Title: Peregrine’s Tale: The Timmy Quinn Series Book 4

Author: Kealan Patrick Burke

Release date: August, 2010

Reminder – I’m reading this as part of Kealan Patrick Burke’s Stage Whispers Omnibus. This is book four. To see my reviews for books 1-3 you can find them here;

Book One The Turtle Boy;

https://stevestredauthor.wordpress.com/2022/12/23/book-review-the-turtle-boy-by-kealan-patrick-burke/

Book Two The Hides;

https://stevestredauthor.wordpress.com/2022/12/29/book-review-the-hides-by-kealan-patrick-burke/

Book Three Vessels;

https://stevestredauthor.wordpress.com/2022/12/30/book-review-vessels-by-kealan-patrick-burke/

Now, I arrive at book four, wondering what Kealan has in store, not only for Tim Quinn (as he now prefers to be known), but also for Kim and this mysterious Peregrine character. All roads led to Tim needing to find and confront Peregrine at the end of book three, so I was excited to dive into this one.

I will say – this is almost completely a stand-alone story – or off shoot story to the overall narrative. If Peregrine hadn’t been mentioned previously and if Timmy wasn’t connected at the very end, you could read this completely on its own and enjoy a truly memorable and emotional novella. It was released as a limited, signed hardcover through Cemetery Dance prior to its release/inclusion into this series, so there’s the chance at one point that this one might not’ve even been necessary for Timmy’s overall series and completion.

What I liked: No matter, what we get is a harrowing story of a young boy who is also introduced to the veil, to the parting between here and there, the curse Timmy has been carrying since he was eleven and discovers there is a connection between them.

This novella is incredibly hard to review while remaining spoiler free. What I will say, is that Peregrine’s father is gone, his mother struggles to make ends meet and her newest man has now also left, telling her its either him or the kid.

I find this to be a frequently utilized plot point and, even so, Kealan used it magnificently. It immediately creates a reaction from the reader, it makes you root for and choose the side of Peregrine and when things get really dark/hard and brutal, you empathize with this young man who has to do the most difficult thing he’s ever had to do.

Kealan doesn’t give us a lot of ‘the veil’ in this one, but what he does give us is just enough. It opens up the potentials in our imagination for what the final book in the Timmy Quinn series will entail and it also gives us just a sliver to the prospect of what Peregrine is capable of.

What I didn’t like: I do wish we would’ve been given just a bit more connectivity to the overall series here. It ends perfectly and sets things in motion for the fifth and final book, but I would’ve really loved for Peregrine’s ‘dad’ to share just a little bit more about how Peregrine was touched and became able to see the veil and why these two (Peregrine and Timmy) are on this collision course.

Why you should buy this: Blah, blah, blah – come on – this is book four of five. If you’ve read the first three you’re going to read the fourth. If you have the omnibus, you’re going to read this. But, if you’re still on the fence on diving into book one, just know that every single book has been phenomenal and leading us to what I can only assume is going to be a stunning conclusion.

5/5

Peregrine’s Tale;

Stage Whispers;