Far, Far Away by Tom McNeal

Far, Far Away by Tom McNeal

It says quite a lot about Jeremy Johnson Johnson that the strangest thing about him isn't even the fact his mother and father both had the same last name. Jeremy once admitted he's able to hear voices, and the townspeople of Never Better have treated him like an outsider since. After his mother left, his father became a recluse, and it's been up to Jeremy to support the family. But it hasn't been up to Jeremy alone. The truth is, Jeremy can hear voices. Or, specifically, one voice: the voice of the ghost of Jacob Grimm, one half of the infamous writing duo, The Brothers Grimm.

Jacob watches over Jeremy, protecting him from an unknown dark evil whispered about in the space between this world and the next. But when the provocative local girl Ginger Boultinghouse takes an interest in Jeremy (and his unique abilities), a grim chain of events is put into motion. And as anyone familiar with the Grimm Brothers know, not all fairy tales have happy endings... 


This was truly one of the most original stories I have ever read. It's a modern day fairy tale unlike any I have heard before. It is narrated by the ghost of Jacob Grimm of the Brother's Grimm. He has been dead for centuries and in that time he has traveled the world learning languages and everything else there is to learn. He was a briliant narrator.

The town, Never Better, is a magical place that truly feels like it should be somewhere far, far away, but is apparently in the American Midwest. In the town, there is a baker who makes the most delicious cakes that people would probably die to eat. Our main character, Jeremy Johnson Johnson, lives and works in a bookstore that only sells two books: the two volumes of his grandfather's autobiography. The ambiance is wonderful; I could imagine myself in the town surrounded by the townspeople, all of whom  are unique and well developed, even the characters that are only mentioned once or twice.

Everything about this book was new and different and I cannot stop thinking about the story. This is now one of my favorite books and I can see myself returning to it's pages for years to come. It was a complete delight.