Wendy, Darling

Wendy, Darling #1

by A.C. Wise

A lush, feminist re-imagining on what happened to Wendy after Neverland, for fans of Circe and The Mere Wife.LOCUS AWARD FINALIST FOR BEST FIRST NOVELFind the second star from the right, and fly straight on ’til morning, all the way to Neverland, a children’s paradise with no rules, no adults, only endless adventure and enchanted forests – all led by the charismatic boy who will never grow old.  But Wendy Darling grew up. She has a husband and a young daughter called Jane, a life in London. But one night, after all these years, Peter Pan returns. Wendy finds him outside her daughter’s window, looking to claim a new mother for his Lost Boys. But instead of Wendy, he takes Jane.  Now a grown woman, a mother, a patient and a survivor, Wendy must follow Peter back to Neverland to rescue her daughter and finally face the darkness at the heart of the island…

Genres: Fantasy, Retellings, Fiction, Horror, Adult, Historical Fiction, LGBT

310 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 15, 2021

About the author

A.C. Wise's fiction has appeared in publications such as Uncanny, Shimmer, and Tor.com, among other places. She had two collections published with Lethe Press, and a novella published by Broken Eye Books. Her debut novel, Wendy, Darling, is out from Titan Books n June 2021, and a new collection, The Ghost Sequences, is forthcoming from Undertow Books in October 2021. Her work has won the Sunburst Award for Excellence in Canadian Literature of the Fantastic, as well as being a two-time Nebula finalist, a two-time Sunburst finalist, an Aurora finalist, and a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award. In addition to her fiction, she contributes review columns to the Book Smugglers and Apex Magazine, and has been a finalist for the Ignyte Award in the Critics category.

Reviews

[Nilufer Ozmekik · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m absolutely addicted to the Peter Pan universe! I think I’ve read more than five retellings this year alone. Stories about Peter, Wendy Darling, and the Lost Boys keep pulling me back into dreams of Neverland—dreams that often turn into nightmares. I have to admit, I’m always drawn to the darker, more morbid sides of the tale.

After reading this book, I’m pretty sure everyone will think twice about accepting a golden ticket to Neverland. It’s nothing like the place portrayed in earlier stories. This version is bleaker, darker, and far scarier.

It’s no longer a safe haven for Wendy and her brothers.

Curious about what happened to Wendy, John, and Michael? Wondering if they got their “happily ever after”? Spoiler: they didn’t. According to this story—which I strongly agree with—there’s no such thing as a bloody happily ever after in the real world.

Their journey is far from a fairy tale. Instead, it’s filled with PTSD, abuse, mental illness, and deeply personal drama.

Wendy grows into a badass adult and a loving mother. But when her long-lost childhood friend reappears and kidnaps her daughter, what would you do?

Yes, Wendy is forced to return to the place where her nightmares began—to save her daughter, Jane.

I really enjoyed the storytelling style, especially the use of dual timelines and the perspectives of both Wendy and Jane. The hidden monsters, psych wards, abuse, and inner fears of children scared the living daylights out of me!

I absolutely loved Wendy. She’s a survivor, a warrior—flawed, traumatized, but still fighting to stay strong after years of being controlled by oppressive forces.

The author takes us on an unforgettable journey: glimpses of Wendy’s first trip to Neverland, her return, and Jane’s own time there after her abduction.

This is a truly dark, wild, and terrifying version of the classic story. Not only is it one of the bleakest and most haunting retellings I’ve read, but it’s also a powerful psychological thriller with excellent character development.

I couldn’t put it down—I read it all in one sitting!

Highly recommended for die-hard fans of Neverland and readers unafraid to explore its shadowy side in a very different version of the tale.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for providing this amazing digital review copy in exchange for my honest thoughts.

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[☆Pelumi☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

OUT OF FIVE
ACTUAL RATING: 4.5
PLOT: 4.5
CHARACTERS: 4
WORLD BUILDING: 4

This feminist retelling of Peter pan is something i needed to read approximately 7 years ago, Thank you very much!
This was so so good, I can't even express it like wow! This was such an amazing read!! I knew it was going to be good but somehow the ending still blew my mind. This book is dark, scary and so wonderful!

To all those who like Peter pan, RIP because you can never see him the same way after reading this! As someone who felt indifferent to Peter Pan even when I was a kid, this made me like him a lot less. I feel like throwing this book into everybody's face and screaming read it! I could see the hard work the author put into this and it paid off because she has won me over.

The plot itself was straightforward. Wendy, Darling our dearly beloved who visited Neverland and had the time of her life playing mother there is back! But this time, she's older, she's an actual mother and she has a family of her own.
Her life is ok, I mean, she has a family now and is surrounded by love but then...Peter comes back and he needs a new Wendy to play mother and to love him. When Wendy's daughter is taken away, she must journey to Neverland a so-called dream filled land and face her past to save her child!

I won't lie, they were points when I grew frustrated because I felt things were too slow but even then, it felt right? intentional? I don't know, but I kind of liked the suspense and build up of frustration. IT JUST MADE THE ENDING MUCH MORE SATISFACTORY
Neverland is not as it appears to be in this retelling Are you one of those kids who dreamed of travelling there to have the time of your life?? Muahahaha, that's about to change.

When you read this, you really begin to question what you knew as a kid and what might be the actual reality of things. What's fact and what's folly?
Who is the real villain of the story?? Is it really Captain Hook??

Portraying real issues like PTSD, mental illness, abuse, misogyny and so on we really are engulfed into a different world where fairy tales are not as they appear to be. After all, there's always a balance to things. Good to equate the bad and bad to equate the good!

The characters were so well made and complex. We could see each of them playing a significant role in this book from Wendy to her brothers and her friends and then the lost boys on the Island. No one is truly left behind in development. In a book, I'm all about the characters and this one delivered quite well in that aspect so I stan!

The world building was perfect! Although, it literarily borrowed from the actual Peter pan story, I loved it nonetheless!
The story alternating between when Wendy was a kid to when she's all grown up really helped us to catch a glimpse from both sides and that just lures you into the story. And the multiple POVs from both mother and daughter was as cute as it was essential to the story.

The LGBTQ+ rep was not lost on me! Is it just me or did we get a polyamory rep in here?!! Damn! A.C really didn't hold back on this did she?

I loved the reading experience so so much and yes, I would recommend it to every single person especially those who watched Peter pan as a child!
There's no real happy ending in the real world and A.C Wise setout to prove that in this retelling. I mean, c'mon, the world is not all sweets and roses, is it?


