Showing posts with label Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Show all posts

Wednesday, 31 December 2014

Top 5 Books of the Year! | Top 5 Wednesday

2014 has been a fantastic book year for me, not only in terms of what was released, but also for the sometimes slightly older books and series I discovered. I'm glad to have found these stories this year:

1. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Read my review here!


2. Zac & Mia by A.J. Betts
Read my review here!


3. Vicious by V.E. Schwab
Read my review here!


4. Blood Red Road by Moira Young
Read my review here and read about my experience meeting Moira Young here!


5. The Saga series by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
Read my review here!


Honourable mentions:

Black Widow, Vol. 1: The Finely Woven Thread by Nathan Edmondson
War Horse by Michael Morpurgo
Come Closer by Sara Gran
Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

What's one of your favourite books you read in 2014?

Wednesday, 17 December 2014

Top 5 Historical Books | Top 5 Wednesday

This week's Top 5 Wednesday topic is "Top 5 Historical Books", or, any book that isn't set in the present time.

I'm not going deep into the past with these because I don't read a lot of historical fiction, but the books on my list do take place at least one decade into our past.



This series takes place in the glorious 80's, although because it involves so much space travel, we mostly get to see what the rest of the (hilarious) universe was like back then.

2. War Horse by Michael Morpurgo
Read my review here!


This is such a beautiful book. It shows how awful WWI was, not only for humans, but also for the animals used. It's a new perspective - a horse's! - and I think it does a wonderful job of showing the deep bond between humans and animals and how it can transcend tragedy.

3. Watchmen by Alan Moore, Dave Gibbons and John Higgins


Set in the 80's, Watchmen is a critique of the superhero genre that manages to be satirical, philosophical and political all at the same time. And it doesn't stop there, either.

Read my review here!


Without giving any spoilers about the plot, there are scenes in this novel that take place in the present time, and also scenes that take place in 1940. It makes for a truly fascinating read.

5. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro


A poignant tale that questions and re-imagines what it means to be human, this novel takes place in the 90's.

What are your favourite novels set in different times, past or future?

Wednesday, 27 August 2014

Top Book Spines! | Top 5 Wednesday

This week's Top 5 Wednesday topic is to list your favourite book spines. There are some gorgeous book spines out there, so I've been looking forward to this week!


1. Landline by Rainbow Rowell
2. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
3. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
4. Shades of Grey Jasper Fforde
5. The Lusiads by Luis Vaz de Camoens

What are some of your favourite book spines?

Photo by Author

Friday, 13 June 2014

"Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children" | Book Review

"Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children"
Happy Friday the 13th!

I'd been wanting to read Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children for almost two years, but for one reason or another, I never got around to it; that is, until a couple of weeks ago!

Written by Ransom Riggs (how cool is that name? I love alliteration), Miss Peregrine tells the story of Jacob Portman, a 16-year-old boy who grew up being told fantastical stories by his grandfather, Abe, but who has now lost his faith in the stories and characters. That all changes one fateful night when Jacob's grandfather is brutally murdered by a creature that Jacob glimpses in the woods. Jacob sets off to Wales to find out the truth behind his grandfather's strange tales.

Although I'd wanted to read this for a long time, I hadn't read any reviews or heard anything about the book, other than "it's intriguing" because of its pictures - which is certainly true. Because of this, I didn't really know what to expect, but I though it'd probably be some kind of supernatural story, based on the levitating girl on the cover. As it turns out, this story is a blend of fantasy and sci-fi, specifically of the time travel variety - and who doesn't like a good tale of time travel?

At the beginning of the novel, I didn't like the protagonist. I found Jacob to be irritating and insufferable. But he grew on me once he became more independent and on his own, started to look into the mysteries surrounding his grandfather's life and death.

The pictures were very cool and definitely added to the eerie feeling of the story. There were some freaky photos in the book, including one of Santa Claus that is nightmare-inducing.

Despite disliking Jacob for the first few chapters, I really enjoyed Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. The story itself is not revolutionary or anything, but it's a fun read, especially if you're interested in odd, fantastical stories and characters with strange abilities.

What's the strangest book you've ever read?