The Peculiar
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The Peculiar
Buy Now for $23.99
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Narrated by:
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Peter Altschuler
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By:
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Stefan Bachmann
About this listen
The international bestseller and debut novel by teenage author and classical musician Stefan Bachmann is part murder mystery, part gothic fantasy, part clockwork adventure. Best-selling author Rick Riordan said of The Peculiar, ""Stefan Bachmann breathes fresh life into ancient magic.""
Don't get yourself noticed and you won't get yourself hanged. In the faery slums of Bath, Bartholomew and his little sister Hettie live by these words. Bartholomew and Hettie are Peculiars, and neither faeries nor humans want anything to do with them. But when Peculiars start showing up in London murdered and covered with red tattoos, Bartholomew breaks all the rules and gets himself noticed. Full of magic, dazzling inventions, and intriguing characters such as Mr. Jelliby and Lord Lickerish, this story of friendship, bravery, and nonstop action adventure was hailed by best-selling author Christopher Paolini as ""swift, strong, and entertaining. Highly recommended."" The Peculiar ends with a spectacular cliff-hanger, and the story concludes in The Whatnot.
What did you like best about this story?
The language and the way the story is woven - it's part magic faraway tree, part iron giant, part jane eyre. That may seem an odd combination, but it works. The story envelops you in an olde worlde Britain, and leaves you feeling as though the grit of the streets and the smoke from the mechanical horses is ground into your bones.What about Peter Altschuler’s performance did you like?
Peter Altschuler's voice is perfect for narrating this old fashioned fairy tale. Perfectly enunciated English with a marvellous talent for instilling drama and magic and mystery and...fear.However, his voices for the characters - notably Bartholomew and Mr. Jelliby - are at odds with their descriptions. Barthy sounds much too young, and Arthur Jelliby sounds much too old, and the clash between the writing and the voice was a little irritating at times.
That said, the voices of the other characters suit them wonderfully, and really bring the story to life!
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
The book is quite smoothly paced, moving on from one crisis to the next without too much chance to stop and worry about how it will all work out, but the ending isn't your typical happily-ever-after, it's simply making the best of a horrific situation, and that makes the whole story much more important.Any additional comments?
I enjoyed this story immensely, mostly for the rich imagery and wonderfully crafted characters. I recommend it for fans of darker magic, faeries, and steampunk.A proper fairy tale!
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