Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine's Peculiar Children, #1)

by Ransom Riggs

The #1 New York Times best-selling series.
 
A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of very curious photographs. It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive. 

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.
 
“A tense, moving, and wondrously strange first novel. The photographs and text work together brilliantly to create an unforgettable story.”—John Green, New York Times best-selling author of The Fault in Our Stars
 
“With its X-Men: First Class-meets-time-travel story line, David Lynchian imagery, and rich, eerie detail, it’s no wonder Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children has been snapped up by Twentieth Century Fox. B+”—Entertainment Weekly
 
“‘Peculiar’ doesn’t even begin to cover it. Riggs’ chilling, wondrous novel is already headed to the movies.”—People
 
“You’ll love it if you want a good thriller for the summer. It’s a mystery, and you’ll race to solve it before Jacob figures it out for himself.”—Seventeen

• ISBN10: 129965570X
• ISBN13: 9781299655706
• Publish Date: 1 January 2011
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 24 June 2015
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Quirk Books
• Language: English

Reviews

[mysticalmanuscripts]

This is the second time I have read Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. It didn’t appeal to me the first time I read it. According to my colleague, it gets better in later books. As much as I can, I push through it this time. I’m determined to finish the book and see if my colleague is right. I’m hoping that giving it another chance will pay off.

Unfortunately, my opinion has not changed. The story is nothing more than a few creepy pictures and some weird characters. There is too much emphasis placed on the telling of the stories rather than developing their plot. As a result, the story let me down. Despite what it claims to be, it was nowhere near as creepy or strange as it seems.

Character development is lacking. In the book, it portrayed the children in a manner similar to a circus freak. Despite their eccentricities, they have a little personality of their own. Their portrayal is no better than a circus freak, and the reader does not feel empathic towards them, and they are sidelined.It is slow. It focuses too much on its own meta-ness that I lost interest. As the book progressed, I became bored and the later parts were a real drag.

Despite having some good ideas, and the gimmick with the photos would have been nice, the book’s ideas aren’t fully developed. This book could have been better with more editing and reinforcement of the concept.

Unfortunately, this is a messy book. It lacks structure and clarity, making it difficult to follow. The ideas could have been better presented if the book had been professionally edited. I won’t continue this series.

You can see all my reviews here

[layawaydragon]

Made it two hundred pages and got bored with it. Couldn't make myself care enough to finish it. Nice pictures though.

[CrowNoYami]

The only thing I didn't like about this book was the romance aspect which given the history of MC's love interest kinda rubs me the wrong way. Otherwise, I'm excited to see what happens in the next book of the series! There's magic, mutant-like children, and an enemy that lurks in the dark. This novel captures your imagination and makes the world seem not only magical but real. Very well written.

[bonchcronch]

I hate time shenanigans.

[nora]

Listening to this audiobook felt like a punishment, and I don't know why I felt like I had to finish it. This guy should never be allowed to do accents again.

[writehollydavis]

This was a slower build for me, for this was obviously setting up the story for future books in the series. Still, the characters and story grew on me and reeled me in with a quiet, haunting adventure. I haven't read too much magical realism/urban fantasy lately which this is more of what the story seemed like, which was refreshing! Overall, it was an enjoyable read and I'm looking forward to reading more adventures in the next book!

[mitabird]

2.5 stars

[Linda]

Miss Peregrine has been on my shelves for ages. It wasn't until a few days ago, when my youngest started listening to the audiobook that I finally picked it up so we can discuss it.
And oh my goodness, what a peculiar trip this story was.
Monsters, time travel, a paramore, death, fights, survival... Well written, and quite a bit spooky, I loved it!

[Pigpen.Reads]

I dnf'ed this book. I don't plan on picking it up again...ever.

Honestly, I only picked up this book since so many people recommended it. It became so popular.

I could not get into it. Nothing really caught my attention.

I think maybe the pictures creeped me out too much.

[Briana @ Pages Unbound]

Initial Thoughts: I am able to rate this book so highly only because I was warned it is not at all actually creepy or peculiar, as its title and cover design suggest. I expected generic fantasy, and that's what I got, and it was enjoyable. The pictures are interesting but also over-hyped. Some work with the story and some the author really worked to force in. For instance, pictures of clearly different people are said to be the same person. Or the narrative must make excuses for why the photo doesn't really look like the character.