The Timekeeper, by Tara Sim, is a fictional young adult book set in England. The story begins by setting the tone for the mystery afoot, someone has stolen 2 O'clock. Clocks are very important because they control time, and without mechanics to maintain them entire towns could be frozen in time. The general public does not know or understand this. 
 The main character is a boy named Danny, who is a mechanic who fixes clocks. He is a mere 17 years old, but has moved his way quickly up the ladder of success, and now has apprentices of his own. He sometimes has trouble getting along with people, and can be short tempered. He is wound very tightly, constantly worrying and trying to keep things just right. 
 Danny has just recently had a terrible accident, 3 months prior, and is finally coming back to work. You don't know what the accident was exactly, but you do know that he was injured and is now suffering some setbacks. Due to the events that took place, Danny is now facing some issues with fear. Because he is still shaky, he must prove himself solid before being given bigger assignments at work again. 
 His first day back at work, he is given a new apprentice. The apprentice is named Brandon, and is close to the same age as Danny. Brandon is very quiet and does not know much about clocks, however, he is willing to learn. In the beginning, Danny doesn't care for Brandon because he feels that he is unprofessional. 
 Another mystery is what has happened to Danny's father and Maldon. You know that his father was a clock mechanic as well, and he taught his son very early, which is why Danny has moved so quickly up the ladder, but you don't know much more about him or what events lead to his disappearance. 
 Initially, I was excited to request this book. I had read some promising reviews and was looking forward to being engulfed by a great young adult science fiction story. The concept seemed really interesting, but after reading the first few chapters, I found myself disappointed. I thought the main character to be unlikable and I never truly fell into the vibe of the story. Overall, I didn't connect with any of the characters. I still feel that the concept is a neat idea, but it could have been executed better. The story moved too slowly for my taste, and in the time it took to move along, I feel the Author could have used it to better develop characters, but didn't. There wasn't enough emotion for me to care much about anyone. 
 A side note that I would like to add is that this story was not listed in LGBT category when it should have been. I hold no discrimination toward anyone for their preferences or lifestyle choice. That being said, I don't tend to read this particular genre, as it holds no real interest or appeal to me personally. This is just a side note, and does not reflect my rating of the story.