Ordinary Monsters
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-07-08 08:51:37
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：J.M. Miro
- ISBN：1526650053
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
A STUNNING NEW WORK OF HISTORICAL FANTASY， J。 M。 MIRO'S ORDINARY MONSTERS INTRODUCES READERS TO THE DARK， LABYRINTHINE WORLD OF THE TALENTS
England， 1882。 In Victorian London， two children with mysterious powers are hunted by a figure of darkness—a man made of smoke。
Sixteen-year-old Charlie Ovid， despite a brutal childhood in Mississippi， doesn't have a scar on him。 His body heals itself， whether he wants it to or not。 Marlowe， a foundling from a railway freight car， shines with a strange bluish light。 He can melt or mend flesh。 When a jaded female detective is recruited to escort them to safety， all three begin a journey into the nature of difference， and belonging， and the shadowy edges of the monstrous。
What follows is a story of wonder and betrayal， from the gaslit streets of London， and the wooden theatres of Meiji-era Tokyo， to an eerie estate outside Edinburgh where other children with gifts - the Talents - have been gathered。 There， the world of the dead and the world of the living threaten to collide。 And as secrets within the Institute unfurl， Marlowe， Charlie and the rest of the Talents will discover the truth about their abilities， and the nature of what is stalking them: that the worst monsters sometimes come bearing the sweetest gifts。
Riveting in its scope， exquisitely written， Ordinary Monsters presents a catastrophic vision of the Victorian world—and of the gifted， broken children who must save it。
England， 1882。 In Victorian London， two children with mysterious powers are hunted by a figure of darkness—a man made of smoke。
Sixteen-year-old Charlie Ovid， despite a brutal childhood in Mississippi， doesn't have a scar on him。 His body heals itself， whether he wants it to or not。 Marlowe， a foundling from a railway freight car， shines with a strange bluish light。 He can melt or mend flesh。 When a jaded female detective is recruited to escort them to safety， all three begin a journey into the nature of difference， and belonging， and the shadowy edges of the monstrous。
What follows is a story of wonder and betrayal， from the gaslit streets of London， and the wooden theatres of Meiji-era Tokyo， to an eerie estate outside Edinburgh where other children with gifts - the Talents - have been gathered。 There， the world of the dead and the world of the living threaten to collide。 And as secrets within the Institute unfurl， Marlowe， Charlie and the rest of the Talents will discover the truth about their abilities， and the nature of what is stalking them: that the worst monsters sometimes come bearing the sweetest gifts。
Riveting in its scope， exquisitely written， Ordinary Monsters presents a catastrophic vision of the Victorian world—and of the gifted， broken children who must save it。
Reviews
Meg
，
There's a lot of lush detail in this historic epic。 I felt like it dragged quite a bit though there was a lot happening all the time。 Kind of meh for me， but not the worst thing。 There's a lot of lush detail in this historic epic。 I felt like it dragged quite a bit though there was a lot happening all the time。 Kind of meh for me， but not the worst thing。 。。。more
Kara Jackson
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I picked up this book at the airport on my way home from vacation and it’s so good。 I need the 2nd book like yesterday。 This book has children with magical powers and dark shit。 What could possibly go wrong？ This is like if Patrick Ness， Stephen King and Ransom Riggs all had written a book together mixed with Stranger Things it would be this chunker of a book。 Ribs is my favorite child character。 Jacob 。。。（view spoiler）[ rip （view spoiler）[ Is my favorite character character。 Because he’s kinda I picked up this book at the airport on my way home from vacation and it’s so good。 I need the 2nd book like yesterday。 This book has children with magical powers and dark shit。 What could possibly go wrong？ This is like if Patrick Ness， Stephen King and Ransom Riggs all had written a book together mixed with Stranger Things it would be this chunker of a book。 Ribs is my favorite child character。 Jacob 。。。（view spoiler）[ rip （view spoiler）[ Is my favorite character character。 Because he’s kinda bad but like not really。 I highly recommend reading this one。 Many many wonderful quotes。 There ain’t no Ordinary Monsters in this book。 （hide spoiler）] （hide spoiler）] 。。。more
Kasia
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3。5/5 starsUnfortunately， I put the book down for a wee bit too long and I think that hindered my overall enjoyment of the book。 However， I can say， for a first novel， the writing was solid。 I was captivated pretty quickly and enjoyed learning about the talents。 The ending though！ I am definitely intrigued for the sequel :）
Deborah
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Not worth 24+ hrs。 of listening time。 I would have enjoyed it more if it was half as long。