Pre review thoughts
EDIT: Finished this and honestly, the author didn't give themselves much credit.
Retelling of Peter pan?? I think not!!

More like Coraline meets Peter pan but make it darker

I enjoyed this thoroughly...RTC tomorrow

Rep: Poly queer couple and asexual MC

I got an ARc you guys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the feminist retelling of Peter pan that we didn't know we needed

I've started and honestly, I'm so sucked in! The setting, the interactions, the absolute darkness...
Wow, I can't wait to finish!

[Charlotte May · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love a good retelling, I never get tired of them if done well.
And this was a really good one!

Wendy Darling is a grown up with a husband and daughter. She remembers her time in Neverland fondly, despite it sending her to an institution when she was younger.

When Jane is taken by Peter, Wendy must return to Neverland once more to retrieve her daughter.

Here Peter is the villain. He is callous and cruel, with no regard for anyone - especially those who speak against him.

I liked that Peter’s shadow was the dark part of himself, which is why he cut it away and it grew monstrous

The book switches between Wendy and Jane and also Wendy’s time in the mental institute. The separations were made clear and I didn’t find it confusing at all.

There were a lot of modern themes mixed in which I also enjoyed. It gave this well known story a new lease of life.

I will definitely be picking up more by this author!

[Janelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wendy, Darling is a fabulous, dark reimagining of the Peter Pan story and particularly Wendy’s life after Neverland. The story is told primarily in two timelines. The first starts in 1917, Wendy has never forgotten Neverland unlike her brothers, but no one believes her and she’s committed to St.Bernadettes, an asylum where treatments are harsh and dehumanising. The other timeline is in 1931, Wendy is now a mother of a daughter and she senses that Peter has returned and is upstairs in her daughter’s room.
I was immediately drawn into the story, there’s a foreboding atmosphere and it was hard to stop reading. I always enjoy a good retelling and A.C.Wise has created a wonderful continuation of the Neverland story exploring a whole range of ideas below the surface of the original book.

[Mel (Epic Reading) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peter Pan is not a cute fun boy who remains a child forever in this story. No instead he is the menacing, conniving, horrific character I’ve always thought he was. Even as a child reading the original story and watching the Disney movie I always felt something was a bit off about Peter. Then Disney came out with Hook and convinced me out of it for many years (cause great movie!!). However I’m much, much older (and wiser) now and know that anyone who steals children in the night (or convinces them to join them) is not good.

Wendy, Darling takes place after the original Peter Pan story. Wendy is grown-up with a husband and child. After spending some time in an asylum for women due to her ‘delusions’ about Neverland. Her brothers refuse to, or simple don’t, believe in or remember Neverland anymore.
I really enjoyed the plot of this novel. It’s well thought out, uses the characters (especially Tiger Lily) well, and comes to a satisfying (if ultimately ambiguous) ending. I could have done without some of the mother/daughter pieces (but that is likely only because I believe family is who you chose and not just someone who gave birth to you; so I’m often uncomfortable with the idea that your mom is every girls hero and best friend).

The only thing here that I didn’t love so much was the writing style itself. It wasn’t bad but it just felt like it was missing something; a bit more emotion perhaps? I also disliked the way we jumped around in time and space; sometimes with a header to warn but other time’s without. I think this would be more effective if each time a POV changed we had a header for who was our lead and where/when they were.

Overall, if you are interested in Peter Pan stories then you must read this one! If you want a story where Peter is a child figure whose good, move along. If you want anything about pirates or Hook, also move along (as it’s barely referenced). If you’re looking for a sincere mother/daughter relationship story and think there’s some darkness in Pan and Neverland then this is likely for you.

Please note: I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

[Dannii Elle · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Wendy Darling was a child she was taken from her bed at night and transferred to the wonderful world of Neverland, to live with Peter Pan and his Lost Boys. When she returned no-one believed her story. She became distrusted and feared and the only place for such a woman as her was behind bars. And so Wendy learned to keep her truths firmly locked inside of her.

Years passed in peace and relative happiness until, one night, Peter Pan returned. This time, he did not come to take his Wendy away again, not when she had performed the ultimate sin of growing up, and his sights were set on someone else, instead. This someone was Wendy's own daughter, Jane.

I am interested in any retelling but do sometimes find too much of the original remain inside the new version of it. By setting this story so many years later, Wise ensured this felt fresh and exciting throughout, whilst still retaining the whimsy and wonder present in its template.

One of my favourite aspects of this book was the brilliant conjuring of emotion related to setting. As Wendy traversed both this world and Neverland the reader became aware of every small alteration in mood and feeling that the place she was in evoked. Examples such as the one below, when Wendy was entering an asylum, really stood out to me:

“The air changes immediately, heavy and dim. Wendy feels the loss of the sky overhead like a stolen breath. She hadn’t realised how much comfort she had been drawing from that stretch of blue.”

And this one, when a grown Wendy returns to Neverland, for the first time :

“Her pulse falls out of time with the tide, beating a more complicated rhythm - half love, half fear… This is the place her heart belongs; this is the place that stole her daughter away.

The first time she was here, everything seemed uncomplicated. And now? Is this what growing up means, the thing that terrifies Peter so? As a child she only saw bright colours, pure sunlight, or utter dark. All of Neverland is built around those stark contrasts - the sun becoming the moon in the blink of an eye, the sharp demarcation between beach and forest, Hook and his pirates versus Peter and his boys.”

You can see, in both examples, how closely linked place and time were to both emotion and action. I loved witnessing this consistent mirroring, that featured throughout.

I’m also glad a confrontation of the racism of the original text was included. Adult Wendy makes a friend called Mary White Dog, who reminds her of Tiger Lily. The latter’s culture, race, and identity was assumed from her skin colour, and through Peter Pan’s assertions, but Wendy learns from Mary that much of it may have been false. Tiger Lily’s mistreatment continues to be explored as she later enters into the story.

Much of this book was a whimsical fantasy tale, but also so much of it focused on real-world problems, such as racism and misogyny, that feature just as prominently in Neverland as out of it. Wendy and Jane were two strong protagonists and their joint stories highlighted the atrocities that occurred to both of them and the women surrounding them. They were subdued for a while but struggled to fight back against their oppression. Wise let their voices by heard and they were unabashed at the noise they made.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to the author, A.C. Wise, and the publisher, Titan Books, for this opportunity.

