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Tales from Neverland #1
Beyond Relatively Normal
*Previously published under Mikaela Hancock*
Jack Galloway has had enough of life and is chasing a high he just can't seem to find. Upon meeting with a drug dealer from his school, he is given some mysterious, bean-shaped pills that just so happen to be nothing but beans. However, Relatively Normal beans do not grow miles and miles into the sky overnight, drawing attention from everyone around and destroying the very idea of reality on Earth. Now, in order to restore his Relatively Normal world, Jack must embark on a mission with a girl he barely knows from high school, Red Crawford, who just so happens to be the only one he knows who has encountered a tear in the non-magical reality they live in.
The beanstalk, too tall and too wide to climb, leads them down a rabbit hole to the strange and nonsensical Underland, where they must go through insane trials in order to reach the answer to their problems -- the Giants, magical creatures who live in Overland and can rid the Relatively Normal world of that pesky beanstalk.
However, the beanstalk and its effects on reality might just be the least of their worries when they reach the dark, mysterious Overland.
Jack Galloway has had enough of life and is chasing a high he just can't seem to find. Upon meeting with a drug dealer from his school, he is given some mysterious, bean-shaped pills that just so happen to be nothing but beans. However, Relatively Normal beans do not grow miles and miles into the sky overnight, drawing attention from everyone around and destroying the very idea of reality on Earth. Now, in order to restore his Relatively Normal world, Jack must embark on a mission with a girl he barely knows from high school, Red Crawford, who just so happens to be the only one he knows who has encountered a tear in the non-magical reality they live in.
The beanstalk, too tall and too wide to climb, leads them down a rabbit hole to the strange and nonsensical Underland, where they must go through insane trials in order to reach the answer to their problems -- the Giants, magical creatures who live in Overland and can rid the Relatively Normal world of that pesky beanstalk.
However, the beanstalk and its effects on reality might just be the least of their worries when they reach the dark, mysterious Overland.
192 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 20, 2020
11 people are currently reading
104 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 15, 2020
Our heroes, Jack and Red are schoolmates and some weird things are happening and one night a huge beanstalk shows up out of Jack's house. Feeling guilty for the mess they created, they agree to go on an adventure together to fix things.
This was such a quick and enjoyable read! Full of adventures that take place in three fictional worlds. Underland, Overland and the world of Relatively Normal Things, which stands for our world. Underland is actually Wonderland and Overland stands for Neverland, so we have a mixture of fictional worlds and heroes that we know from fairytales.
I love fairytale retellings and I liked how this one combined many together. I loved the backstory of our hero , Jack and Red's personality. I was intrigued to see how they would survive their adventure and how they would solve everything. I definitely need to read more, as the ending leaves you hanging.
Thank you to the author and Starlight tours for my copy and my chance to read this book!
This was such a quick and enjoyable read! Full of adventures that take place in three fictional worlds. Underland, Overland and the world of Relatively Normal Things, which stands for our world. Underland is actually Wonderland and Overland stands for Neverland, so we have a mixture of fictional worlds and heroes that we know from fairytales.
I love fairytale retellings and I liked how this one combined many together. I loved the backstory of our hero , Jack and Red's personality. I was intrigued to see how they would survive their adventure and how they would solve everything. I definitely need to read more, as the ending leaves you hanging.
Thank you to the author and Starlight tours for my copy and my chance to read this book!
April 1, 2020
This was a quick one-day read with a plot constantly in motion that kept me interested. Miller has created a darkly intriguing modern day twist on the story of Neverland turning it into an adventure with sharp teeth. Definitely a story I'd recommend to teens with a love for the paranormal and twisted fairy tales. I look forward to book 2!
P.S. I can't forget to mention how beautiful the new cover is!!
P.S. I can't forget to mention how beautiful the new cover is!!
October 21, 2020
First things first, I absolutely love this cover. It's so pretty!
Second, this book is a wild ride. It takes a bunch of fairy tales and mashes them all up into one crazy story that will delight and thrill readers.
The main character is Jack, of Jack and the Beanstalk fame, and the story follows him as he chases a high via a mysterious drug dealer named Shy. Jack's mother is an abusive alcoholic, so Jack is always trying to avoid her and find ways to block out his pain and misery. But when Shy gives Jack some beans instead of drugs, everything changes. The day after he tosses the beans from his window in frustration, a tall, seemingly never-ending beanstalk appears. And this beanstalk is what sets off the rest of the events in the story.
Teaming up with a classmate named Red (aka Red Riding Hood), Jack must figure out a way to rid his world of the magical beanstalk before it's too late.
From Underland to ONeverland, Jack and Red meet up with some strange people in their journey to destroy the beanstalk. There's the Red Queen, the Mad Hatter, and even Peter Pan. A veritable hodge-podge of fairy tale characters. So fun!
I really enjoyed this story. It's magical. It's dark. It's strange. It's fantastical. And it has some of my favorite fairy tales all mixed up within the pages. It almost reminded me of Into the Woods, which is a great movie.
