by Ransom Riggs.
Okay, let me start with my conclusion. Based on the book's cover and the excerpt, I was expecting a scary story with creepy characters. It is not. And that was a little disappointing. However, once I was past that, it was still a good fantasy tale.
His grandfather's tales of his childhood and a collection of old photographs, take 16-year-old Jacob to a large abandoned orphanage in Wales. Jacob barely steps into a world out of time, before he is introduced to a group of "children" with very unusual talents, and faced with the very unearthly threat of soul-sucking hollowgasts. Armed with a newly discovered "peculiar" power of his own, and supported by a range of talents from making fire, to floating, to invisibility, Jacob embarks on a great rescue mission.
I thought that the concept of the time loop was fantastic, and I really liked the unique characters that make up this tale. (Although I really cannot say I was enamoured by Jacob and Emma's relationship; regardless of what she looks like, she is around 100 years old, and she did have a relationship with his grandfather).
One last observation; I think if the characters were closer to 9-10 years of age, it would have made more sense - within the world and outside: both the children's actions and the narrative style seem to point to a younger cast and a younger audience.
Still, overall, an enjoyable story.
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