[Annie Lilley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a particularly hard book to review. My love for it is too great. I didn't want to tell anyone else about it because how could anyone ever love this book the way I do?

This book is so special, so very perfect, it's like A.C. Wise came down from the heavens and handed this book to me.

Wendy's never forgotten Neverland and never stopped missing Peter. She's adjusted to life, but he's still in the back of her mind.
But when he does finally come back, it's not her he takes, but her daughter Jane.
Wendy has something no other mother of a Lost Boy has, the knowledge of where her child has gone and who has taken her, and she will get Jane back.
The story is woven from different perspectives, like a braid, twisting and turning.
Wendy, chasing her daughter, Jane, unsure and trying to get back home, and Wendy's time between Peter and the life she has now.

As much as I want to keep this book all to myself, even more than that I want everyone to read it. I want to scream to the world that every fantasy character has a mother, and she will tear apart the world to protect her child.

Thank you to the author for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Bandit · Rating 3 out of 5]

All children, except one, grow up. And it is that exceptional one that has become such a legendary emblem of defiant youth and invincible spirit of adventure. Or something much darker. Depends on your interpretation. A.C.Wise’s interpretation is definitely down the dark path, but this book isn’t so much about the ageless boy as it is about his once upon a time friend (or, as Wise casts her, victim) Wendy.
Wendy Darling did grow up. And didn’t have the easiest time of it. While her brothers promptly conditioned themselves to forget their time in Neverland, Wendy was never able to do that, which causes much family strife and resulted in her eventual lock up in an asylum…because that’s what was done with difficult women at the time. Eventually she got out, conditional to an arranged by her brother marriage and had a daughter of her own. And was happy enough until a boy, that boy, showed up and stole her daughter away. At which time Wendy went into proper mamabear mode, remembered her flying lessons and took off to Neverland to save young Jane from the clutches of the evil boy/man.
And evil is pretty much how Pan is presented through the entire novel. Not just general evil, but the oppressive MeToo era kind, for casting Wendy into the traditional mother role, for his expectations and manipulations. Most of the original story is recast in a light so sinister, you’d think it’s the original Nosferatu or something.
Which is actually…fine. It’s understandable. There is indeed a certain darkness in Neverland just below the superficial fun and games. I’m not sure it was intended that way, in fact personally I’d wager it wasn’t, but it can be easily interpreted as such, specifically from a modern/woke brain perspective. Brom, the writer and artist, understood that and utilized it perfectly in his darkly luminous retelling of the novel.
Wise didn’t want to just settle for horrortinged approach, she went for the feminist angle. Which worked to an extent, since women were treated (more) deplorably back in the day, especially women who challenged the societal norms, but there’s something about having such a beloved character (from one of my all time favorite stories no less) cast in this role of a vile oppressor that didn’t really sing for me.
And there’s a lot here about oppression. The title itself (this is quite clever, actually) reflects how patronizing calling someone darling can be. Wherein our intrepid protagonist is very proud of being a Darling, she’s never happy about being darling. And I suppose babe/baby/bae was out of the question for the times and culture or she’s take that on too.
Pan can be easily accused of being cruel, but his version of it was always more along the lines of the unthinking callous variety of arrogant youth, not the evil patriarch kind. And so all Wise tries to make those shoes fit, it just doesn’t quite work. In fact, one might argue her own brothers, one through control and one through indifference and both through denial might have harmed Wendy more than a boy who once taught her to fly.
Wise’s is a hyperwoke perspective, she infuses modern sexuality, awareness and ideas into her narrative, Wendy’s marriage is most unconventional in real life as it was in Neverland, and she’s all about fighting the power once she gets back to Neverland, but in the end of the day the author’s messages come through as way too heavyhanded and nowhere near exciting or original enough to compete with the magic of Neverland, real or Wise’s version thereof. The Neverland always wins. The timeless appeal of timelessness simply cannot be denied.
Outside of the fact that the author essentially utilizes one of my favorite stories as a message delivery platform, I also didn’t really love the writing. And I’ve read Wise before and enjoyed it, but this book, while technically perfectly decent, just seemed so overwritten. The approach to narrative was on a very microscale and it was (and this is as good as I can describe it) aggressively emotional and emotive. All the innards on the outside. Elaborately, exhaustively, exhaustingly so. Arguably appropriate for feminist fiction, but it did nothing for pacing and overall dynamism of the story.
But otherwise (and I know that’s a huge but, but still) it was a pretty interesting read. Possibly because I love Neverland so much, any fictional revisit is fun, possibly because the fan of classic children’s tales and a fan of scary stories in me like the marriage of the genres. I didn’t love the book, that much is obvious by now, but it made for an intriguing, somewhat frustrating, but fairly entertaining read. Thanks Netgalley.

This and more at https://advancetheplot.weebly.com/

[Courtney ✌ · Rating 3 out of 5]

A big thank you to NetGalley and Titan Books for an e-arc of Wendy, Darling in exchange for an honest review!

[Milliner · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ngl, I picked this book up in a bookstore, without any prior knowledge of it, and simply based on its promised premise and pretty cover. I don’t think I’ll do that again.

Simply put, the story is a cool idea that was executed in ways that did not sit well with me. Overall, it’s a retelling of Peter Pan, that is supposed to be darker, grittier and more empowering. And boy did I wish it would do just that. My main annoyance stems from the endless paragraphs of reminiscence. Yes, we all know the story of Peter Pan. There is no need to repeat the story nostalgically in every damn chapter. Yes, we know your struggles, Wendy, there is no need to remind us of your three main worries on every second page. I kid you not when I say that you can literally skip a page or two and still pick up where the plot left off.
Secondly, this story did not seem like a dark retelling to me. Neither was the “sinister” truth about Peter anything mind blowing or creepy. This whole book felt more like a diary entry of a very anxious and confused Wendy.

That’s all I’m going to say about a book that I had to force myself to finish (although I skipped and skimmed so much that I probably only thoroughly read 60% of it). Try a sample of it, and if it’s not for you right off the bat, don’t continue.

[Scarlett Readz and Runz....Through Novel Time & Distance · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 stars

“Anger became her habit, Neverland her defense.”

The story of Peter Pan and Wendy is a classic that originated from the play Peter Pan, The Boy Who Wouldn’t Grow Up by Scottish Playwright J.M. Barrie, who is said to have written about the character of Peter (most likely) based on his older brother David, who died in an ice-skating accident the day before his 14th birthday. The play premiered in 1904 followed by the first written edition of that story as Peter and Wendy in 1911.