Cindy French-phillips
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DNF I tried。 This was long and hard to get into。 I was just bored。
Lauren Nossett
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What an incredible world J。 M。 Miro has created in Ordinary Monsters！ I sped through this book， which is saying something considering its 600+ pages！ Original， haunting， atmospheric， it's a journey through the known and unknown， the misunderstood， and a quest for purpose and belonging。 A well-researched work of historical fantasy， the book takes place in 1882--spanning Victorian London， post-reconstruction Mississippi， Meiji-era Tokyo， and a sprawling boarding-school-style estate near Edinburgh- What an incredible world J。 M。 Miro has created in Ordinary Monsters！ I sped through this book， which is saying something considering its 600+ pages！ Original， haunting， atmospheric， it's a journey through the known and unknown， the misunderstood， and a quest for purpose and belonging。 A well-researched work of historical fantasy， the book takes place in 1882--spanning Victorian London， post-reconstruction Mississippi， Meiji-era Tokyo， and a sprawling boarding-school-style estate near Edinburgh--and follows two children with unusual talents who are hunted by a man made of smoke。 I fell in love with characters: the glowing boy twice abandoned， the sixteen-year-old whose ability to heal himself makes him a subject of fear and casual torment， the sisters hiding backstage in the wooden theaters of Tokyo， the female detective without powers who protects the children， and even the man of smoke， himself。These days， I'm attuned to the ways authors represent grief。 And here， all characters are motivated by some kind of loss， whether that be that of parents， siblings， or caretakers， or a sense of home， identity， and stability。 Grief is depicted in a way that is both careful and nuanced， and I appreciated that no loss of life went unremarked or unmourned， that the characters still grieved and remembered their loved ones years after their deaths， and that this grief wasn't stigmatized or ignored。 。。。more
Laken
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somehow， it was great， but I didn't enjoy it somehow， it was great， but I didn't enjoy it 。。。more
Venus Vega
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This is one I can see myself rereading many times over。 <3
Rachel
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I really enjoyed this universe， and I felt that the characters were nicely developed。 Miro allows the audience to decide for themselves who the true villain of the story while offering complete pictures of everyone's motivations （except， perhaps， Dr。 Berghast）。 Victorian England， which is one of my favorite historical periods to explore， finds new life with the Talents。I only wish that the end of the story had been more complete。 Stopping in the middle of the action is frustrating， and now we ha I really enjoyed this universe， and I felt that the characters were nicely developed。 Miro allows the audience to decide for themselves who the true villain of the story while offering complete pictures of everyone's motivations （except， perhaps， Dr。 Berghast）。 Victorian England， which is one of my favorite historical periods to explore， finds new life with the Talents。I only wish that the end of the story had been more complete。 Stopping in the middle of the action is frustrating， and now we have to wait for the next novel！ 。。。more
Debra Sabah Press
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This book really grabbed me about 1/4 way through-- it has the eeriness of a ghost story， but is not so easily categorized。
Samantha
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Stunning。 Wow
Eric
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Ordinary Monsters grabbed me in the first couple of pages。 I received this book as an ARC through a GoodReads giveaway， and consider myself fortunate to have gotten a preview of the first book in The Talents Trilogy before it hit the bookstores and libraries。 Entirely atmospheric and engaging with villains and protagonists of ambiguous intent in a way that keeps the reader guessing and second-guessing about who to root for。 For fans of Victorian alternate history fantasy fiction， this is a must Ordinary Monsters grabbed me in the first couple of pages。 I received this book as an ARC through a GoodReads giveaway， and consider myself fortunate to have gotten a preview of the first book in The Talents Trilogy before it hit the bookstores and libraries。 Entirely atmospheric and engaging with villains and protagonists of ambiguous intent in a way that keeps the reader guessing and second-guessing about who to root for。 For fans of Victorian alternate history fantasy fiction， this is a must read。 I didn't know I enjoyed this specific genre so much until I read Ordinary Monsters。 Now I am actively seeking out similar reads as my only complaint about this book is that having read the first one so early I now have a much longer wait for the second and third books。Highly recommend。 。。。more
