The Bridge to Never Land

Peter and the Starcatchers #5

by Dave Barry, Ridley Pearson, Greg Call (Illustrator)

Aidan and Sarah Cooper have no idea what they’re getting into one afternoon when they discover a mysterious coded document in a secret compartment of an antique English desk their father recently bought at an auction. Something about the document seems familiar to Sarah, and that night she realizes what it the document seems to be referring to some books she has read—the Starcatchers series, about the origin of Peter Pan. But how could that be? The document seems far older than the books. And of course, the books are just stories.
Curious, Sarah and Aidan begin to decipher the mysterious document. At first it’s a game—unraveling the mystery piece by piece, each piece leading them to a new, deeper puzzle. But soon the game turns strange—and scary. Pursued by a being that can take any form and will stop at nothing to get what it wants from them, Aidan and Sarah embark on a desperate, thrilling quest for help—a quest that leads them to some unforgettable people in some unlikely places, including one that’s not supposed to exist at all.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction, Adventure, Middle Grade, Childrens, Fairy Tales

448 pages, Paperback

First published August 9, 2011

About the author

Dave Barry is a humor writer. For 25 years he was a syndicated columnist whose work appeared in more than 500 newspapers in the United States and abroad. In 1988 he won the Pulitzer Prize for Commentary. Many people are still trying to figure out how this happened.
Dave has also written many books, virtually none of which contain useful information. Two of his books were used as the basis for the CBS TV sitcom "Dave's World," in which Harry Anderson played a much taller version of Dave.
Dave plays lead guitar in a literary rock band called the Rock Bottom Remainders, whose other members include Stephen King, Amy Tan, Ridley Pearson and Mitch Albom. They are not musically skilled, but they are extremely loud. Dave has also made many TV appearances, including one on the David Letterman show where he proved that it is possible to set fire to a pair of men's underpants with a Barbie doll.
In his spare time, Dave is a candidate for president of the United States. If elected, his highest priority will be to seek the death penalty for whoever is responsible for making Americans install low-flow toilets.
Dave lives in Miami, Florida, with his wife, Michelle, a sportswriter. He has a son, Rob, and a daughter, Sophie, neither of whom thinks he's funny.

Reviews

[Clare · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this story aloud to my 9 year old daughter...we are fans of the "Peter and the Starcatchers" series and really looked forward to this book.

I have to say that it is very different than the previous series. I found the idea of this wonderfully rich and detailed world that explained how Peter and the Lost Boys came to be in Never Land, and where exactly Captain Hook came from, to be absolutely wonderful. We were enthralled throughout all of the first four books. This story was engaging, humorous and entertaining...but it wasn't quite as enticing or engrossing as the previous books were.

While this book is sort of a sequel to the "Peter and the Starcatchers" books, it isn't really a sequel to the last book. It is more of a sequel to all of them as a group. In this book, we get an entirely different cast of characters at first. For the majority of the book none of the characters we grew to love and root for in the past books are involved. While it is interesting to see the difference between how children of today's world would have to deal with the adventures in protecting Starstuff from the evil Ombra as compared to Molly and Peter, for me the story lost something in the transition to modern day.

The book did pick up once the children were able to get to Peter, but for some reason it really bothered me that both children didn't get to experience Never Land. Additionally, the tie-in between Disney publishing this book and the fact that a very large amount of the story is set at Disney World got to be a bit old after a while. It sort of felt like I was reading a constant commercial for DisneyWorld.

Overall, my daughter and I both did enjoy the book, however not nearly as much as the previous books in the series. I think this was largely because of how much we missed the interaction and obvious caring between Peter and Molly.

Perhaps the very brilliant Misters Barry and Pearson could, rather than continuing to write in this universe, mine another fairy tale or story for a similar sort of "if you only knew the truth" backstory? What really happened in "Alice in Wonderland", or "Sleeping Beauty"? What was the 'truth' behind "Rapunzel"? I'd love to see what else they could come up with.

[Kristen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hmmm, this book ended with the hint that there will be another book. Will there? I hope so. As long as they keep writing this series, I will keep reading the books. I sure enjoy them.