I grew up loving Disney’s Peter Pan in form of the movie from 1953 as well as the book with all the other familiar characters and illustrations that hold a place with me as one of my most vivid memories and stories I grew up with among a few others. This may explain my curiosity for retellings and/or alternate endings of long-loved classics today. Anything about Peter Pan’s character and Neverland is something I’m happy to read and experience.

Wendy, Darling is unlike any other Peter Pan story I have ever read or heard of. It isn’t a retelling nor is it is a continuation, alternate ending, or prequel to the original, but one that is wedged in the timeline after Wendy returns from Neverland and the popular movie Hook. It reveals some treacherous dark times for Wendy and grim twists and secrets of Neverland never explored before.

This story is told alternately between two pov’s, Wendy and her daughter Jane and it begins with adult Wendy witnessing her daughter Jane being taken by Peter from her bed one night while she watches everything unfold helplessly and unable to follow Peter and Jane into the night sky. From here, it proceeds to split up the experiences of the characters and adding another timeline for Wendy about her past and experiences in Neverland.

While young Jane meets the lost boys in Neverland, she experiences the same and strange amnesia as all the lost boys unable to remember her name. Peter introduces her as the new mother and she is expected to pick up the pieces that mothers always have done such as cooking for the boys, telling them stories, and mending their wounds and little hearts from make-belief combat. Jane has an idea that something isn’t right but can’t put her finger on what exactly it is. She takes initiative to walk beyond the places on the island no lost boy is supposed to venture and discovers some terribly dark things she cannot explain or understand.

In the meantime, Wendy’s pov talks about her time after her return from Neverland and how all the adults never believed any of her stories and ridiculed her delusional. She is forced to move into a sanatorium for the insane in which she spends a few, horrible years.

“Tears roll silently down Wendy’s cheeks as the razor scrapes across her scalp. Shame fills her; it’s a vain thing to cry over.“

Instances like these are told over the greater part of the novel and it makes for a rather tragically sad story versus one of adventure and happiness. Wendy’s feelings and memories are explored vastly into dark depths, from cruel methods at the sanatorium to friendships, her relationship to her brothers, losing her parents and then finding herself afterwards in an arranged marriage.

“Loving something means having something to lose. It’s the truth Wendy has known since she lost Neverland since Michael went to war and came home with ghosts in his eyes since their parents boarded a ship doomed to sink.”

When Wendy’s and Jane’s storyline finally close in on Neverland, the focus shifts to the mysteries now found on the island. As mother and daughter find their way towards each other, Wendy slowly realizes all the things that are wrong with Neverland and together with Tiger Lily, heads into the darkness to save Jane from the evil within.

“Nothing can die in Neverland. Peter told her so. But here is the skull, incontrovertible, her own truth against Peter’s, and she’s done taking other people's word for how the world functions. “
“Ghosts. The word comes unbidden. Neverland was never haunted before, but there was never death here either.“

This certainly made for the most interesting part of the novel. I had not thought in such dark terms towards Neverland and its inhabitants, but it is a great idea explored and utilized by the author in this novel. Upon talking this over with someone who has not read Wendy, Darling yet but is an equal fan of Peter Pan, brainstorming ensued, and either I gave a fantastic recap, or, the more likely and accurate scenario is, that these new story elements were invented with careful intent and wedged into all the existing parts we know from previous Peter Pan versions/stories today.

Though I feel the novel suffered under so much tragedy of Wendy’s timeline and a lack of happy adventures, the character explorations and family circumstances around her are worthwhile to learn about. With some new revelations towards the novel’s end about Peter and the island, I am thinking of rewatching the movies Peter Pan and Hook to mesh up my newly gained knowledge from C. S. Wise’s Wendy, Darling to foreshadow in parts these new ideas if possible.
If this has left you curious, check out this island story with a new, darker take.

Happy Reading!

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. Thank you.

More of my reviews here:
Through Novel Time & Distance
The Fantasy Hive

[Nerdy Werewolf]

I wanted very badly to be swept away by this story, but I made it about 40% and decided to set it aside for the moment.

I'm sure my expectations have something to do with this; I was hoping for something new. As it is, I've read Brom's The Child Thief and it kind of nailed the maybe-evil Peter Pan thing.

SO! This story read a lot like women's fiction in that we get lots of thoughts and feelings, but somehow, they didn't make me care more about what happened to these people? Once I realized that, I had to put it down. Maybe others will have better luck than me!

[Lata · Rating 4 out of 5]

I should state up front that I disliked “Peter Pan” by J.M. Barrie. There were some good ideas within the story, but there was also a huge amount of racism and misogyny, which severely detracted from the story.
This book by A.C. Wise goes a long way to addressing things that were wrong with the original, plus also telling the story of a woman who’d lived through A LOT after returning from a magical world. At the book's open, we see Wendy married to a kind husband, Ned. They have a daughter, Jane, and a dear friend, Mary.

Then, Peter Pan crashes back into Wendy's life, snatches up Jane and flies off to Neverland. Wendy doesn't sit around and wait for someone else to fix things. Instead, she heads out after the pair to rescue Jane.

Wendy and Jane experience a Neverland that is quite different from the one Wendy remembers. There are horrors and destruction, and many examples of Peter's capricious cruelty and mercurial temper.

A.C. Wise’s take on "Peter Pan" fills in Wendy’s life post-Neverland, from her childhood onward. It’s not the happy time one would have expected after all the siblings’ adventures. Instead of bonding over their experiences in Neverland, the memories prove to be divisive in the extreme, with Wendy holding onto her memories desperately, and demanding the boys retain the wonder of their time away, while the brothers forgot the longer they were back in London. Add in family and personal trauma, grief, loneliness, and mental health issues.

Wise moves back and forth in Wendy’s memories, from moments in Neverland in both her past and present, and how she becomes the person we see at the beginning of the book, including a stint in an asylum. If Neverland isn’t horror enough, early 20th century mental health medical practices (i.e. abuse) add greater pathos to Wendy’s story.

The author presents us with a grown Wendy who is a flawed person, insisting on the truth of her experiences. Wise also shows us the horrors of Neverland and the always-young Peter. Together, these elements make this an interesting story. It’s a wiser and more honest woman who returns to London at the end of the book. Wendy’s journey is compelling reading, and left me feeling satisfied with Wise’s portrayal of a person dealing with a profound and disturbing experiences.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for this ARC in exchange for a review.

