Author: Stefan Bachmann
Release Date: September 18th, 2012
Publisher: HarperCollins (Greenwillow)
Pages: 384
Age Group: Middle Grade/Young Adult
Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★

Bartholomew Kettle won't live long. Changelings never do. The child of a human mother and a faery father, Bartholomew is a secret, despised by both his races. If the English don't hang him for witchcraft, the faerys will do something worse. So his mother keeps him locked away, hidden from the world in the faery slums of Bath.
But one day Bartholomew witnesses a mysterious lady kidnap another changeling through a shadowy portal, and he realizes the danger is closer than ever before. Changelings are surfacing in the rivers, their bodies empty of blood and bone and their skin covered in red markings. A powerful figure sits in the shadows, pushing the pieces in place for some terrible victory. When a sinister faery in a top-hat begins to stalk Bartholomew's steps, he knows it's his turn. Something is coming for him. Something needs him. But when you're a changeling there's no where to run...

You never really know what you're going to get yourself into when you dive into a book. And The Peculiar is a prefect example of that. I feel like the "Middle Grade" labeling can be somewhat deceiving, it was a much darker book than I had originally thought it would be. Not in a bad way though, I just wasn't expecting it to be quite as gritty especially later on in the book, even though the synopsis mentions some pretty gritty things. Stefan is a fantastic writer though, I was really impressed with his style. I also think it's pretty impressive that he started writing The Peculiar when he was sixteen.

The story was a little on the bland side. It wasn't a bad story by any means, I loved the setting and how Stefan had recreated such iconic places to fit his story. I loved the back story in the prologue leading up to what takes place throughout the book, and I also really enjoyed Stefan's take on Changelings. The reason I say the story felt a little bland, is simply due to the fact that it felt like it took awhile for it to actually pick up pace. But once it does pick up pace, it really does become a pretty great story. I felt like I could easily pick up on the Middle Grade vibe of it, but on the other hand there were moments where it felt like it was more of a YA novel.  There is a lot about this story I don't even want to go into though. It's a really awesome experience, that I feel like needs to be enjoyed within the pages of the book without having anything spoiled for you.

I had a few issues with the characters. They were good, but not great. I really liked Bartholomew and Hettie, I thought they were really well written and after what Hettie goes through during the story I am really anxious to see what happens. Arthur Jelliby is another really awesome character, considering his position and things that take place in the story I was surprised to see a friendship form between him and Bartholomew, but it really helped drive the story. Mr. Lickerish is a pretty prominent character to. Although I feel like it's safe to say I really dislike him. I would be surprised if anyone likes him when you read this book and figure out why I don't. There was an awesome balance of characters in The Peculiar though, I might of had a few issues with them mainly in the form of character building issues but they were still pretty enjoyable regardless.

This was a really fun book to read, even though it wasn't quite what I was expecting. Not knowing exactly what to expect made it a much more enjoyable book though. I was really upset with the way things ended. I got to the last page, and things end in a way that was extremely annoying. I guess you could say it was a cliffhanger, although if you wish to call it that, it is a fairly mild one. I just really wanted to know what happened after the last few events that take place. I think we will be in for a treat with book two though, if anything the end of this book set a good stage for the next one regardless of how annoyed I might of been.

The Peculiar is a book I think a lot of people will really enjoy, there are a lot of things about it that will appeal to all different types of people regardless of age. It's just a really well rounded and beautifully written book. I hope you will take the opportunity to check it out when it's released in September. I might of had my issues with it, but the positive aspects of it far outweigh the negative.

Thanks to HarperCollins for providing me with a copy of this book for review.