Worldsbetweenpages_
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Ordinary Monsters is set in the 19th century and children with mysterious powers， called talents， from all over the world are trained to wield their power at an isolated institute in Scotland。 Alice Quicke is one of the few people tasked with finding the children with these special talents and making sure they arrive safely at the institute。 While Alice and her partner find sixteen-year-old Charlie and eight-year-old Marlow in America and convince them to follow them to the institute， a long dis Ordinary Monsters is set in the 19th century and children with mysterious powers， called talents， from all over the world are trained to wield their power at an isolated institute in Scotland。 Alice Quicke is one of the few people tasked with finding the children with these special talents and making sure they arrive safely at the institute。 While Alice and her partner find sixteen-year-old Charlie and eight-year-old Marlow in America and convince them to follow them to the institute， a long disappeared evil resurfaces。 Former talent Jacob Marber teamed up with an evil force from the land of the death and starts to hunt the special children， and he set his eye on Marlow， whose powers are unlike any others。 A hunt from America to London and Scotland begins to bring the children behind the save walls from the Institute。 But also in the institute things started to change over the years， away from everyone's attention。 The head of the Institute has slowly become obsessed with the land of the dead and the mysterious evil that is trying to escape from there， and he will stop at nothing to archieve his goals。Ordinary Monsters is written from multiple point of views through different years， but mainly focuses on Charlie， Alice and Jacob。 It's a complex story that developes through the connections of the characters， and you learn about the world of the talents together with them。 Because of that， you only start to get explanations in the middle of the story， until then you have to try to figure everything out yourself。 The backstory of the children who are talented is mostly a pretty dark one。 Because of their strange talents， they live in poverty， as orphans， are abused and forgotten by the rest of the world。 None of them are without trauma and they only slowly beginning to connect with their powers and with each other。 You also get Jacob's point of view and why he became the way he is， and I loved that！Ordinary Monsters is only the third 5-star read this year and it's already July。 It's not a quick and fun read and deals with a lot of sad and heavy topics， but the world building and the characters are absolutely amazing！ I can't wait for the next book！ 。。。more
Sandee Rock
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a book so good you hope they never ruin it with a movie…When you finish a book at 5:14 in the am…sigh。 This is an epic tale of monsters and villains and bravery and talent。 It’s a story with many layers。 There are children with ‘talents’ they can’t explain。 All over the world they are searched for and brought to Cairndale Institute to help them discover how to best use their sometimes unusual gifts。 Do not mistake this for an X-men remake。 It is so much better。 The cast of characters include unl a book so good you hope they never ruin it with a movie…When you finish a book at 5:14 in the am…sigh。 This is an epic tale of monsters and villains and bravery and talent。 It’s a story with many layers。 There are children with ‘talents’ they can’t explain。 All over the world they are searched for and brought to Cairndale Institute to help them discover how to best use their sometimes unusual gifts。 Do not mistake this for an X-men remake。 It is so much better。 The cast of characters include unlikely adults who do not have particular abilities but do have heart， ambition and sometimes a mean streak a mile long。 “I never in my entire life met a person more like a boil on a baker’s red backside than you， Alice Quicke” haha my favorite line from this story。 There are heroes and anti heroes and so much Quality （yes the capitalization is deliberate） in the character development that it will keep you reading until - well…5:14 am 。。。more
Devon O'Connor
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The story for this one was good and the author provides lots of atmospheric detail throughout， BUT I never really felt attached to any of the characters， which really made this one a grind for me。 There is a super evident setup for a sequel that I don't know that I will take the time to read。 The story for this one was good and the author provides lots of atmospheric detail throughout， BUT I never really felt attached to any of the characters， which really made this one a grind for me。 There is a super evident setup for a sequel that I don't know that I will take the time to read。 。。。more
Nicole Otvos