[Lexi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick Look:

🆗 Peter Pan Adaptation
🆗 Feminist themes
🆗Mental Illness rep
👍 Dark/horror elements
🆗 Spooky twists
👍 Poly/queer ace rep

Wendy Darling is yet another dark adult Peter Pan retelling that centers around a Wendy who has spent years in an asylum and now is coping with her regular life. She is married with a daughter, and still longs for Neverland. One day Peter comes back to her, only to take her daughter Jane. The plot follows both Wendy and Jane as Wendy tries to save her daughter.

I'm starting to think the perfect Peter Pan adaptation is in my head. A ton have come out recently and all of them seem to follow this same premise: Wendy is crazy or was perceived to be. Wendy misses Neverland. Wendy is traumatized and nobody believes her. It's a bit weird to "Alice" Wendy- a character defined by her pragmatism and logical behavior. It was Wendy who wanted to go home. It was Wendy who was comfortable with growing up. A lot of these adaptations really go an interesting direction with her character- one that doesn't always work.

On the positive side, her relationship with her daughter Jane was pretty cool, as well as the poly ace romance within the book. The family dynamics were handled very well.

The book also goes the "Dark Pan" route which is easily my favorite way to adapt the story. Wendy Darling has some significant similarities to Never Never by Brianna Shrum and Lost Boy by Christina Henry. Both books handle a dark version of the Pan story significantly better, so I strongly recommend those if you try this one and are looking for more.

That being said, there were some really cool horror elements to the story I did have fun with. The scary Peter Pan moments were genuinely stressful to read. Jane's chapters had a really strong element of tension to them and were easily the strongest. Wendy's chapters, especially her asylum flashbacks, were a super mixed bag. They were often repetitive and could be boring at times.

The book attempts to establish Wendy's life outside of Neverland, introducing original characters that are supposed to be meaningful to her. For me, I found these moments much less interesting until later on.

Wendy's relationship with Tiger Lilly and Peter were two of the cooler parts of her plotline, and a good amount of time was also spent on that, which I loved.

I think my biggest issue with Wendy Darling is that if you are going to try something that has been done before, you really need to nail it. There were enough slow and unengaging parts of this book that couldn't make up for the hi-lights, but when I was having a good time, I was having a VERY good time.

[Sasha ★ · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book came so close to being good, only for the second half to devolve into this clumsy attempt at feminism and reworking the story that fell so painfully flat.

The exploration of the psychological implications of what happened to Wendy, John and Michael after they return from Neverland is an interesting one - how can you go back to normal life after seeing a fantastical world like that? Wendy growing estranged from her brothers as Michael returns from World War One with PTSD and John being forced to take on all responsibility as the oldest son is genuinely interesting and Wendy being consigned to a mental institution seemed appropriately dark and gothic to the story. The writing is pretty in places and you can clearly pictures the scenes of the images the author wants to convey. It's just a shame halfway through the book some extremely unsubtle social commentary gets repeatedly stuffed down the reader's throat and ruins the fantastical elements of the book.

The author turns Peter Pan, which is a story about childhood and growing up and so on, into a symbol of the patriarchy and Wendy is now a feminist icon and it's so groan-worthy. Newflash, A.C. Wise, but writing Peter Pan as the villain of the story is not interesting, clever or subversive, it's boring and trite. Plenty of other authors have done it before and it never works. Peter Pan is not evil, he's just the symbol of childhood incarnate, which is in turn cruel and innocent. The bullshit climax of the book of Wendy and Tiger Lily teaming up to defeat Peter, who was the big bad all along, is just so trite and gross, adult women referring to a child as a monster. I skimmed the entire climax because it was so boring and trying so hard to be woke and all "women supporting women!" and men treating girls like playthings and whatnot. Not to mention she turns Wendy into some kind of pseudo-lesbian who marries her husband out of convenience, but her husband is gay and she's in this weird poly relationship with her husband and some annoying woman called Mary, except she doesn't love Mary like that. Huh?

Let me also say that I hated how the author not only introduces an OC of hers called Mary, a woman Wendy meets in the asylum and befriends, then decides to take home with her as their housekeeper, but she also reinvents Wendy and Tiger Lily's relationship so that they were suddenly best friends in Neverland. What? No they weren't! I'll grant you I can understand wanting to rework their canon relationship of being rivals for Peter's attention, but she just kind of tells us Wendy and Tiger Lily spent all this time together in Neverland and it seemed so stupid and contrived. Wendy was only in Neverland a short time and Tiger Lily had other children from her tribe to play with, why the hell would they be so close? When would they have found all this time to sneak off and braid each other's hair? Why would they even be friends except for the fact they are girls? Also it was really confusing because Mary and Tiger Lily basically behave like the same person and Wendy even mistakes Mary for Tiger Lily when she first enters the asylum, so what was the point of Mary if Tiger Lily already served the same role in the story? It's like she needed to have two Native American sidekicks for Wendy in both Neverland and the real world or something. Mary's character just exists to be moral support and be romantically teased with Wendy (though it's unclear if Mary loves Wendy and Wendy says some vague nonsense about "not being built for that kind of love") and that's it - it makes her inclusion in the story very boring and whacks you in the face with how progressive the author wants you to think she is, but Mary's just a lame addition and brings nothing to the story.

Also I couldn't help but notice everyone else in Neverland - Captain Hook, Smee, Tinkerbell, etc, all were not in this story and the only reason I can think of is that they would spoil the narrative the author is trying to go for, she can't write Peter as the villain if Captain Hook and the pirates are there and she can't somehow rework Tinkerbell from being her iconically vengeful, petty, spiteful self into being besties with Wendy, so she's written out of the plot. In fact, there isn't a single mention of Tinkerbell anywhere and it's not the first time I've read an adult retelling of Peter Pan where the female author chooses to ignore her. Kind of ruins your attempts to be feminist when all other women serve to do nothing but prop up Wendy and the one girl who wouldn't do that and would always be on Peter's side is conspicuously absent.

I don't have much to say about Jane because again, she just serves as an object to make Wendy return to Neverland and whinge about Peter Pan some more. She behaves basically exactly the same as Wendy but with a few throwaway likes about how she wants to be a scientist (somehow, I doubt a ten-year-old girl in the fifties would be encouraged to believe she could do that, but nevermind) and her "sensible" nature getting confused by the random nature of Neverland. Honestly, Wendy and Jane's relationship in the Disney movie is way more interesting and I always kind of liked that Jane's sceptical nature was a parallel to Mr. Darling, Wendy's father in the original Peter Pan story, but Wendy's parents get killed off unceremoniously at the beginning so all Jane does is cling to her "Mama" the whole time.

