Thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for the free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A.C. Wise does not flinch in this brutal and feminist take on Neverland and what happened after for Wendy Darling. She explores the consequences of capturing Peter Pan's attention and the disenfranchisement of women who stepped out of line or failed to meet male expectations in the early 20th century.

I've been reading A.C. Wise's short fiction here and there for a few years, and was really excited to sink my teeth into a whole novel, especially a female-centric take on the Peter Pan mythos. I recently re-watched Hook, and as much as I love the twists that film takes, as much as I appreciate a fathers-and-sons story, there are ladies in this sandbox, too, and they are often marginalized and underutilized when writers decide to play with Pan.

This was not an easy book to read. It was an adventure, and it was satisfying, but it was not fun. It was a pleasure to arrive at Wendy's self-actualization and triumph, but difficult to follow her through her valley of despair along the way. While Wise doesn't flinch, she still handles with care. She makes interesting rather than easy choices, and goes for nuance over cliché. Native and queer characters and experiences are given places of prominence, and the darkness at the heart of Peter Pan is at the center rather than the edges, interrogated rather than left to the subtext.

I don't want to give spoilers, so I'll give a warning instead: read this book only if you're prepared for some darkness and to be challenged. The rewards are worth the risk.

Ever wondered what happened to your favourite childhood characters when they grew up? Ever wondered how sanitised for children's ears the stories they appeared in were? "Wendy, Darling" will make you look at the story of "Peter Pan" in a whole new light. This book is brilliantly written, dark, and slightly disturbing - and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

“You don’t have to prove anything to anyone. You can fly, but if you let them see, they’ll only try to tie you down and break your wings.”

Be aware that there are scenes that may be triggering such as violence, blood, death, trauma and abuse.

Thanks for Netgalley and Titan books for giving me an eARC in exchange for a honest review.

Growing up as a Disney nerd, Peter Pan is one of those movies that made my childhood magical. Believing that faith, trust and pixie dust is all what I need to be brave. Readinv Wendy, Darling really shocked me and I have mixed feelings with it. I was expecting a fun, adventurous story but ended have having a dark adventure instead. Nevertheless I did enjoyed it as much as enjoyed the movies.

A.C. Wise weaved a tale where what would have been like for those child who returned from Neverland. Telling stories of mermaids and pirates like they are real. Wendy Darling in the movie is a side character who is always seen beside Peter but here we see her as a strong woman capable of many things. The author not only gave us a strong and capable heroine but also a loving mother.

The plot is something that is hard to digest for me but I appreciate the points where Wendy tells the stories of her past and present. Every details of her past of how she was treated as a mad person keeps me at the edge of my sit as I read. It shows how she must face the truth about her reality and also never forgetting the times she spent on Neverland. The different point of views of Wendy and Jane is really something because it really brings out their roles in the story.

The monster is a great twist though. I never really gave notice to Peter's shadow. In the story, Peter will be seen as a villain but you will also have mixed feelings about his story as you go by each chapters.

The additional characters in the story really stood out for me. Mary is female badass who stood by Wendy's side even though no one believes in her. Ned on the other hand is someone I wish I could see more off as I read. He is an accepting person despite not truly knowing Wendy. He treated her as his equal despite how other man look as woman during those times.

Overall it is rollercoaster ride for me as I read this. I highly recommend this if you are looking for a fairytale retelling with a dark twist.

Tw: abuse, trauma, mental illness

“I am Wendy… I grew up.”

It's been years after Wendy left Neverland and went back home. In Wendy, Darling, we follow Wendy herself after Neverland and everything that came with not wanting to let it go after. Now she is a survivor, a mother, and a woman willing to do everything for the ones she loves.

Reading Wendy, Darling gave me a whole new experience of Neverland. Years passed since I was introduced to Peter Pan and Neverland, but I still see the story as this amazing adventure even though I don’t really remember much about the details of it. It is still an amazing adventure in this book but now it’s dark and BEAUTIFUL.