This book introduces us to brand new characters, Sarah and Aidan Cooper. They are in the modern era. Sarah has read all the Starcatchers books (which I think was such a neat idea). She and her brother find a weird piece of paper hidden in a secret compartment in their father's desk. So naturally they try to figure out what it is. As they dig deeper, Sarah starts to make connections to the Starcatchers books and begins to wonder if the books are all true.

A thing that I really enjoyed was how Sarah would actually read sections out of the previous Starcatcher books. I thought it was a neat way to remind readers about certain critical moments, but at the same time, doesn't feel like I'm being reminded.

Sarah and Aidan are very likable characters. I really enjoyed their adventure. The story progressed very quickly. There wasn't much time spent on stupid, slow information. It was constantly moving, which kept me very engaged. Then, they met J.D. Aster. I really liked him too. All of the new characters were well developed and likeable.

Naturally, the book is called "Bride to Neverland" so they have to track down this bridge, because an evil villain is after them, and starstuff. Eventually we get to see a few of our beloved characters from the origianl series. It was just enough to still make this story about the other characters, but you get that glimpse, a small taste, of the old characters. I absolutely loved it. It is fun to see what they have been up to after such a long time.

We get a lot of different perspectives in this book. Even from the minor characters who really don't mean anything. It was like reading a movie. I got to see everything that was going on - even though I didn't really care much about any of those characters. And the Disney references were awesome. I have always loved Disneyland. I haven't been to the Magic Kingdom as often, but it was still awesome, because I knew exactly what he'd been talking about.

I really liked the ending. I liked how Peter was able to defeat Ombra, but I also liked that he had promised to come back soon, even though Tink warned him that there was still evil here, that Ombra probably isn't dead again. And then in the last chapter, you see that Peter has been coming back, but that there is still the threat that Ombra is coming back - and Peter is ready to take him on again if he needs to. Which makes me think that perhaps we will get another book at some point I hope we get another book in the near future. Like I said, if they keep writing, I will keep reading. This series is really good - seems like it stays pretty true (with new spins) to the original Peter Pan, but has all the Disney references also, which makes reading these so much fun. Everytime I read these books, it makes me want to watch the Disney Peter Pan movie...but it's still in the vault. So I'm super excited that it will finally be coming out in Spring 2013!! I can finally get my Peter Pan fix!

If you've enjoyed the other books in this series, you should definitely read this - even though it doesn't focus on Peter.

[Bobby Dykeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

There needs to be another book. It can't end this way!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Jayelee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good yes yes. U should read it, though note that

Rant time: BRU LITERALLY IT TOOK SO LONG TO GET TO THE GOOD PART LIKE LETERALLY WHY THEY COULD HAVE MADE IT SO MUCH SIMPLER IT WAS LIKE HALF WAY THROUGH THE BOOK UNTIL IT FINALLY GOT A BIT INTERESTING LIKE LITERALLY WHY?

Why u should still read it: even though plenty to complain about it still good book. Still very funny and happy end. Example : BROOOO PETER PAN IS BRITISH. Y U NO TELL ME EARLIER I COULD HAVE READ WITH A BRITISH ACSENT. Anyway, u should still read book, good book yeeea.

4 star not 5 reason: see above to know

[Jenn G · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was so good!! I didn't really enjoy the previous book in the series but this one was amazing! The search for clues at the beginning was maybe a little too convenient but other than that it was everything the previous book wasn't.

[Virginia Henderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

CONTAINS SPOILERS!!!

I just don't know guys. I don't know. After finishing the previous book, Peter and the Sword of Mercy, and not liking it, I wasn't too sure how this one would go. The idea was intriguing. Two kids discover that the Starcatcher series wasn't just a fictional retelling of Peter Pan, but an actual account of what "really" happened with Peter, Hook, the Lost Boys... but never Tiger Lily!! Why is Tiger Lily always left out of these books??? And Shinning Pearl is NOT Tiger Lily. End of discussion.

Anyway.... I started out not liking this due to the really annoying, whiney and ungrateful siblings, Sarah and Aidan. They got to go to London, see all the sights and take amazing tours and they complained about the lack of T.V. Then suddenly the adventure started with the finding of an old paper inside a secret compartment of a desk. From there things just kinda took off.