So disappointing - a great opening couple of chapters and then it just stops working after that. This is definitely not a book to believe in.

[Ali Bunke · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this dark tale of what followed after we left Neverland, Wendy, Darling lifts the curtain of innocence. The story begins years later, Wendy is now a mother herself to a daughter, Jane. In shock, Wendy watches as Peter Pan returns to takes Jane away, mistaking her for Wendy.

Not only has Wendy grown up, but she has also survived! While her brothers, John and Michael, forgot Neverland, Wendy never did. Drawing on the strength she has gained in the years following her return she knows that she must return to Neverland to bring her daughter home.

Once I understood that this was a darker story of Peter and Neverland, I was completely engrossed. I especially enjoyed how the women in the story were empowered.

Thank you, NetGalley for the eArc

[Estíbaliz Montero Iniesta · Rating 3 out of 5]

3’5⭐YOUTUBE / INSTAGRAM

Thank you very much to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC of this book (all opinions are my own).

Here we have a lush, dark and sometimes scary Peter Pan retelling. Because Neverland might not be exactly as Wendy remembers, and what happens when her old childhood adventure threatens her current adult life, her daughter?

I love seeing a retelling in which Wendy is an adult, because Peter Pan is ultimately a story about childhood, so what happens when you add an adult to the mixture?

Here we have two perspectives: Jane’s (Wendy’s daughter), who is kidnapped by Peter and brought to Neverland against her will, and Wendy’s, that has to face her past in order to rescue her daughter. Also, Wendy’s perspective is divided between the present (1931) and the past (1917), when she was in an asylum after coming back from Neverland. Her brothers forgot about Neverland, dismissing it as make-believe stories, but she clung to her childhood adventure even when she was “too old” for it.

I must admit the asylum bits were very interesting parts. They were not easy, because she endured some harsh and dehumanizing treatments. But the relationship she forges with Mary, another intern, is really enriching.

Neverland, on the other hand, was interesting but in a different way. Once again (because it happens in many retellings), Peter is portrayed as almost a villain, cruel, selfish and manipulative. And it shows in the way he treats Neverland and in the way he treats the Lost Boys. Some passages even reminded me of Lord of the flies, I think that’ll give you an idea of how things are there.

I also enjoyed the fact that this retelling introduces an aromantic character, and some issues about misogyny and racism. It also didn’t go the way I expected with Wendy’s husband, which was a nice surprise and a change for once.

I found Peter's “backstory” interesting, but I would have needed more details. And the same with the ending (where that backstory came into play): it felt way too rushed. More explanations were needed in order for everything to make perfect sense.

I liked this book, it is beautifully written. It doesn’t reach my top favorite Peter Pan retellings just because I’m not that big of a fan of darker stories, but it’s a very interesting approach to this beloved story.

[Eliott]

Thank you so much to Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC of this book!

DNF at 30%

Wendy, Darling follows Wendy as our main character after she has left Neverland and grown up in the very harsh realities of our world. Wendy still believes in the magic of Neverland, even after being committed to a mental institution, growing up, and having a daughter of her own. She believes Neverland is behind her, until one night Peter Pan, still the same child he was all those years ago, comes into her home and takes her child from her. Since no one else would ever believe what really happened, it is up to Wendy to take to the sky once more to save her child, and discovers the sinister secrets that Neverland holds.

Unfortunately Wendy, Darling was a DNF for me. I got about 30% of the way through but could not get through more. I didn't find the plot to be compelling, the characters all felt very one-note to me, and the way it was written was difficult for me to follow and had a kind of non-sensical whimsy to it. I found that there was a lot of rambling on about things that were not important, which made it frustrating to try and piece together what the actual plot was in the midst of all the nonsense of Neverland. I do think that kind of whimsy does well with a story that takes in Neverland, so I don't think it was necessarily a bad thing, it just was not for me. But for those who love the world of Peter Pan and all the chaos that comes with it, then I can absolutely see this being a fantastic read for them!

[Alaina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Wendy, Darling was such a fun Peter Pan retelling book. Well maybe fun isn't the right word but I really enjoyed the darker parts of Neverland this time around. Especially since fall is here and I'm in love with all things spooky.

Wendy is grown up now and honestly her life after Neverland wasn't the same as it was before she went. I didn't like how her brothers treated her and I also feel bad because I don't like her father in law either. So when her daughter, Jane, gets kidnapped by Peter. Well, she isn't taking that one bit. She's going to make her way back to Neverland to save her and take down Peter.

Back at Neverland, things are sort of how we grew up with. Peter and the lost boys. "Wendy" being the mother and taking care of them. As for the eating dirt and stones? Blegh - hard pass. I never would have known that was happening either until Jane stopped eating and drinking whatever Peter gave her. It helped and we saw all sorts of things we didn't before.

Each dark corner filled with twists kept this a page turner for me. I honestly enjoyed this so freaking much and need more retellings in my future. Especially if it's about Peter Pan or Neverland!

I'm definitely happy that I got the chance to dive into this book and look forward to next one this author writes!

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hated the ending. Would have been a 3 star but I’m subtracting an extra star for the shocking lack of Tinkerbell. Wtf.

[Maritina Mela · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75/5

After Wendy and her brothers returned from Neverland, things haven't been going well for her.
Her brothers have forgotten all of their adventures and her being the only one who can remember makes everyone fear for her mental state.
As a teen, her parents are among the victims of the Titanic and a few years later, her brother Michael enlists in the army, to fight in World War I, which lefts him a broken man, struggling with his demons.

The only thing that makes her feel better is the memory of Wonderland and the hope that one day she will be able to go back.
She even tries to make her brothers remember that time of their lives, something that causes multiple fights and ultimately leads John to lock her away in an insane asylum.

Inside the asylum, she is treated horribly by the doctors and the staff and her only solace is another patient, a woman called Mary, who looks exactly like Wendy's old friend, Tiger Lily.
As a result of the mistreatment there, Wendy clings to her memories as a way to survive, only to realize that it is because of Wonderland that she is locked here and Peter isn't coming back.

Jumping ahead a few years later, Wendy is now married to a man named Ned. She also has a daughter named Jane and has managed to free her friend Mary from the asylum as well.
She is relatively happy and loves her new family very much, but she still can't help but feel like her relationship with her brothers isn't fully fixed. She has left Neverland in her past, although she still worries that one day Ned and his family will find out the reason why she was locked away.