The world-building is imaginative and vivid. You really do feel as though you're in these strange locations, traveling right along with Jack and Red. And the characters they come into contact with are very spot-on, like the Mad Hatter being odd and obsessed with tea and Time, or Red's grandmother being a wolf. That was a nice touch, keeping them accurate but with subtle small changes to make them unique to this story.
I also found the characters to be relatable and likable. Especially Jack. Being a teenager is hard enough, but being a teen with a crappy parent and no friends sucks even more. It was nice to see his friendship with Red bloom while on their journey.
If you're a fan of fairy tales, fantastical worlds, and fun, engaging stories, pick up a copy of Beyond Relatively Normal today! You won't be disappointed.
4.5 stars from me!
Second, this book is a wild ride. It takes a bunch of fairy tales and mashes them all up into one crazy story that will delight and thrill readers.
The main character is Jack, of Jack and the Beanstalk fame, and the story follows him as he chases a high via a mysterious drug dealer named Shy. Jack's mother is an abusive alcoholic, so Jack is always trying to avoid her and find ways to block out his pain and misery. But when Shy gives Jack some beans instead of drugs, everything changes. The day after he tosses the beans from his window in frustration, a tall, seemingly never-ending beanstalk appears. And this beanstalk is what sets off the rest of the events in the story.
Teaming up with a classmate named Red (aka Red Riding Hood), Jack must figure out a way to rid his world of the magical beanstalk before it's too late.
From Underland to ONeverland, Jack and Red meet up with some strange people in their journey to destroy the beanstalk. There's the Red Queen, the Mad Hatter, and even Peter Pan. A veritable hodge-podge of fairy tale characters. So fun!
I really enjoyed this story. It's magical. It's dark. It's strange. It's fantastical. And it has some of my favorite fairy tales all mixed up within the pages. It almost reminded me of Into the Woods, which is a great movie.
The world-building is imaginative and vivid. You really do feel as though you're in these strange locations, traveling right along with Jack and Red. And the characters they come into contact with are very spot-on, like the Mad Hatter being odd and obsessed with tea and Time, or Red's grandmother being a wolf. That was a nice touch, keeping them accurate but with subtle small changes to make them unique to this story.
I also found the characters to be relatable and likable. Especially Jack. Being a teenager is hard enough, but being a teen with a crappy parent and no friends sucks even more. It was nice to see his friendship with Red bloom while on their journey.
If you're a fan of fairy tales, fantastical worlds, and fun, engaging stories, pick up a copy of Beyond Relatively Normal today! You won't be disappointed.
4.5 stars from me!
November 5, 2018
This book is a cover-to-cover adventure you’ll be happy you went on. In fact, you’ll realize around the halfway mark that there’s no putting it down until you finish.
You’ll recognize most if not all of the lore in this book, but it’s presented in a way you won’t have read before. I enjoyed experiencing it from the perspective of the main protagonist - Jack - a modern teenager facing very real struggles with drugs, depression, a history of abuse, and learning to open up to his friend Red, as he simultaneously navigates the increasingly terrifying fantasy realm he finds himself in. This realm includes, among others, species and characters from tales such as Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan, but with a geography and a narrative all its own (and, at times, as dark as an original Grimm).
Additionally, if you like strong female characters, you’ll love getting to know Red and watching her friendship with Jack develop over the course of the story.
This world feels fresh and fascinating, and the reinvention of familiar fairytales allows the story to evade predictability. Also guaranteed - the ending will leave you wanting more!
You’ll recognize most if not all of the lore in this book, but it’s presented in a way you won’t have read before. I enjoyed experiencing it from the perspective of the main protagonist - Jack - a modern teenager facing very real struggles with drugs, depression, a history of abuse, and learning to open up to his friend Red, as he simultaneously navigates the increasingly terrifying fantasy realm he finds himself in. This realm includes, among others, species and characters from tales such as Alice in Wonderland and Peter Pan, but with a geography and a narrative all its own (and, at times, as dark as an original Grimm).
Additionally, if you like strong female characters, you’ll love getting to know Red and watching her friendship with Jack develop over the course of the story.
This world feels fresh and fascinating, and the reinvention of familiar fairytales allows the story to evade predictability. Also guaranteed - the ending will leave you wanting more!
January 10, 2019
This book is so hard to put down! I need the sequel like NOW!
May 11, 2021
Miller’s #1 strength is her world building. Beyond Relatively Normal was so clearly visible in my mind because of her brilliant creativity. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of traditional fairy tales with a twist.
October 28, 2020
Jack Galloway has a rough life with an abusive mother. To escape he has started drinking and doing drugs. Then one day his dealer gives him something new and he is out of it when fellow classmate Red Crawford tries to help him, and they discover Red’s Grandmother is no longer the woman she knew.
This is the beginning of a dark fairytale adventure that has a giant bean stalk growing in Jack’s back yard. Jack and Red go down the rabbit ho lei search of a way to get rid of the bean stalk and to keep the realms next to Relatively Normal from opening.
What follows is a journey through Wonderland and Neverland but this is no Disney journey. It is filled with dark characters that want to do some serious harm to jack and Red. I felt for Jack, he has never thought of Red as a real friend, but he is racked with guilt because he feels he conned her from going on this journey with him.
