Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

I liked this one. It was interesting. I liked the pictures that accompanied the story. The story was different, felt original. I loved Emma and Jacob. I wish Abe could have been a bit more of a presence in the book in the beginning, but I enjoyed the twists and turns. Even when I thought I knew what was going on, I was always not quite right!

Very interesting, creepy book. Yet not as ‘creepy' as I was worried it was going to be, not the horror show kind of creepy that I was moderately worried about, more the usual fantasy/sci-fi creepy that I am accustomed to. I really liked it and I am looking forward to reading the next one.

I really hesitate to do much of a review on this one, mainly because I read it so quickly that I feel like I've missed something major. I can say that I really enjoyed the interplay between the narrative itself and the photographs. Fitting a photograph in sometimes felt forced, but overall the effort was effective and successful. For some of the fantasy characters, it was very helpful to have images of them - with monsters, peculiars, etc., it would have been too easy to create wildly fantastic images of these kids. The images kept them grounded as real people.

The story was well told and, for the most part, well written. I wouldn't say that this one is up for any type of award (from purely a “writing” standpoint), but it was more than adequate. The narrative itself was strangely addictive. I could tell that this one walked the line between adult and young adult fiction. The story was accessible for a younger crowd, while some of the themes - impacts of war, love crossing generations, etc. - were obviously aimed at older readers.

One of the elements in which I felt Riggs was most successful was keeping the fantasy part of the story alive without making it overly cheesy. Throughout the entire narrative, it felt as though all of the monsters and all of the peculiars abilities could really have been caused/manifested by PTSD from WWII and “passed” down through generations. At some points, the book felt like a play on the American Dream, which I really enjoyed.

I hope to be able to digest this one a bit more and post a much better review later. Time is always the issue, but to not really let this one sink in would be unfair to Riggs and the overall story.

Pros: character growth, creepily atmospheric, high quality physical book, creatively meshes backstory with mythology and history/

Cons: don't learn as much about the kids as you'd like, doesn't fully explain their abilities or why they're born as they are/

For Parents: some swearing, some violence (mostly offscreen), kissing/

If ever there were an argument against ebooks, it would be Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Yes, you can read it on an ereader, and yes, the story would still be creepy and fun, but you'd miss something about the experience. This is a beautiful hardcover, with thick pages and gorgeous black and white photographs scattered throughout. Holding it and turning the pages is part of the ambiance the story creates./

Jakob Portman grew up hearing his grandfather's fantastic stories about the children's home he was sent to in England as a Jewish Polish immigrant in World War II. The stories were about children who could do peculiar things, like levitate, hold fire and lift very heavy things. But the violent death of his grandfather, along with the old man's last words, make him wonder if there was some truth to his stories./

This is a slow paced coming of age story. Mr. Riggs takes time to develop Jakob as a character, especially regarding his mental state, as well as the settings, in the book./

At first glance, the children seem like X-Men rip offs. They're said to be the next step in evolution and have different, extraordinary abilities. But while some of the abilities are useful, others - like having 2 mouths or bees living inside your body - are not at first glance advantageous. And while one group of peculiars thinks it would be grand to use their abilities to subjugate normals, the rest simply want to live in peace. /

I loved how the author amalgamated their existence with history as witches, changelings and circus performers. It gave the book a sense of history, and the kids a practical reason to hide./

The downside of the novel is that you don't learn as much as you'd like about certain things: the kids (their histories and abilities), how the loops work and why people are born peculiar. I'd love to see Riggs bring out a book of the grandfather's stories or a photo album of Miss Peregrine's home, with the stories of how each child came to be there./

There seems to be a move in SF towards the reimagining of history with a horror slant. While Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children is mostly set in the present, it reminded me of Eutopia by David Nickle and Mr. Shivers by Robert Jackson Bennett./

This is an open ended novel with series potential. It's a slow, atmospheric work that adults and teens will love.

I waited for this one for forever, and it far exceeded my expectations. I had thought it was a book of quirky photos, with a small story line.

Ho, Nelly. Not even! Add this to your TBR lists pronto.

Miss Peregrine's is a novel with the photos interspersed in the text to liven up the descriptions of the characters. But the reality is the story is fantastic! It reads like a brand new fairy tale (like nothing you have seen before). There are good guys, bad guys, hidden worlds, special powers, orphans, boarding schools, and WWII. The only thing this novel was missing was gypsy wagons -I love gypsy wagons ;)

This came in for me on Friday while I was at work, and I could not put the darn thing down. Page turning is not the right word for it, it is almost as if the reader is absorbed into the story.
Riggs leaves the ending open for a sequel (please, please write a sequel!!!). I just loved this crazy book.

This is an ARC I got through a library. I really loved this book. It took a little while to get going, but then I couldn't put it down. It also dragged a little at the end, but picked up again to let you finish on a high note. The characters are all wonderfully written and developed. I don't know if this will be the first in a series, but it definitely could be, and I would absolutely love to read more about the peculiar children. :) I loved all the photos throughout the book. Because it was an ARC there were some photos missing and I wonder what they were. There were also some typos and wrong words, but I'm expecting they'll be fixed for the final published copy. Lastly, there was a Bronwyn in the book which I just loved. :) I don't find my name in books often, and when I find it accidentally it's that much more fun. My only quibble with Bronwyn here was that she's described at one point as brawny (she can lift boulders, etc.). I just wonder how clever the author thought he was for that one; it's a tired play on the name that I've dealt with more than a few times and so that bugged me. But that's such a minor issue with the book, and a personal one at that, that I definitely recommend this book. It was just so much fun and full of such great characters.

You can read a further review/synopsis at: http://www.suite101.com/content/book-review-miss-peregrines-home-for-peculiar-children-a372063

Good, then slow, then ultimately ok. Unfortunately it ends on one of those annoying “to be continued” ending that so many authors like these days. Write a complete book, please. Or at least add “Part one” to the title so I know to skip it until you've written all of them. (That came out more bitter than I intended, probably).