Neverland comes back in her life though in a way she never expected.

One night, while she enters her daughter's room, she finds that someone has broken in and is about to take Jane away. And that someone is no one else by Peter Pan himself.

After Jane's abduction, Wendy is determined to save her daughter and bring her back home. And not only that, but this time, she is going to defeat Peter once and for all.

My thoughts.

I am not going to lie, this was a very dificult book for me to get through.
Not because it is awfully written or because I am incredibly attached to the source material and any change upon it irks me.
It was hard for me to get through because there is alway too much going on. That and the fact that the e-book form was literally an endless wall of text.

Perhaps not unsurprisingly, this book tackles various different topics, such as feelings of abandonment, abuse by medical staff, the descrimination against people of color, PTSD, death and marrying someone of the opposite sex despite not being attracted to said sex.
And while it doesn't do a bad job at representing these, I still kind of feel like if some of these things were not part of the story, there would be time left for the rest of them to be explored properly.

The prose and the characters were nicely written and in a way that made you sympathize with them. I am going to admit though, that I prefered seeing Jane's point of view of Neverland. Because she doesn't even want to be there, so she doesn't see the place as paradise itself and it is through her that we learn about Peter committing atrocities. Seeing her mother returning to Neverland and finding it a shadow of its former self, was also something intriguing, especially when we meet Tiger Lily, but it poses this question: Why did Wendy fall in love with that place? Why did she even like Peter? We know that she has now fallen out of love with it because she blames it for her being locked in the asylum, but the other questions remain unanswered.

Also, since I just mentioned it, I liked how in this retelling we actually see Peter being a little piece of shit. I am not gonna mention any names, but around this time last year, I was reading another Peter Pan retelling where Peter was supposed to be the villain. Only in that book, he barely did anything before the main character decided to go up against him (and after that, he contributed to the main character losing his hand and eventually dying.)
Here, we see what happens to the boys who dare question his authority. At first, everything is just suggested but the truth is finally revealed to Jane by one of the Lost Boys.

Peter is even given an origin story, as told by Tiger Lily to Wendy. He is some kind of an ancient being who tore himself in two and locked his shadow in a deep cave, while his other half is the boy we all know. The shadow Wendy sewed on him back in the day, wasn't even his. It was the shadow of a boy he had killed and the only way to defeat him is to sew his true shadow back on him. My feelings in regards to that story are a bit lukewarm, and to be honest, that was the point in the book where I was getting strong It vibes. But what came as a twist to me, was what happened after he was defeated. That part was indeed heartbreaking.


While I enjoyed most of the stuff in this book, besides the fact that there were way too many things going on and the backstory of Peter, I also had some complains and most of them have to do with the events of the story and the contradictions that some of them cause.

For example, we are shown that after Wendy returned from Neverland, she would try to fly, something that ended with her hurting herself. Same thing happens later on in the book where she tries to fly away from the asylum. So we know for a fact that Wendy cannot fly without Peter Pan and Tinkerbell's assistance. Then how did she manage to fly and get herself to Neverland when she realized that Jane was taken?

Also, upon arrival to Neverland and seeing the skeletons of the mermaids, Wendy said that 'nothing ever dies in Neverland' which comes to direct contrast with the original, in which Hook was killed and in the end of the book it is also mentioned that Tinkerbell has passed away, even though Peter is too self-absorbed to notice.

Finally, there seems to be some confusion on Mary's race. Wendy admits that she is the spitting image of Tiger Lily who is Indian (Native American) and then goes on to ask her is she is Indian (from India). Unless I have some of the facts mixed up, this exchange doesn't make any sense and in fact, makes the author seem a bit ignorant if you ask me.

Plus, I still want to know, what the author meant when she said that "Wendy would try for years to make her brothers remember Neverland" something that would lead to big fights between her, Michael and John and why having the main heroine pressuring her younger brother, who clearly suffers from PTSD after fighting in the war, into remembering that place, seemed like a good idea, because to me it was a low moment for Wendy.

Generally speaking, this was an enjoyable read, but not without its flaws.
The family dynamics are decent and the villain is effective and creepy.
I'd like to read more from the author someday.

If you made it this far, congratulations!
'Til next time, take care :) :) :)

I received a free e-book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Kristin Sledge · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 stars rounded down, a twisted new take on Peter and Neverland years after his first visit. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Wendy Darling grants readers a look into what Grown Up Wendy would do to get her daughter back. Peter returns for Wendy, but upon realizing that she is grown up, he takes her daughter, Jane, and attempts to rebrand her as a new Wendy. With flashbacks at Wendy's past and trials dealing with Neverland after returning home the first time, this is a grown up look at power and what we keep in the shadows to appear powerful.

I truly enjoyed this sequel to the story of Peter and Wendy. It was really interesting seeing Peter through a grown adult's eyes as well as his ability to shape Neverland into what he wants. The author revisits many of the characters from the original story, but the one thing I found missing was Tinkerbell. No pixie dust was a bit of a buzzkill for me, but not enough that it affected the overall story. Wendy's time in an asylum was horrific but necessary. It was where she learned how to be resourceful when it comes to people attempting to force their will upon you.

4.25 stars from me, rounded down to 4. I recommend this for readers who love fairy tale retellings or those who are looking to learn more about what makes Neverland magical. Age range is 14+ due to some violence.

[Kahlia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have a lot of complicated thoughts about this book, and they all boil down to: I think this is a fascinating story, but a really poor reimagining of Peter Pan.

Wendy, Darling is not really a retelling, but an additional story, set somewhere between the events of the original Peter Pan and Hook, the Robin Williams movie about a version of Peter Pan that really does grow up (you don’t need to have seen the latter to read this book). Broadly, in Wise’s version, Wendy grew up, got married and had a child, and is forced to revisit Neverland in order to save her daughter from Pan’s clutches.

However, it tells a much darker story than the original J.M. Barrie story, about what it actually means for someone to refuse to be an adult – and therefore take responsibility for the consequences of their actions – and how terrifying it is that Neverland is built on the backs of children effectively stolen away from their parents. It also takes a huge swing at the racism and misogyny inherent in earlier iterations of the books, including the idea that Wendy, as a woman, must mother the Lost Boys, as well as the caricicatures of Native Americans. Give us more retellings that poke at racist but otherwise beloved stories, please and thanks.