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3。5 starsOverall I can say that there was nothing about the plot or the characters that I disliked。 I did feel like the story was a little too long， but I’m not sure what parts I would have suggested to be left out。。 I also felt like there were a lot of characters to keep up with at first， but I got used to that fairly quickly。 Am I interested in what happens next？ 🤷🏼♀️
Cassandra
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Overall， I enjoy this book？ Yes。 However， the writing style and the pacing really fought with me。 I could not get into this book for a solid 350 pages。 The story is set in historic London and blurs fantasy and reality。 The magical children are really interesting and I loved their back stories but for a book focused on these magical children I felt like we didn't really spend a lot of time with the children。The best analogy I can give is when you are walking into a room and everyone is having a c Overall， I enjoy this book？ Yes。 However， the writing style and the pacing really fought with me。 I could not get into this book for a solid 350 pages。 The story is set in historic London and blurs fantasy and reality。 The magical children are really interesting and I loved their back stories but for a book focused on these magical children I felt like we didn't really spend a lot of time with the children。The best analogy I can give is when you are walking into a room and everyone is having a conversation about you as if you aren't really there。 We were talking about the children。。。。but the story didn't focus on the children。 Regardless for the first in a series it was solid， if you like gothic speculative fantasy set in London you might love this！ 。。。more
Sara Ketels
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One of the best fantasy novels I've read in a very long time。 Dark， gritty and full of suspense。 Eagerly looking forward to the next installment。 One of the best fantasy novels I've read in a very long time。 Dark， gritty and full of suspense。 Eagerly looking forward to the next installment。 。。。more
Maree
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DNF There was some strong language within the first chapter or two， which I didn’t enjoy reading， so I didn’t end up reading any further。
Katie
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I did myself the disservice of starting this book when I was going through some really tough times， so I didn't spend massively close attention to it。 Then I had to take a break to read a couple of other books for work。 By the time I started it back up again， I just didn't really care much about what was going on。 I found it to be rather slow， with so much focus on the travel that I lost interest。 I did myself the disservice of starting this book when I was going through some really tough times， so I didn't spend massively close attention to it。 Then I had to take a break to read a couple of other books for work。 By the time I started it back up again， I just didn't really care much about what was going on。 I found it to be rather slow， with so much focus on the travel that I lost interest。 。。。more
Beck
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DNF at 358p。 Way too verbose， and slow， scattered。 At this point， I should care about at least one character， but alas…
Melissa Watkins
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I wanted to love this。 I get the comparisons to Harry Potter and Miss Peregrins series。 Unfortunately I found it dry and rushed to finish。 I think I might have enjoyed it more if I read it rather than listened to it so I'll revisit this another time。 For now it's a 3。5。 I wanted to love this。 I get the comparisons to Harry Potter and Miss Peregrins series。 Unfortunately I found it dry and rushed to finish。 I think I might have enjoyed it more if I read it rather than listened to it so I'll revisit this another time。 For now it's a 3。5。 。。。more
Paul Veldhouse
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A great story about children who are “talents”。 Some basic fantasy， mild horror， and good storytelling。 The pace is good， but is does drag at times。 The antagonist of the book stays a little too shrouded， in my opinion， and there is some foreshadowing of an even greater for for the books to come。 Overall， worth reading， but didn’t stand apart from the field at the end like I thought it was going to at the start。
Jennie Damron
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It's books like this that make me thrilled to be avid reader。 This had everything I love in a book。 I know it is historical fantasy， but the Gothic atmosphere cannot be denied。 I was so pleasantly surprised by how much I was invested in the story。 Think Stranger Things with a vibe of Miss Peregrines Home For Peculiar Children。 I loved every page。The writing was brilliant， the characters believable and well developed， and the plot was intricate， but fast paced。 I have zero complaints。 I cannot wa It's books like this that make me thrilled to be avid reader。 This had everything I love in a book。 I know it is historical fantasy， but the Gothic atmosphere cannot be denied。 I was so pleasantly surprised by how much I was invested in the story。 Think Stranger Things with a vibe of Miss Peregrines Home For Peculiar Children。 I loved every page。The writing was brilliant， the characters believable and well developed， and the plot was intricate， but fast paced。 I have zero complaints。 I cannot wait for the next one。 。。。more
