Idgiepug’s CBR#4 Review #27: Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
I loved everything about Ransom Riggs’ Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children except the ending. The novel skillfully incorporates a selection of unusual old photographs into the story of a teenaged boy coming to terms with his grandfather’s life and his own troubled past. It’s a unique and interesting story.
The novel opens with Jacob Portman, a privileged kid who will inherit his share of a drugstore chain when he comes of age, discussing the stories his grandfather told him when he was younger. Abe Portman told his grandson that he was pursued by monsters until he found safety in a children’s home in Wales where every child had an unusual gift or trait. As he grows older, Jacob realizes the stories can’t possibly be true, but after his grandfather’s mysterious death, Jacob finds pictures that may support at least some of his grandfather’s claims. After a very difficult time at home and with his psychiatrist’s blessings, Jacob goes to Wales to find the truth.
The story is suspenseful and creative, but the ending bothered me a bit. It seems more like a set-up for a sequel than a good, solid ending to this story. That said, I will likely seek out and read the sequel when and if it’s published.
