houses a miraculous collection of things long left behind. In a small seaside town that you will not have heard of, Herbert Lemon is the Lost-and-Founder of the Great Nautilus Hotel. 'If the impossible is possible anywhere, it’ll be possible in Eerie-on-the-Sea.'

Malamander series