Despite this being a work of fiction meant for a younger audience, things just worked out too easy for the brother and sister. There were a lot of similarities to the other books when it came to using the star stuff. J.D was an ok character. Same villain from all the other books btw...a bit too tedious for me.

So I'm reading about these kids and J.D on the run, and suddenly the story takes a unique turn
They wind up in Disney World. Yes, you read correctly. Disney World. When I first read this I inwardly groaned. You see, I tolerated the Kingdom Keeper series by the same authors and I didn't even finish those. However this trip to Disney was, like I said, unique. I won't spoil everything that happens but they wind up back in Neverland and find Peter, who turns out to be a jerk at first! He got better as the story progressed but jeeze... rude.

The ending was ok. The authors left room for ANOTHER book but I think this is the final installment. Overall this was fast-paced, and kinda meh. It was better than the previous one! I had serious issues with that one. I'm glad to have finished the books but can't see myself picking them up again. My favorites were book 1 and 2. Definitely check those out! 3 was good too but I still believe the series should have ended with the trilogy.

[Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was worried this one wouldn’t hold up to the original series, but I actually loved it! It’s obviously not the same without most of the usual main characters, but it was just as fast paced and thrilling as the rest of the books. I thought it was a great addition. Based on the ending it’s clear they intended to write more books. I doubt that’ll happen, since it’s been so long, but I’d be absolutely thrilled to see them write more.

[Sean Frawley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Action: 7.5
Characters: 5.2
Plot: 6.0
Pace: 7.1
Overall: 6.8
Struggling Reader Score 7.0

All scores out of a possible 10

If you read any of the first books in the Starcatcher series, you probably already know how amazing these books are. They are definitely one of the more creative re-imaginings of a classic story that I have read in a long time, second best to The Looking Glass Wars. They are grand adventures that are incredibly engaging, humorously witty, and easy to read. For the record, I think my favorite in the series is Peter and the Shadow Thieves. But I digress. As much as I love this series, I felt let down by this installment.

Let me begin by saying that my three sons (ages 5-10) vehemently disagree with the overall ranking that I gave this book. They could not get enough of this story and are already clamoring to read the next one. They loved the book’s adventurous nature and easily identified with the main characters. They also enjoyed how the book returns to Neverland but still feels like a brand new story. To be totally honest; though, I think their enjoyment of the book was the only reason that I rated it as high as I did. Otherwise, my score would be nearer to a 6 than a 7.

I do not want to spend too much time bashing a book in a series that I adore. And again I feel I must reiterate how much I enjoyed the first four books. Nevertheless, this book is missing so much that I feel obligated to point out a few things. To begin with, as my low score for the characters no doubt indicates, the characters are nowhere near the standard that I have come to expect from this pair of amazing writers. I confess that I was exceedingly disappointed to not have many of my old favorites involved in the story.

Peter isn’t even involved until about three-fourths the way through the book. When he does finally show up, we find him to be much more like the original, self-centered prat from J.M. Barrie’s book, Peter Pan, than the mischievous, fun-loving and loyal character that I have come to love from the Starcatcher series. This alone is a major step back in my opinion. Whether it is an intentional ploy to show how Peter the Starcatcher becomes Peter Pan or just a new take on the character, I’m not sure. Either way, I found it annoying. Then suddenly, in a scene seemingly only there for this purpose, Sarah saves Peter’s life by risking her own and within seconds he is a completely changed boy. This feels ridiculous and forced. One experience cannot change a person’s character so completely. But even assuming that it can, Peter’s character is reduced to little more than a side story to help whenever the protagonists need to him and his powers to get out of a jam.

I miss Tubby Ted.

I also struggled mightily to identify with Sarah and Aiden. There is no way that these two kids, 17 and 15 respectively, acted their ages. Between their banal dialog and predictable actions, they strike me as more likely to be 13 and 10. Moreover, their constant bickering followed by an almost immediate reconciliation makes them feel more like annoying props for a storyline than organic characters that I can buy into. For me, one of the most serious speed bumps on the road toward liking them is what they put their parents through. I know this is mainly the parent in me speaking, but their complete disregard for their parents feels unjustified and mean.

