A review by claudiamacpherson
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

adventurous dark funny tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Jacob grows up hearing his grandpa's fantastical stories about his childhood in an orphanage for children with special abilities. When his grandpa dies, his last words are instructions for Jacob to go to the orphanage and find out the truth. On the remote Welsh island, Jacob finds the old orphanage crumbling and abandoned. His explorations lead him to discover more about the history of the mysterious orphanage and discover that his grandfather—and the world—are not what they seemed.

Honestly, this isn't really my favorite genre; though it is fantasy, it feels more paranormal. There were also scenes that I found unnecessarily gruesome. I liked the world-building, though it could be confusing at times. The first half of the book was relatively slow, but it sped up a lot towards the end. Overall, it was interesting enough but I wasn't hooked enough that I'm rushing to get the sequel.

Happy ending meter (no specific spoilers, just my judgement of how happy the ending is because I always wish someone would tell me that before I read books):
The ending was bittersweet, and while not a cliffhanger per se, it's definitely unfinished and feels like the adventure is just starting.
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