Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, by Ransom Riggs

When Jack happens upon the nearly dead body of his Grandfather in the backyard, he is, understandably, horrified. However, he is stunned beyond repair when he is greeted with the most nightmarish of monsters. Before he passes completely, his grandfather whispers, "Go to the island, Yakob. Here it is not safe."

These dying words stick fast with Jack as the guilt mounts in his mind with thoughts that he could have saved his Grandfather who had referenced being visited by monsters and talked often, especially with Jack, about the time he spent as a child at Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. While most of the tales of floating girls and boys with extreme strength seemed completely unrealistic there was always a part of him that felt there was truth behind these tales. When he and his family are going through his Grandfather's possessions, Jack happens upon a collection of pictures, most of which he had never seen, with all of the characters from the stories displayed.

Jack is convinced that he must go the island, but first has to convince his therapist (that his parents forced him to visit) and his parents that it will help him come to terms with the horrible scene he had experienced. Jack finds what he is looking for in the exact place his Grandfather spoke of, but in a very different time. One specific time, to be exact. Miss Peregrine has found a way to protect a group of highly unusually talented children, many of whom fled the wrath of the Nazis, from a bomb raid. The group is caught in a time warp, so they never grow any older than they were on that specific day and every day the bombs fall, but the day starts over again so that their deaths never occur.

This fascinating story has too many layers to mention in a summary, but you can be sure that while you may leave this book after you turn the last page, the story will not soon leave you. Riggs has constructed a masterpiece in his wording alone that is enhanced more so by the old photographs that have actually been found throughout the years by a group of people, whose names are given at the back, that are completely obsessed with the idea of superhuman people existing and their feats being caught on camera.