The final thing that I will complain about is the lack of a real villain. Unlike the way Rowling brings Voldemort to life despite the fact he is little more than an evil parasite living in Professor Quirrell’s turban for most of the book, Barry and Pearson never make Umbra feel like an actual threat. A bunch of birds? Really? Instead they expect the reader to remember all the bad things he has done in other books. I guess the best way that I can explain this is by putting it like this. When I asked my kids who they thought was the villain in the story, they all said it was “Captain Hook,” a character, like Peter, that doesn’t even show up until the end of the book.

Overall, Peter and the Bridge to Neverland is an okay story and is worth a read, assuming you have already read the first four books in the series. However, I think most of the fans of the Peter and the Starcatcher series will hope, like me, that Barry and Pearson decide not to continue down the path that Sarah and Aiden began and instead return to the characters that we fell in love with in the original Peter and the Starcatchers.

I miss Tubby Ted.

[Kathy Davie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fifth in the Peter and the Starcatchers fantasy adventure series for kids. This installment takes us beyond what we expect of Peter Pan in a contemporary America.

My Take
Okay, it is a fun adventure but there was something missing in it for me. I suspect part of my disappointment was in the story's contemporary setting when I was expecting something with more "history".

There is a most unexpected use for Facebook and Craigslist, but it does result in an email from a J.D. Aster.

It's still a clever manipulation of the Peter Pan fantasy that weaves in our own Disney World with the even more clever inclusion of Albert Einstein. With luck, it'll inspire kids to explore or at least be more open to Einstein and quantum mechanics.

The Story
In 1905, the Starcatchers approached Albert Einstein for help in protecting Never Land. A protection that was modified in 1971 by Pete Carmoody.

Today...
While chasing Aidan down to get her iPhone back, Sarah and Aidan inadvertently discover a secret hideaway in their dad's new-to-him antique desk. A letter from Aster to Mister Magill. It's Sarah's encyclopedic knowledge that enables her to recognize the name Magill. And it is the impetus that sends Sarah and Aidan on their quest to solve the clue in the letter.

Lucky for them, their parents have planned a family trip to England making their quest possible. Unlucky for them, as finding the starstuff triggers a chase by the enemy.

Sarah and Aidan must persuade Dr. Aster before the police arrest them all to follow the trail to Florida. With still more clues to decipher and adventures to follow. To convince Peter. To rescue Aidan from Ombra's clutches.

The Characters
Aidan Cooper enjoys the usual relationship most siblings have with older sisters. Sarah, the older sister, practically has the Peter and the Starcatcher series memorized. Tom and Natalie Cooper are their history-minded parents.

Lord Ombra is still weak from the battle in Peter and the Secret of Rundoon . Lester Armstrong is a private investigator (and not the most ethical of men) with a talent for computer research, and he is soon hot on the trail of the runaways. Hector Gomez and Wanda Blight are the FBI agents in charge of retrieving the "kidnapped" children.

J. D. Aster is a physics professor at Princeton University and a non-believing descendant of the original Lord Aster. Allen "Mac" Macpherson, a friend of Aster's, turns out to have been involved much later with the bridge projecte. He does remember that Pete Carmoody was involved in a project to make a smaller, more portable bridge. Fay is Pete's widow.

The inhabitants of Never Land from Captain Hook, Smee, and his crew; Teacher; the chief of the Mollusk Indians, Fighting Prawn and his son Bold Abalone with the rest of the village; a very suspicious Peter Pan and Tinker Bell; the Lost Boys: Tootles, Nibs, Curly, Slightly, and the twins; and, Mister Grin.

The Cover and Title
The cover is a murder of ravens chasing, surrounding Sarah and Aidan as they flee across a bridge at Disney World.

The title is too true as quantum physics has allowed a safe dimension for the island as well as The Bridge to Never Land.

[Hannah Russell · Rating 2 out of 5]

They really should have stopped at four. I really enjoyed all the Peter and the Starcatchers books, and then I read this one, which generally read like a bad fan fiction of the rest of the series. Hard to get into, trying too hard, plot is generally pointless and had none of the spark of the rest of the series. The literally tried to remove the magic of the previous books by making bad physics explanations of starstuff, and then have to handwave the science anyways in the end. Very disappointed.