The story is split between three perspectives: Wendy in the present, in search of her daughter; Wendy in the past, as we learn that she was institutionalised by her brothers after returning from Neverland, for her inability to let the story go; and Jane, Wendy’s daughter, after she is kidnapped by Pan and forced to fight her way out of the strange new world she finds herself in. The middle story is compelling; there is a real gothic element to it as Wendy finds herself trapped and alone, with no way of processing her memories, trying desparately to convince others she’s not crazy even as she starts to wonder if Neverland was the utopia she thought it was while there. There’s also a lot of interesting themes here around processing of trauma (and remembering versus forgetting as different but equally legitmate ways of doing so), and the limited options for women in post-War England, where Wendy’s only option for redemption is seemingly to be coerced into a marriage she’s not sure she wants. (Without spoilers, there is ace/aro rep in this book which made my ace heart very happy, even if it somewhat fell towards the wayside towards the end).

The other two perspectives are less compelling, mostly because Jane feels indistinguishable from pretty much every child protagonist ever, but it feels like the author wanted people to engage the most with Wendy in the past, so I didn’t mind this too much. The story as a whole is also a bit too much at points: Wendy gets abused, institutionalised, forced into marriage and then has her daughter kidnapped, and there were occasions where I was begging for a moment or two of lighthearted brevity. For those into dark retellings, this may be less of a problem – it’s certaintly a personal preference on my account.

But the reason Wendy, Darling didn’t always work for me is that the book expects you to be fully engaged with the original Peter Pan story while also skewering it. Peter is a barely a character in Wendy’s story; we mostly see him through flashbacks as she processes his real motivations and the consequences of his actions, and he feels shadowy, half-formed at best. Scenes from the original Peter Pan are often referenced obliquely. That wouldn’t be a big deal, except that it left the reader filling in the gaps from the original stories, which meant trying to reconcile the fun character of my childhood with the ominous spectre that is this Peter, and it felt incongruous. Though, I should note that Peter does play a more active role in Jane’s story, and he’s legitimately terrifying in his subtle manipulation of the Lost Boys, even if he didn’t quite feel like a version of Peter I recognised (and maybe that’s the point and I should let go of my childhood nostalgia too). Similarly, the attempts to point out the racism in the original aren’t as strong as they could be, because we don’t get to relive the original scenes with Hook and the Indian tribes, meaning I couldn’t remember exactly how bad things were in the films, and therefore really grapple with the changes Wise made.

I am really interested to see what Wise writes next; Wendy, Darling was an evocative story and I’d love to see what they could do with some original gothic or dark fantasy ideas, but I wasn’t sold on it as a retelling of Peter Pan.

Note: I received an ARC from Titan Books. Wendy, Darling was released on 1 June 2021.

This review is also available @firstbreathsreviews.

[megan]

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 55%

I requested this on Netgalley on a whim, because I thought the premise seemed intriguing and a dark Peter Pan retelling sounded like something I would love.

I was really, really wrong.

Maybe I could have pushed through and finished this, but I know I wouldn’t have liked it, and at the point I stopped at, I was just skimming pages and hoping I would get to a part that actually captured my interest.

This book isn’t inherently bad. It’s just not something I was enjoying or one I think I would have enjoyed had I finished it. I don’t want to go too much into detail about why exactly I didn’t like it because I didn’t even finish it, but also because the book just came out a couple days ago.

Maybe I’ll pick it up again some other time, but probably not.

[Wren · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'll be honest, this book was around three stars for most of the book despite the flaws I picked up in it until the anticlimactic ending that made the story fizzle out for me. I did really like Wendy's relationship with Mary, and it was by far my favorite part of the whole book, but there were so many parts that dragged and needed another round of editing to tighten the story up.

Other things that I liked about this book was Wendy's time in the hospital in general, even if it was dark and fairly depressing. Peter and Neverland had their moments of being creepy in a fun way, especially with Jane being influenced by being on the island. It also gets points for working around the racist depictions of indigenous people in the original tale.

My big problem with this book is that for a premise that had all the potential to be suspenseful and scary, it ended up being weirdly lackluster and without much action going on at all. More than once I caught myself thinking, "Wendy, you're looking for your kidnapped daughter, why are you standing around reminiscing about Neverland for the fifth time?" It felt overly repetitive and circular without actually bringing anything new to the table. So much of Wendy and Jane's time on Neverland seemed to be them standing around thinking about things until suddenly the book knows it needs to end, and we're brought to the big discovery moment with Peter.

With Peter, the book makes it clear from the first chapter that he's evil and there's really no mystery to be found. Any questions about what's going on with him and Neverland doesn't get clarified at all by the ending. What happens to Neverland? Why is Peter the way he is, beyond the shadow that never gets fully explained? What about the other lost boys besides Timothy? The answer is apparently: ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I think this story was trying to go for a creepy open-ended vibe, but it fell flat with being emotionally effective and instead felt rushed and half-baked.

I was really intrigued by the summary of this book and was hoping for a great female focused story about Neverland that featured an evil Peter, but there wasn't enough plot development and suspense to make it rise above being "okay" for me. If you're interested in a trying out a different evil Peter story (that's more focused around male characters) I'd recommend Lost Boy by Christina Henry.

[Geertje ~ witchybookmom · Rating 2 out of 5]

eh

[steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

In order to like this book, you have to accept the premise that there is something dark and terrifying at the heart of Neverland and that Peter Pan is not the childish and naive boy he pretends to be. Once you get past that hurdle, you are then free to enjoy the book.

I never read Peter Pan as a child but I have seen both the Disney animated movie and the movie with Robin Williams so I am familiar with its concept. That said, even knowing this was a dark fantasy AU it was still odd to read Peter as sinister/shady and it took me awhile to get into the book. However I think the author did a great job of showing all the different time periods and tying everything together. Wendy was AMAZING as usual. I was really impressed with her and her love for her daughter. It carried the whole book.

Solid 3.5 stars

[Alissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

“As a woman, what could she choose? Only marriage, only motherhood, and she’d had enough of playing mother in Neverland.”

Honestly this was the creepy, horror-infused, feminist lens Peter Pan retelling i didnt know i needed. The sinister aspects of Neverland and the critique of how women were (and are) treated by society was masterfully blended to create a chilling and gripping tale. I do wish we’d spent even more time in Neverland than we did because i honestly loved every scene set there. Wendy and Jane were awesome protagonists.

[Katrin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ich freu mich jetzt schon auf die Hook Geschichte.

[Beth Roger aka Katiebella_Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review coming soon