Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children
Ransom Riggs

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. And 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 who once lived here – one of whom was his own grandfather – were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a desolate island for good reason. And somehow – impossible though it seems – they may still be alive.

Ever since I tried and failed to get through that hideous tombe that is Mark Z Danielewski’s House Of Leaves I have been rather wary of books that have incorporated photography, but I don’t think that this book would be the same without it. I love how the spooky and fascinating vintage photographs the author has collected and curated weave so perfectly into the story, and give you an idea of what the peculiar children described in the book would actually have looked like.

I read this book in only a few hours as I really did not want to put it down. At the beginning of the story, you have no idea how it is getting to the plot that is described in the blurb. The plot is wonderfully well crafted, and not just in this respect; there is a twist towards the end, and for the first time in a very long time I really did not see it coming.

I really recommend you take some time out to read this book as you’ll want to enjoy it in one go – the plot and the characters (especially the precocious Emma) really draw you in and I can’t wait for the sequel next year. My only qualm is that perhaps action scenes are not Riggs’ forte, as the one towards the end reads as a bit of a scramble.

Thanks to Matt at PGUK for sending me this book to review.

Rating: ★★★★★