You read about the same characters, Peter Pan and Wendy, but they’ve changed. Wendy is now an adult and Peter Pan is now scary!!! First scene with him and I’m already wondering, “Was he like this in the original version or is it just because this is a dark re-imagining?” Even Neverland changed. I felt the sadness Wendy felt when she went back to Neverland and saw that it’s not the same Neverland. The way the book described how Neverland changed made me feel scared and so so curious about what happened. Secrets were revealed and decisions were made. I also loved how the experiences and struggles of women were also discussed in this book. Women leading this book was such a power move. It didn’t feel forced, and I love how a “powerful” woman was presented not only as someone who can fight back physically but to also fight back using her own skills. I LOVE THAT.

I read this book so quickly that I want to read it again and experience the darkness of it one more time. This is such an amazing read especially if you loved Peter Pan as a child and you’re now an adult looking for a darker twist to the children’s stories you grew up with.

This dark, not retelling, but reimagined afterward of Peter Pan will tick all the boxes for fans of historical fantasy. Being told over 4 different perspectives - child Wendy in neverland, new adult Wendy in a mental institution, Wendy now, and Jane (Wendy’s daughter) now — makes for an interesting premise. Add to this the introduction of “real” monsters, the primary being Peter himself, you have a compelling tale of manipulation, fantasy, and storytelling. Wendy never got over Neverland but not out of love, more out of obsession and compulsion. The story was engaging and could be triggering for victims of emotional abuse and manipulation. Although he is magical, The Peter of this story fits all the earmarks of a textbook narcissistic personality. This story also has subtle LGBTQIA rep (specifically gay/Ace rep). It also gives a nod of apology to the way indigenous peoples were represented in the original text.

While dark, I found this take refreshing as a reimagining. I was pulled along with the story and would definitely recommend.

This is probably the best Peter Pan book I’ve read yet! It’s a very dark version of the classic story we all know and love, but it was so wonderfully reimagined. I loved it!

Synopsis:
Wendy, Darling takes us on a journey through the past and present life of Wendy Darling. We discover through her the real life psychological aftermath and consequences of having a magical experience like Neverland as a child. Decades after Neverland, Peter Pan arrives for Wendy again only to find her now a real mother to her daughter, Jane. Instead of taking a now “old” Wendy, he steals Jane away to Neverland to be his Wendy. So ensues the determination in Wendy to get her daughter back, but the truth of Neverland and her old friend Peter Pan is not quite as Wendy remembers. The island has dark secrets and Wendy may be the only one who can put it all right.

Wendy Darling, my favorite Darling:
This life of Wendy Darling was both fantastic and tragic to read. Life is not easy for the Darling siblings post-Neverland and reading Wendy’s journey as she attempts to reconcile this world with the one she was shown by Peter was it’s own magical experience. They are many trials and hardships for her to overcome, but she comes away from them all stronger and fiercer than ever before. I loved this iteration of Wendy Darling with my whole heart.

Story and Pacing:
Beyond my love for Wendy Darling, this darker take on this version of the tale was amazing. Peter has been hiding a big, dangerous secret and I needed to know what it was. The story throughout interested and intrigued me. Whether I was reading about Wendy’s past or her present, I was never really bored and the pacing of the story was done well.

Wrap Up:
Wendy, Darling was magical in it’s own twisted kind of way. This is not just a story of a mischievous boy and his magical island. Maybe it never was.

Neverland like you haven't seen before! I enjoyed this follow up to Peter Pan! Wendy has grown up and now Peter has come and taken her daughter to Neverland. Great read!

This is a really nice “sequel” to the Peter Pan book that I think all of us of a certain age read when we were kids.

I have to admit that I never liked Peter as a child, I always thought of him as a an awful child and this book finally gave me that satisfaction of being right. I absolutely detested Peter in this book, to the extent that I considered not finishing it...but by the end I did feel maybe 1% empathy towards him.

This story feels very “Lord of the Flies” to me, mixed in with the Peter Pan story, and I did enjoy reading it.

It’s a good “adult”end to the children’s book.

My thanks to Netgalley and Titan Books for the advance copy

“She cannot belong to one place or the other, but both together, a thread stretched between words.”