[Benjamin Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes it’s just nice to read a book that is pure adventure and fun. While this is technically the fifth novel in the “Peter and the Starcatchers” series, it is really a little bit separate. This time around, the authors decided to do something different and it really paid off. Frankly, the series was starting to grow a little stale and a bit repetitive, so much so that I was reluctant to even read this one, even though it’s been sitting on my shelf for quite a while now.

The original series took place in the late 1800s with the fourth book placed in 1902. It was sort of an alternative origin story for the Peter Pan universe and did a good job of providing a plausible and interesting story line, even though it departed from the original (and Disney) versions of the classic story. But in this fifth book, we jump to the present day and get to follow Aidan and Sarah Cooper, (15 and 17 years old respectively) as they discover a strange document in a secret compartment of an antique English desk that their father had just bought at auction. That launches them on a lengthy quest and soon leads them to understand that the books they had both read (the first four books in this series) were real. Perilous adventure awaits.

The end of the book does hint at another one to follow but since this was published in 2011, I’m not sure that will be happening. That’s too bad because I really enjoy them even though they are YA. They work especially well in cases like mine when you’re coming off a really disappointing reading experience. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy a good ol’ fashioned adventure.

[anubis s. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh. My. GOSH. THIS IS. A GOOD BOOK!! I definitely recommend this book to any fantasy lovers!!

[nikola · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, I have a lot of feeling about this book. See, I was perfectly content with the Starcatchers series being a trilogy, but I couldn't say that I wasn't excited about the fourth one coming out about three years ago. It wasn't as good as the other three, but it was a nice addition to the series that I've probably read more times than Harry Potter (which is quite a lot).

This book was interesting. My friend told me about it a while ago but I didn't really know what she was talking about until I saw it Barnes and Noble yesterday when I was browsing through the children's section (yes, I still do that. It's fun.) I read the back and needless to say, I was super excited. In fact, I squealed a bit because this book is my dream.

All the things that happened in the Starcatchers trilogy (I still refer to it as that, shhh) were TRUE. Not to mention the main character, Sarah, not only got to travel to Neverland but she got to go there with a hot physics professor. I mean, how wonderful would that be? That got my fangirl going so I just HAD to read it. I was very pleased with it and actually finished it in less than twenty-four hours because it was such a page turner. The suspense was written very well; at parts I had to really focus to keep my eyes from dancing around the page because of all the suspense. But not only the suspense, the authors really filled in the holes that the original Peter Pan novel and the movies left. The seclusion of the island. That was really cleverly done (especially since I love science fiction with all my heart) and I really appreciated all the science behind it. All in all, I really really loved it.

However, there are a few pet-peeves for me.

First of all, Tinkerbell's narrative wasn't put in there, which I loved in the other books. Tink is utterly hilarious and I was rather disappointed that her snide little remarks were left out.

Second, and most importantly of all, the timeline when it came to travelling to and from the two universes didn't make any sense. See, I love time travel things like that but I'm really picky about the details. I follow Doctor Who pretty well (Moffat's timelines are always really twisty and confusing but REALLY REALLY thought out and planned well) and I found myself overthinking the time issue and seeing all the holes with that that I felt needed to be filled.

I cannot fully explain myself because one, I am not a scientist and two, because I don't know how to properly articulate to you the thoughts I'm thinking on the subject. Just know that the time issues didn't make any sense to me (and not because I was looking at time from a linear perspective) and that is one of the main things that didn't make me totally and completely impressed with this book.

Overall, 3/5 stars to a good addition to the series that I loved when I was younger and will continue to do so.

[Heidi Lil' Chip · Rating 5 out of 5]

I brought two books with me to a camping trip, this one and one that I haven't read yet. I assumed I'd read that one, but I started thinking about this book and couldn't help reading it! I was able to read half of it in 3 nights! Then, when I got home, I forgot I started it until I was searching for one of my favorite bookmarks and remembered it was in here! I forgot how crazy this book is!

