Midnight For Charlie Bone

Description for MIDNIGHT FOR CHARLIE BONE by Jenny Nimmo:

Charlie doesn't want to believe it.

He can hear people talking in photographs.

What's happening to him? Why now?

The mysterious and magical powers of the Red King have been passed down through his descendants. These gifts, some evil and some good, turn up unexpectedly in someone who has no idea where they came from. This is what happened to Charlie Bone ...

Charlie doesn't want to believe it when he discovers that he can hear the thoughts of people in photographs. But his horrible aunts are delighted -- it means that he is one of the chosen and must attend the Bloor's Academy for gifted children. Once there, Charlie realizes that some of his classmates have equally mysterious powers, and soon Charlie is involved in uncovering the mysterious past of one of them.

This is #1 in Children Of The Red Queen Series.