“Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children” by Ransom Riggs is a chilling story with a plot that circles around the discovery of random photos from the past found in an old photo album. The author utilizes the old photos to create a fictional story, and while this story is a little frightening and somewhat gory, with both murderous creatures and people surrounding these “peculiar” photos, it is a thrilling experience. Even without the storyline, the real photos make you question where they came from and what you are actually seeing in them. The photos are incorporated into the story to add to the storyline.

The story revolves around a high school student who hears stories of his grandfather about growing up on a small island that was inhabited by some peculiar children; children who were invisible, children who could levitate, and others with unusual traits.

Jacob, the main character, doesn’t believe his grandfather’s stories at first, even with picture proof, but he eventually goes to the island of his grandfather’s childhood and discovers things that make him question everything he knows. When his grandfather dies from an animal attack, he realizes that he must carry out the stories and legends of his grandfather. His grandfather leaves him a note telling him to “uncover the worlds he has yet to discover”. When he travels to the island, he discovers that the abnormalities of the island and the people who inhabit it are in fact the children in his grandfather’s photos.

The children look about his age, but he learns that they are over 80 years old and have been living in a time loop. The same day happens over and over again and there is no change in the day’s events. The days all pass by in a blink of an eye. The children are not allowed to leave the loop, as the townspeople living on the island outside the loop keep them captive inside the loop. Miss Peregrine, the headmistress, whom the book is named after, takes care of and protects the children.

As the story progresses, Jacob and some of the children take a risky and forbidden adventure outside of the time loop to look closely at a murder that occurred in town. What they learn changes everything they once thought they knew. This story is an unsettling and bone-chilling story, but it is a great read for anyone who wants a fantasy and imaginative story that will make you question how much you know about your reality.

This book was an interesting read as the pictures that the author added were a great addition to the storyline. A great part about this book is that if you enjoy it, you can continue the journey as it is the first book in a series of six. The other books take you to new worlds, times, peculiarities, and realities. I rated this five out of five out of five stars because the characters were very interesting and the story was very different from any other book I have read before. The plot was very fascinating and the plot twists were captivating. If you are interested in learning more about the mysterious world of peculiar children, I would definitely recommend giving this book and the series a try!