[Hazel M Bear · Rating 2 out of 5]

So when I picked this up, I had no idea it was actually the fifth in this series, but rather I believed it to be a sort of side story. The good thing is, it doesn't seem to require much backstory, as the characters try to explain it all to you. What did bother me was how those characters and narration overly explained EVERYTHING. Little things, which should be expressed by how a person stands or the words they say, the authors instead just 'tell'. As is when you're in English class and your teachers asks you to "show, not tell" to make your writing better. In all honesty, this book read like it was for VERY young readers, younger than I'd assumed, reading stuff like the Hunger Games & Harry Potter series. The characters were also very plain and dry, and the only one who really felt like a real person was Armstrong. However, as this is a very popular series, I will try to go back and read the first novel, because that could just be the missing link. I certainly hope there's a lot less of this over the top leading action business. The book reads the first section of another book, very empty feeling once I finished.
Without giving any spoilers, I am bothered by the fact that in the middle, something is explained as A+B=C, and then later, it seems like a A+B=R when R does not equal C, if you follow me. Perhaps that's something for book 5 to further explain though.

[Kylie · Rating 3 out of 5]

An avid fan of the "Peter and the Starcatchers" books, I was excited for this new installment to come out. Unfortunately, it was a disappointment. The first 3/4 of this book has none of the magic of the original series. Somehow transporting the Neverland story to modern day, making the characters much older, and including the original series as "reference" books to the characters made the tale feel cheapened and a tad ridiculous. I was also very put off by the behavior of the teenaged protagonists in the first half of the books. The father who takes them to London and wants to tour all of the sites is made to look like a buffoon, and the mother who worries when they ignore the family and eventually run away is made out to be unreasonable and overbearing. The kids are too obsessed with their hairdos and video games to be bothered with much else. Had this changed over the course of the story I might have enjoyed it more. The only redeeming part of the book is the last 1/4, where the magical journey is brought full-circle and Peter Pan is once again the hero. For the last several chapters alone I liked the story. In future installments, I hope Pearson and Barry get back to the roots of the series and bring Peter into the books from the beginning.

[John Yelverton · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh, this was so painful to read. The dialogue is horrible, and it's the stereotypical young adults book in which the kids know everything and won't talk to the adults because they're just too stupid or wouldn't understand.

[Della Tingle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the final book in the Peter and the Starcatchers series. It was written in 2011 and was left in such a manner as to be open to another book. However, it’s ok if there isn’t another, as the reader finishes feeling satisfied.

This book is set more than a hundred year after the previous novels. I greatly missed the other characters and was happy when some finally appeared.

Molly Aster, her daughter Wendy, and now Sarah Cooper are three young girls who are incredibly brave and loyal to their families and friends and doing what’s right. Each has their time to shine in their respective novels, but I enjoyed seeing so much of Molly and Wendy in Sarah even though they are not relatives.

I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone, but if you like fantasy and fairy tales and Peter Pan, this entire series is for you. Read them in order, though! 🧚

Oh, yeah, I missed Greg Call’s illustrations so much in this 5th novel!

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Throughout the entire book, I had the strange feeling I'd read this before. I concluded that I picked it up once not knowing it was related to a series. I wanted to give it a higher star because duh, it's peter pan, but eventually I realized I was honestly bored the entire time that we were in the "real world" and was only interested toward the end, in Neverland. The main characters were boring and every major plot point felt like it had been done before, in a previous book, in a similar way. (in some instances, like when hook captured peter, it happened the exact same way once before.) Not great presentation, if you ask me. A cheap ending to a great series.

[Julianne S · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s a shame when the last book in a series is the worst one. The premise here was actually really clever and full of potential, but the execution is lacking. The new characters aren’t particularly likable or interesting, the storyline is rushed, and there are a lot of plot holes. Things pick up quite a bit in the last third or so, but that’s also the part that made me sad because I just so badly want to be at Disney World now (so clearly the shameless advertisement is working). I’d say if you haven’t read this series and want to, it’s fine to stop after book 4.

[Katie Lovegood · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this a few years ago and don't remember much, just that I liked it. I also didn't know that it was part of a series, so I ended up reading this one before any of the others and the thing is, I UNDERSTOOD EVERYTHING!! Like it wasn't confusing to me at all! I was able to read this without reading the others. I'm going to give the other ones a try.

[Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

My six-year-old and I enjoyed the audiobook together. Sadly this book was read by a different reader than the previous books and while he was ok, he wasn't Jim Dale.