This was a good read. I felt for Jack with everything going on with him. I was really curious about Red and was not disappointed. Of course, I fell in love with the Wonderland portion of the book, I’m such a huge fan of Alice in Wonderland and this was what I really think of when I think of traveling through. Neverland was just the same way although I’m not really familiar with Peter Pan.
This is a great story and an excellent beginning to the series. I can’t wait to read more of this series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.
This is the beginning of a dark fairytale adventure that has a giant bean stalk growing in Jack’s back yard. Jack and Red go down the rabbit ho lei search of a way to get rid of the bean stalk and to keep the realms next to Relatively Normal from opening.
What follows is a journey through Wonderland and Neverland but this is no Disney journey. It is filled with dark characters that want to do some serious harm to jack and Red. I felt for Jack, he has never thought of Red as a real friend, but he is racked with guilt because he feels he conned her from going on this journey with him.
This was a good read. I felt for Jack with everything going on with him. I was really curious about Red and was not disappointed. Of course, I fell in love with the Wonderland portion of the book, I’m such a huge fan of Alice in Wonderland and this was what I really think of when I think of traveling through. Neverland was just the same way although I’m not really familiar with Peter Pan.
This is a great story and an excellent beginning to the series. I can’t wait to read more of this series.
I received a complimentary copy of this book. I voluntarily chose to read and post an honest review.
November 4, 2020
This was a fresh and exciting Young Adult novel. In the forefront was such a powerful main character in Jack.
The writing was superb. Everything from the setting and imagery to the flow and the timing of the suspense was well done. It was a novel that kept me engaged the entire way through.
Once I was in this novel I was immersed for sure. There is so much in it... Fantasy, Adventure, Action, Lots of Backstory to the new World.
Last thing, this book cover is absolutely beautiful!
The writing was superb. Everything from the setting and imagery to the flow and the timing of the suspense was well done. It was a novel that kept me engaged the entire way through.
Once I was in this novel I was immersed for sure. There is so much in it... Fantasy, Adventure, Action, Lots of Backstory to the new World.
Last thing, this book cover is absolutely beautiful!
October 9, 2019
This book is a fantastic modern retelling and mash-up of classic fairy tales and stories. I love the way the author pays homage to these tales while still making them feel fresh and new.
October 29, 2020
This book was so much fun to read! It was easy to picture everything in your head as you were reading because the childhood stories you know so well are woven into this larger story in such an interesting way. The pacing was awesome and made me want to keep reading to see what happened next. I'm excited to read book 2 now!
September 19, 2022
Of all the fairytale retellings I've read, I never though Jack and the Beanstalk would be one of them.
This book very much feels like it was written by an author who wanted to include "dark" elements to be 'mature' and 'edgy,' without actually committing to exploring any of them, or having any knowledge on the subject, for that matter. The main character struggles with drug addiction, and suicidal thoughts (as well as having a history of abuse), yet all of these seem to be thrown in simply to have a "broken/hopeless" main character for an arc to be shoved on to. None of it is explored with any depth, and these topics seem to be brushed aside equally by the characters and the author within the book.
I understand this was likely done with the goal of keeping this a clean, young adult story, but these are not topics that should be included lightly with low-effort exploration simply to make the story "more realistic."
The plot was both rushed through, and dragging. This author struggles with what a lot of new writers do; scenes are short, moved through too quickly, and there aren't enough of them to make up an entire plot line. (This is something really easy to fall into, especially if you have a history of writing individual scenes/short stories). However, once it became obvious that I wasn't going to connect with either of our protagonists, the Series of Events to Keep the Plot Moving felt increasingly pointless, and I ended up skimming by the end of the book.
Overall, I'm glad I read this book, because it's a really good case study of mistakes that are easy to make when new to the novel-writing craft, and the combination of magic systems was creative, if not grounded in character. I enjoyed learning from this book more than I enjoyed it in its own right.
This book very much feels like it was written by an author who wanted to include "dark" elements to be 'mature' and 'edgy,' without actually committing to exploring any of them, or having any knowledge on the subject, for that matter. The main character struggles with drug addiction, and suicidal thoughts (as well as having a history of abuse), yet all of these seem to be thrown in simply to have a "broken/hopeless" main character for an arc to be shoved on to. None of it is explored with any depth, and these topics seem to be brushed aside equally by the characters and the author within the book.
I understand this was likely done with the goal of keeping this a clean, young adult story, but these are not topics that should be included lightly with low-effort exploration simply to make the story "more realistic."
The plot was both rushed through, and dragging. This author struggles with what a lot of new writers do; scenes are short, moved through too quickly, and there aren't enough of them to make up an entire plot line. (This is something really easy to fall into, especially if you have a history of writing individual scenes/short stories). However, once it became obvious that I wasn't going to connect with either of our protagonists, the Series of Events to Keep the Plot Moving felt increasingly pointless, and I ended up skimming by the end of the book.
Overall, I'm glad I read this book, because it's a really good case study of mistakes that are easy to make when new to the novel-writing craft, and the combination of magic systems was creative, if not grounded in character. I enjoyed learning from this book more than I enjoyed it in its own right.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews