Publishers Weekly
01/27/2014
In this sequel to the bestselling Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, young Jacob Portman, having discovered his ability to sense the monstrous wights and hollowgasts that are attempting to capture or kill Peculiars, has narrowly escaped with them and their injured leader, the birdlike "ymbryne," Miss Peregrine. The children must travel cross-country and through time loops, dodging monsters all the way, to Blitz-era London where, rumor has it that the last free ymbryne, Miss Wren, is hiding. En route, they meet talking animals, helpful Romany, and other Peculiars with odd talents: "The suitcase jiggled.... Its latches popped, and very slowly, the case began to open. A pair of white eyes peeped out at the crowd, and then the case opened a little more to reveal a face—that of an adult man... who had somehow folded himself into a suitcase no larger than my torso." Riggs's use of grotesque, unsettling, and sometimes lightly retouched photographs is just as successful in this outing, and while the plot occasionally feels forced to fit the photographs, it will easily please the previous book's numerous fans. Ages 14–up. (Jan.)
From the Publisher
I was blown away...Hollow City is fantastic.”—USAToday.com
“A worthy follow-up, and as addictive a read as the first.”—Hypable
“Hollow City mixes spooky vintage photos and action-packed storytelling to continue the story of Jacob Portman and his fellow “peculiars” as they travel through time to war-torn London.”—Dan Kois, Slate
“A perfect blend of creepiness and thoughtfulness.”—PopMatters
“A stunning achievement… Hollow City is even richer than Riggs’s imaginative debut, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.”—Boston Globe
“What makes the series soar, however, is not the world-building, as intriguing as it is, but the heartfelt intensity of the emotions.”—Virginian-Pilot
“Ideal for fans of Neil Gaiman and Daniel Kraus, Hollow City blends fantasy and horror into a world that will engross readers and leave them eager for more.”—Shelf Awareness for Readers
“A tasty adventure for any reader with an appetite for the…peculiar.”—Kirkus Reviews
“New readers of the series will find this novel a treat...Fans of the first title will find this book a treasure. The only downside: waiting for the third installment to find out what happens to Jacob and his peculiar friends.”—School Library Journal
“Riggs has created a fresh and original world in these Peregrine novels, with likable, quirky characters and a very readable style.”—Library Journal Xpress Review
Praise for Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children
“A tense, moving, and wondrously strange first novel. The photographs and text work together brilliantly to create an unforgettable story.”—John Green, New York Times best-selling author of Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns
“Readers searching for the next Harry Potter may want to visit Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.”—CNN
“Riggs deftly moves between fantasy and reality, prose and photography to create an enchanting and at times positively terrifying story.”—Associated Press
“I read all of the Miss Peregrine’s Peculiar Children books and I loved them.”—Florence of Florence + The Machine
“[A] thrilling, Tim Burton-esque tale with haunting photographs.”—USA Today Pop Candy
“With its X-Men: First Class-meets-time-travel story line, David Lynchian imagery, and rich, eerie detail, it’s no wonder Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children has been snapped up by Twentieth Century Fox. B+”—Entertainment Weekly
“Peculiar’ doesn’t even begin to cover it. Riggs’ chilling, wondrous novel is already headed to the movies.”—People
“You'll love it if you want a good thriller for the summer. It's a mystery, and you'll race to solve it before Jacob figures it out for himself.”—Seventeen
“This peculiar parable is pure perfection.”—Justine magazine
“One of the coolest, creepiest YA books.”—PopSugar
School Library Journal
02/01/2014
Gr 8 Up—This harrowing tale picks up right where Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Quirk, 2011) left off: having narrowly escaped wights and hollowgasts (monsters), Jacob, Emma, and their group of peculiars (young mutants, à la the X-Men, with a dash of time travel abilities) are on the move to London to find a cure for their headmistress Miss Peregrine who has been trapped in her bird form, but time is running short. Moving through time loops, they meet a menagerie of characters who help them along the way, but danger lurks at every corner, and horrors are not far behind. Even if the teens reach London alive, will it be enough to save Miss Peregrine from an ornithological fate? This book is perfectly paced, suspenseful, and scary. It is dark and dreadful but also humorous and touching. The peculiars are intriguing, each with fascinating powers, such as invisibility or premonition. They play off of one another's strengths and weaknesses, which progresses the story and further develops the characters. And of course there is the book's main attraction: the found vernacular photography, vintage pictures that Riggs has collected from flea markets and archives. The quirky and creepy snapshots perfectly illustrate the characters and settings, reinforcing the dark atmosphere of the narrative. New readers of the series will find this novel a treat and will be able to sift through summaries of previous events to place themselves in the story. Fans of the first title will find this book a treasure. The only downside: waiting for the third installment to find out what happens to Jacob and his peculiar friends.—Billy Parrott, New York Public Library
JANUARY 2014 - AudioFile
Fans of the surprise hit MISS PEREGRINE'S HOME FOR PECULIAR CHILDREN will welcome Kirby Heyborne’s engaging narration of Riggs’s second book. Jacob and his band of peculiar friends continue to travel through time, encountering strange creatures and chilling hollows—shadowy monsters that Jacob is peculiarly able to detect. Heyborne deftly guides listeners through the complex story. Never hurrying the pace, he allows listeners to absorb Riggs’s image-rich, densely plotted prose. Heyborne also moves masterfully among the large cast of characters, creating distinct British voices for each of Jacob’s peculiar friends. Heyborne’s sense of timing, evident pleasure in the material, and ability to thrillingly execute the book’s many dramatic moments will keep listeners riveted. J.C.G. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2014, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2014-01-14
Along with picking up the action where it left off in Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (2011), Riggs fills in background detail while adding both talking animals and more children with magical powers to the cast. With evil wights and murderous hollowgasts in hot pursuit—and only days to save their beloved Miss Peregrine from permanently becoming a bird—Jacob and his nine young (in body, if not age) companions fling themselves through time loops to Blitz-torn London. The growing attachment between Jacob and kindhearted fire-conjurer Emma turns out to play a crucial role in the plot. After a brisk round of chases, captures, escapes and bombings—capped by a devastating reversal—the two end up separated from most of their allies but with a new talent that just might save "peculiardom" from its seemingly all-powerful enemies. As before, the author spins his tale in part around a crop of enigmatic vintage trick or portrait photographs, including two men (corpses?) sharing a bed with skeletons, a pipe-smoking dog and a staring girl with a huge hole through her midsection. Though less of a novelty here than in the opener, these still add distinctly creepy notes (even when the subject is supposedly comical) to a tale already well-stocked with soul eaters and tentacled monsters. Less a straightforward horrorfest than a tasty adventure for any reader with an appetite for the…peculiar. (Fantasy. 11-14)