This book offers a modern day American twist on the original series. It's a fun fast paced story and most of it deserved four stars but I had a couple of complaints that caused me to lower the rating. First, I didn't connect very well with the kids in the story and mostly just found them annoying. My biggest complaint though is the gratuitous, excessive, eye-twitching overuse of the phrase "Oh my God." If I'm not mistaken this is considered a (mild) expletive and as such doesn't belong anywhere in a kids book. At the very least, I know quite a few people who find it offensive and as such I've informed my kids that we don't say it. It's hard enough to teach kids to speak intelligently without having them read questionable language in kids books. If it weren't for the language issue, I'd probably have given the story four stars.

[Brittany · Rating 1 out of 5]

Having reread the entire Peter and the Starcatcher series in one shot in 2022 was an interesting experience to say the least (even finding books 2-5 was a feat because they’re out of print because of the whole trying to claim the copyright for Peter Pan was expired *only in America and not the rest of the world* and tried to screw a childrens hospital out of royalties, but I digress).

Since each book was slightly worse than the one before, I expected this one to be bad, but this was TERRIBLE. It is just plot holes galore and terrible writhing, but my biggest pet peeve though was the skeevy flirting between JD (a college professor) and Sarah (a 17 year old). It feels like grooming and I can’t decide if it’s aimed at the character or the reader since it a *middle grade* book. We only get first person narration for JD once and it’s to show his thoughts of how he likes Sarah, they creepishly start pointing out she’s 17 more than once after he is introduced (almost to be like “it’ll be ok soon”) and that he wears jeans and band shirts and collects guitars to make him seem younger (again like “it’s not weird it’ll be ok soon”), when mermaids are transporting them it describes the two hugging and upsetting the mermaids, JD isn’t wearing pants for most of Never Land and it seems that was forgotten, and the Lost Boys ask if they’re married while the Mollusks make jokes about Sarah getting a marriage proposal from JD and she blushes. And these are just the instances I can think of offhand. What is the purpose of this in a book about Peter Pan?!



TL;DR I expected the book to be bad, but not for it to take a turn into grooming and statutory. It was like a car crash I couldn’t look away from because it just kept getting worse.

[Tina Peterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Starcatchers series is wonderful! Don't let the length of the book scare you off - if your kids can read the Harry Potter series with no problems they won't have any trouble reading this one. Yes it's long - but engaging, action packed and full of scenes to trigger your kids imaginations.

I came in late on this series and will be adding the other books into my personal library. The Bridge to NeverLand and the whole Starcatchers series is based on the questions "how did Peter Pan come to be? and "how did he get to Neverland?" In this book you have a brother sister (Sarah & Aiden) team who come across a mystery box and in the hunt for the answers they go to Europe and the States to learn about the Shadow Thieves who are after them for a box they found. Lord Oombra is a wizard who is seen as crows that can transform to accomplish their evil deeds. They can "possess" a person also to get them to do what they need - and the only way to know that person has been possessed is through their dead eyes.

I don't usually like to bring books on Classic Children's Books that have wizardry (you'll never see a Harry Potter book on here) but occasionally if the book is destined to become a classic and it's High Performing you'll find it here.

I strongly suggest that you start with the first book. Maybe purchase books 1 & 2 for your kids to read, to add to their stockings, birthday gifts first and then continue working on the series a book or two at a time. You can read them out of order - but then you'll be sitting there thinking - I've GOT to read the others!

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

While hunting through the library bookshelves for a completely different book one afternoon, I stumbled upon this. The title was the thing that did me in. I'm a huge fan of anything Peter Pan, so naturally, this appealed to me very much. After I had read the description, I got even more excited. It was sort of a sequel to the Starcatchers series I so much enjoyed. So, totally ditching the other book I had come to get, I got this out instead.

Unfortunately, as much as I was excited about this book, it did not turn out to be very great, in my opinion. For one, it didn't seem to have the general feeling of the previous book's writing. I took into account that this is supposed to happen a long, long time after the other book took place, but I still couldn't get into it. The pace went far too quickly, the characters didn't catch my immediate attention and draw me in, and the writing didn't stand out to me at all. I really wanted to give this the benefit of the doubt and enjoy it, but I just couldn't get into it. The adventure was fun, I will admit, but it wasn't my cup of tea.

