Review: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
Ransom Riggs
352 pages (Hardcover)
Quirk
Goodreads - Amazon - Barnes&Noble

Blurb:
A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of curious photographs.

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 have finally succeeded in creating a small book club in my hometown with some of my close friends. The first book we chose to read was Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. It was a book that I had been avoiding for quite some time due to the incorrect impression I had of it. I tend to avoid books that I find scary or frightening and the cover of the book had given me an impression that the book would be darker and slightly more horror filled than was strictly true.

In the end, by looking more into the book, I realized it was more up my alley than I had first assumed. The interesting paranormal, fantastical portions of the story were engrossing and very well thought out. It was unique in a sea of books where there are too many with similarities. The mixed elements of children with special abilities or characteristics and time manipulation elements along with the horror of the enemy population combined to make a wonderful story.

I, along with my fellow book club members, found the characters to be fun, yet realistic. The wide variety of characters worked well together, making the story fast paced and easy to follow. The story was unpredictable and I enjoyed uncovering the enemy plot as the children learned more.

The pictures utilized by the author helped to make the story wholly unique and I loved being able to see the snapshots that were referred in the story. It gave the whole story a new dimension that made it feel real and touchable.

Only one portion made me groan, because the situation seemed to be just a little bit too much, but I'll not say what for sake of possibly spoiling it for people.

I would recommend this book to young adult lovers, especially those interested in paranormal, however it could be a great read for many types of readers.

Overall I would give it a level four out of five hangover.

Interested in purchasing this book? Check out the links above!

Review: Divinity

Divinity 
Patrica Leever
200 pages (Paperback)
Omnific Publishing
Goodreads - Amazon - Barnes&Noble


Blurb: 
Demons.

They’re everywhere, hiding in plain sight. Chances are, you’ve interacted with one or two of them in your lifetime without even realizing it...

Demon hunter Evelyn Brighton saves unsuspecting humans from the malevolent creatures masquerading around them every day. Working under the Lebriga Corporation’s direction, she never fails to bring her A-game with her keen skill, fiercely independent spirit, and the best weapon in her arsenal: the Divinity blade.

Evelyn’s world is turned on its ear, however, when she is ordered to train cocky new recruit Daniel Summers. They both feel an instinctive pull drawing them to one another, the ancient spells tattooed into their skin illuminating whenever the two hunters come into contact. But with evil looming over the city of Los Angeles, Evelyn and Daniel’s mutual competitiveness and sense of duty to Lebriga and all humankind forces them to hold back their desires. Will their restraint be enough to keep them focused and save southern California, or will the dark forces prevail?

Set in modern-day Los Angeles, Divinity is an action-filled, fast-paced marriage of urban fantasy and paranormal romance. Edgy, witty, and sexy, it will bind you in its spell.
 
Review: 
I had been meaning to read Divinity by Patrica Leever for sometime now but had never found the opportunity to do so. Excitingly enough, I got a Nook this weekend, giving me the perfect reason to download a new book and read it in one go on my fancy new reading gadget.

Divinity is about a world full of demons and focuses on the gifted hunters that are out to protect the human race from all of the nastiness in the world. It was a quick-paced, short read that introduced its world and characters quickly before moving on with the plot. However, while I found many of the characters interesting and I was sometimes very pleased with the relationships between different characters, such as the different couples or the relationships between hunters and handlers, the speed of the story left something to be desired with the depth of knowledge and emotional feelings that I had for the characters.

The other issue in it for me was that the love relationship between the two main characters, Evelyn and Daniel, developed much too quickly. I normally thoroughly enjoy when couple are 'fated' for each other, however this felt too fast for me and ridiculously unbelievable. While very little actually happened between the couple until later in the book, the surety they had at times was too unrealistic for me.

What I did enjoy was the world that these characters lived in. The magic that was brought to life in the story was unique and very interesting.

The story was also told split between Evelyn's and Daniel's points of view. Sometimes this is a major flop in some books but it worked very well in this case, as it allowed me to see both sides of the story and to get more detail that I would have otherwise.

I would recommend this to people who are looking for a short and quick, yet fun, paranormal read.

Overall, I give this a hangover level three out of five.

Interested in purchasing the book? Check links above!