Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children - Review

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Ransom Riggs

Synopsis:

A mysterious island.
An abandoned orphanage.
A strange collection of very curious photographs.
It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.
A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

Review:

I'll be honest, I've been putting off doing this review for a while. I don't really know how to review it. I'll start by getting my disappointment out of the way so I can move on to more positive aspects. (My father always had a saying "When a review starts like this it's all uphill from here.)
I feel a bit let-down. Judging on the cover alone, this book promises to be the ultimate creep-out fest. I mean come on, a little girl levitating in creepy woods...not to mention that creepy font. Sign me up. I guess I'm a glutton for punishment. I wanted this book to scare the beejesus out of me. I wanted to be afraid to go to sleep at night because this book was so haunting. Sadly, it didn't even come close. The 'Peculiar Children' had supernatural abilities sure, but they were almost comical. Not anything that sent shivers down my spine in the least. The 'romance' felt like an afterthought and quite honestly, I think it would have been just fine--if not better--without it.

Okay, putting my initial disappointment aside, this was still an entertaining book. I enjoyed reading it for the most part.  It's my fault for going into it with such high and specific expectations. It felt a little disjointed at times, but the vintage photos made for a nice touch. The story was unique, even if I didn't completely understand the loops part. There were a lot of unique characters, and I found myself rooting for his Grandfather and was happy to find out he wasn't crazy after all.

I'll be completely honest here, I don't really know what else to say. I'm left feeling torn about this book. I gave it 3.5 stars because it really wasn't that bad. I just don't know how to articulate what I felt was missing. So I recommend you read this book for yourself. I'd love to hear someone else's opinion and review of it. So if you pick it up, feel free to post a link to your own review here.

I am rating "Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children":