There were several negative things that I think might have added to the feeling I came out with. First of all, I did not enjoy the general lying, stealing and treatment the children gave to the parents. It was very disrespectful and I did not appreciate that. The second thing I really did not like in the book was the fact that the Lord's name was taken in vain more than a dozen times.

[Daisy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have only read the first book in this series, but that didn't detract from my reading experience in the least! Although I think I had a little less anxiety about the main bad guy than I would have had if I'd read the other 3 books as well. But not to worry: if you haven't read them, you can still read this one!

We meet up with Sarah and Adrian, who go questing together in search of a way into Never Land and meet up with Molly Aster's greatgrandson in the process. I really liked Sarah, but both the boys seemed a bit dull. And I kept thinking: WHERE'S PETER?? He doesn't enter the scene until we are pretty close to the end and the book's named after him! PETER and the Starcatchers. I would have liked to have seen more of him or having them spend more time on Never Land.

That's not to say that I didn't enjoy this book. Cause I did. The storytelling is very good and I just flew through the book, even though again it's pretty big for a children's book (448 pages). I loved that they were in Disneyworld! I think the Peter Pan ride mentioned in it is also in Disneyland and I really loved that one :)

The bad guy is pretty creepy and the ending left me with a feeling there's much exploring left for Peter and his friend, which makes me happy :)

My rating: 3,5 stars

[Annabel_Hawkins · Rating 1 out of 5]

The first book in this series released when I was just slightly younger than its main characters.

I never knew this book was ever written, because I was in high school when it came out, and I stumbled onto it by accident when looking at something else. I wish I didn't. While Starcatchers holds up (not entirely, but quite well) to an adult re-read this...mess...was several uninspired characters who act as audience stand-ins, a plot with /zero/ explanation ("but isn't it fictional?" "Maybe it wasn't!" and then that's it), and part Disney World commercial.

Our upper-middle class teenage protagonists are blander the white bread, they have no unique traits or interests, and I'm not sure either author ever actually spoke with a real teenager. There are weird random moments that veer towards racism and sexism (we are 100 years out from Barrie, we can leave those in the original, thank you), and by the time we get to Never Land (there is a portal IN DISNEY WORLD, and it's described the same way as the portals in Marvel's Thor) we've wasted 3/4 of the book just...searching for it?

When everyone gets to the island, it picks up for about 45 pages but we're quickly back in DISNEY WORLD again, and facing off with Ombra and....Yikes.

[Bryce · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is for people who are into fantasy and love the story of Peter Pan. The story is the back story of Peter Pan and takes place after the Peter Pan story that most people know. The back story is that there is a group of people called the Starcatchers and they are trying to keep and find starstuff, a dust that makes people and things fly. The Starcatchers are keeping the starstuff from a evil shadow-stealer called Ombra who will use it to annihilate Earth. The author brings the story to life and brings the pictures in the book to you eyes. The book is so interesting that once you start, you can't stop until you finish it. This book takes place in London but travels to America. Two teens, Sarah and Aiden, find a box of starstuff and needs to keep it because they had saw Ombra trying to take it. They have to take the box to a Starcatcher before Ombra can get it, or else, Ombra will try and take over the universe.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I mostly liked it, but there were too many brand names being dropped, maybe to contribute to the new, modern feel of this book compared to the other Starcatchers books. I also felt like Aidan was too wimpy and anti-adventure. He had a lot of good points in arguing with his sister about why they shouldn't embark on this adventure, enough that it almost convinced me. I was not as caught up in the story because I was thinking, "Yeah, he's right! Why are they even doing any of this stuff?" My final complaint is how they ended up at Disney World, which was constantly being called "magical" being praised for how awesome it is (they can find a missing child in 11 minutes! Let's all go visit right now!). It's a Disney-Hyperion book, but no ulterior motives there, right?
All that aside, I did enjoy the story and the characters, and I will probably read the next installment.

[Aldene · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was not at all as good as the first 4.
We have 3 boys 8, 5, and 3 and the earlier books were fine for us and the boy's were really excited to hear the next book. Unfortunately this book had much different language and honestly was poorly written in comparison to the other books. This could still be an okay book if you have older kids more like 10 or older. This book had stronger name calling, family fighting, body shaming, Fat Shaming (describing a belly dancer shaming her size and saying mean things about her appearance) and sexuality teen themes.