So in November of 2015 I started this book. Yeah; almost a year ago and I did not finish it until last week. When I first started to read this book I was really excited. It was promising; very different from all the other young adult books I had read. However, when I got about twenty five percent of the way through I was bored. The photos held my interest but the story just dead panned.
It was at this point that I stopped the book and started reading something else. In fact I have read over 20 books since I stopped reading this one. Riggs novel is only one of two books I stopped reading this year because of the story line. The other was Glass Sword by Victoria Aveyard (more on that to come). Even though the story did not grab me I wanted to go back and finish it up. Especially with the movie coming out. I wanted to see if it would get better and for the most part it did. But, I still found my mind wandering as I read through the other half of the book. What I did like about the book were the characters. I am extremely interested in learning more about the Peculiar children. I would love to know more about their origins; where they were born, were they came from etc. However, I am not overtly interested in Jacob. I found him to be a bit flat. He comes of as very two dimensional, boring, and not well developed. This is part of the reason why I had to get away from the book. I need to be able to connect with the main character.
Another thing I did enjoy about the book were the photos; they really drove the story. Gave a face to the children and made the story come alive. Riggs use of vintage photos is amazing and I would love to see more authors do things like this. Especially since this was so well executed.
The tale that Riggs weaves is interesting as well; though it falls a bit flat. In his novel, we are introduced to a young teenager named Jacob. He is your average teen. He is trying to work a summer job and enjoy his time spent with friends and his grandfather. But things start to get a little weird rather quickly when his grandfather starts to act weirder than usual. And when he finally dies after being attacked by some type of creature; that only Jacob has seen. Jacob is carted off to a therapist and handled gently by his parents and family.
While his father is cleaning out the grandfathers home Jacob happens across some of correspondence that leads him to believe that he needs to travel to a small deserted island in order to come to terms with what happened with his grandfather.
With some reluctance his father takes him to the island and its there that Jacob is confronted with one of the major mysteries of his grandfathers life. What happened to him as a young man before he want to war and came to America. Jacob's grandfather, Abraham, was considered Peculiar because he could see creatures that present a danger to other Peculiars. And it seems as though Jacob is just like him. He only discovers this after speaking with Miss Peregrine; who runs a home for children like Jacob. She also took care of Jacob's grandfather. These children and their school mistress live in the loop. It is in this loop, that they are protected. They can not be found here; until Jacob leads one of their mortal enemies right to their door.
It is because of his actions; and in a need to find out more about himself that he decides to leave with Miss Peregrine and the others to travel into other loops.
I will say that I plan to read the next book; simply because I own it. Also, because I want to know what happens to the others. I am invested enough to be curious.
Quotes that I loved:
"I'd been born in the wrong century and I felt cheated"
"Barman!" Emma said. "When's the tap open around here? I'm thirsty as a bloody mermaid" he laughed. "I ain't in the custom of servin' little girls"
"Never mind that!" She cried, slapping her hand on the bar. "Pour me a quadruple dram of your finest cask-strength whiskey. And non of that frightful watered-down piss you generally serve"
"How many times must I tell you," she called after him,"polite persons do not take their supper in the nude"
"Only women are born ymbrynes, and thank heaven for that! Males lack the seriousness of temperament required of persons with such grave responsibilities. We ymbrynes must scour the countryside for young peculiars in need, steer clear of those who would do us harm, and keep our wards fed, clothed, hidden and steeped in the lore of our people"
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