Reviews with content warning for Antisemitism - Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

I've been looking forward to reading this series for years, and I'm greatly impressed with the first book. The writing was vivid and detailed, and it was easy to imagine the scenes playing out in my head as I read them. I wouldn't say this book is "medium-paced" but slow to start, and fast towards the end.

I wished to see some development in Jacob's father since all of the scenes he's in are incredibly depressing, but given that this book focuses on the child protagonists, I understand why he's just another adult background character.

The mix of real history (which felt carefully and appropriately discussed) and fantasy was engaging. And I liked that for the mystery elements, there was enough to figure out major points in the story before they were explicitly stated.

The doctor being the twist villain was super entertaining, and his death scene was graphic but cool.

My only criticisms are 1. this book is in the perspective of a privileged, rich white boy, so things like casual ableism are present, especially in the "before" normal life part of the book, and 2. some of the fast, tense parts of the story fall into classic Y/A tropes, which isn't bad at all, but it feels like there's some things weirdly missing. Some of the conflicts that would seem like a big deal were resolved in one or two lines, which I'm not sure I enjoyed. Either way, this was an incredibly engaging read and I can't wait to start on the second book.

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merah's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

The entire storytelling is genius. At first glance it seems like a regular book. But once you grasp the hidden meaning it opens up a whole new world. Absolutely incredible.
The characters are delightful and I love how they each have a backstory.

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filo's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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brassnbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

It's been a while since I've read this book as I own the first two in the series and while I will consider reading the second since I already own it I'm unsure if the series is worth continuing
The book was dreadfully boring and slow paced for most of it and found myself almost forcing myself to finish it
The idea is interesting enough but the execution and pacing was horridly slow
The ending or near it was practically the only fast paced part

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the_pysselfia's review against another edition

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adventurous dark informative mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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