J
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Dark and gritty and wonderfully strange。 This book is an odd animal。 An extremely beguiling mix of Penny Dreadful and X-Men with the faintest tinges of Stephen King at the edges。 The female characters， especially Alice， were especially well-drawn。 Maybe a little slow at times， and I wish I could have fallen in love with all of the characters just a bit more， but if you're looking for something different， this is the book for you。 Dark and gritty and wonderfully strange。 This book is an odd animal。 An extremely beguiling mix of Penny Dreadful and X-Men with the faintest tinges of Stephen King at the edges。 The female characters， especially Alice， were especially well-drawn。 Maybe a little slow at times， and I wish I could have fallen in love with all of the characters just a bit more， but if you're looking for something different， this is the book for you。 。。。more
Nina
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A mishmash of Harry Pptter， The Umbrella Academy， the MCU， Lord of the Rings， Penny Dreadful， and a dozen other fantasy series， and badly in need of substantial editing。
Ronronia Adramelek
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J。 M。 Miro es el pseudónimo que Steven Price ha decidido usar para escribir Fantasy， y ha escrito una mezcla entre Mrs。 Peregrine's， Nosferatu， His Dark Materials y los X-Men si fueran victorianos。 Me gusta muchísimo la primera mitad del libro， en la que van presentando los personajes y "recogiéndolos"， por， así decir。 Muy buenos personajes， casi todos。 Pero luego la cosa se pone más Stranger Things y la segunda mitad del libro， supuestamente más trepidante， me aburre un poco， quizás porque es d J。 M。 Miro es el pseudónimo que Steven Price ha decidido usar para escribir Fantasy， y ha escrito una mezcla entre Mrs。 Peregrine's， Nosferatu， His Dark Materials y los X-Men si fueran victorianos。 Me gusta muchísimo la primera mitad del libro， en la que van presentando los personajes y "recogiéndolos"， por， así decir。 Muy buenos personajes， casi todos。 Pero luego la cosa se pone más Stranger Things y la segunda mitad del libro， supuestamente más trepidante， me aburre un poco， quizás porque es descaradamente cinematográfica， de esas veces que estás leyendo y piensas "ay， pillo， tú lo que quieres es que te lleven a la， pantalla grande o a Netflix y cobrar más derechos de autor»。 。。。more
charlotte，
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Rep: biracial Black mc， Japanese mcCWs: gore， implied rape， miscarriage， racism
Clara
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This book could have been excellent and had so much potential that it just didn't reach。 Such a low rating due to it being unnecessaryily long and having that， 'i have all the answers that once you know will change EVERYTHING， but you aren't ready to know yet。' trope。。。。more than once too。 This book could have been excellent and had so much potential that it just didn't reach。 Such a low rating due to it being unnecessaryily long and having that， 'i have all the answers that once you know will change EVERYTHING， but you aren't ready to know yet。' trope。。。。more than once too。 。。。more
Christy MacCallum
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Ordinary Monsters feels like a “Miss Peregrine” for adults。 It’s longer， darker， and more complex in its unravelling， but has many of the same themes and concepts。J M Miro’s first instalment in their trilogy follows two young orphaned boys as they learn about their secret talents。 Many mysteries and stories unfold in this book， sometimes leaving more questions than answers。 Parts of the story felt a little jumpy to me， particularly the ending scenes where we flipped between multiple characters a Ordinary Monsters feels like a “Miss Peregrine” for adults。 It’s longer， darker， and more complex in its unravelling， but has many of the same themes and concepts。J M Miro’s first instalment in their trilogy follows two young orphaned boys as they learn about their secret talents。 Many mysteries and stories unfold in this book， sometimes leaving more questions than answers。 Parts of the story felt a little jumpy to me， particularly the ending scenes where we flipped between multiple characters and POVs quickly。 There are many more stories to be told and mysteries to be unravelled in the next books so I will have to patiently await their arrival。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Ordinary Monsters
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Ordinary Monsters&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Ordinary Monsters&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0