It’s been way too long since I did a book review but ever since I’ve been writing my own work like a madman. I know the book has spawned many sequels ( four to date if I’m not mistaken), a spin off book, and a movie by Tim Burton while I haven’t followed the series as closely as I wished, it was one of the first books that really got me into reading.
Jacob Portman grew up listening to his grandpa Abe’s miraculous stories of his youth and WWII; he told stories of a strange home for strange kids as well as monsters pretending to be human during the war. Jacob, loving his grandpa, thought these were the signs of dementia, old age, until Jacob sees one of the monsters the day his grandfather dies. Jacob needs answers, convincing his parents to let him go to the island from his grandpa’s stories, discovering there might have been more to his stories than a old man’s fantasy…
I have so many feelings about this book but overall what I love is Ransom Riggs’s use of old distorted black and white photos in the series to bring a creepy, authentic feel to it you don’t usually get. The book starts off really strong and actually has a eerie vibe and it’s scattered throughout the book which is welcomed; Enoch’s power with the toy soldiers and the mice is pretty unsettling. The Peculiar characters are memorable and I like the hint of madness they possess because there predicament. I have mixed feelings on Jacob’s ability. One of my biggest complaints is that the book has a X men vibe and by the end feels a bit too much like a superhero story towards the end; the villains towards the end aren’t particularly memorable in my opinion and feel pretty generic. The lore can be a tad bit hard to follow and I actually had to read it twice before I had it completely straight- there is a lot of time travel and dimension play at work. In the end, while not perfect, it’s still a damn interesting and unique book I’d highly recommend checking out. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