This is a story about a girl who grows up as a child and into adulthood, maturing while also holding onto her most treasured experience. It is also about a boy who lives on false dreams, truly believing that one can stay young and youthful for eternity.

Wendy Darling, as Peter Pan lovers would know her as, is both a sister, a daughter and a mother. She is the young girl who flew into a dream world and never gave up on her memories after she returned. Even when her own brothers were persuaded into thinking their journey was pretend.

A.C. Wise creates a magical story, using beautiful imagery to transform an imaginary world into reality, bringing Peter Pan and his dream world alive, once again. It was dark and twisty, which was intriguing— just the touch needed to make a compelling and unique read. I especially enjoyed the narrative switching from Wendy growing up after she came back home to the Wendy in the present (i.e. in the future), back in the place she hoped to see the most.

Both Wendy and her daughter Jane were strong-willed, independent, brave and kind. It was their love for each other that connected them through their separate journeys.

The only downside I could point out was that there was a lot of narrative and not enough dialogue. Plenty of information was written instead of being spoken which left me slightly uninterested.

The story of Wendy, her daughter and Neverland taught me many things. Perseverance, unconditional love, holding onto the truth and the importance of friendship. And lastly, that closing some doors does not mean that you’re forgetting the past, simply transforming it into a memory.

Wendy Darling never forgot her adventure in Neverland. Even after her brothers forgot and moved on with their lives all Wendy wanted was for them to remember and return to Neverland.
Now an adult with a daughter of her own, Peter finally returns for her. But instead of adult Wendy, he steals her Jane away to be his new Wendy.
This is the story of Wendy facing her past and her demons to bring her daughter home. Honestly, this Neverland is creepy and sinister and I wish it had gone full horror instead of the tease of horror (the mermaids, the boar who seemed human...was he human?). In the end I’m not really sure what the deal with Peter and the Island is. Wish the book had delved deeper into the sinister history of Neverland.

As a child, I never saw the Disney Peter Pan, nor any other Peter Pan film or play. My Peter Pan was the J. M. Barrie novel, which I read and reread many times. I loved it in all its weird and twisted glory. It is a very odd, disturbing book, perfectly suited for a dark reimagining like this one. Recommended for fellow fans of the Barrie original — and for open minded fans of the Disney movie (and other) adaptations.

Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC copy for my review.

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.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and recommend it to all.

With it being a fairytale retelling, I assumed it would be a more light-hearted take but was surprised with how beautifully written it was, tackling complex issues such as mental health, the harsh reality of adulthood, and sexual attraction during an unaccepting age.

Peter kidnaps her daughter, Jane, and Wendy must face all obstacles - including her own repressed memory - to rescue her.

Wendy Darling is a fierce character, who has been through so much in her life - from being abandoned by Peter, her Brothers' denying Neverland's existence, being placed in an asylum for her memories, and even given an ultimatum to marry or remain in a dangerous and incompetent mental health institution.

I love that the author didn't shy away from the difficult topics, the honesty was refreshing and made for a breath-taking read. The pace was fantastic, I didn't want to put it down, sleep be damned! I will be recommending this to everyone who listens.

I’m a fractured fairy tales fanatic, and Peter Pan is certainly one of my favourite properties. As such, I found the entire premise of this novel to be at once riveting.

A horror-tinged feminist sequel to Peter Pan focusing on a grown-up Wendy Darling? Sign me up!

And after reading about the mental decline of Alice in the eponymous work by Christina Henry and seeing Dorothy lose it on the big screen in the disturbing film Return to Oz, it was only a matter of time before Wendy herself spent some quality time in the asylum.

But unlike those predecessors, female friendship is at the centre of this exciting new novel from A C Wise. And I’m here for it!

I loved how Wise explores the bond between Wendy and Tiger Lily, expanding their time in Neverland separate from Peter. And the parallel relationship between Wendy and Mary at the asylum is equally riveting.

I only wish that this story was told over two novels.

A C Wise tries to pack so much story into a single volume that the pacing is at times erratic, leaving readers longing for more time spent with these characters, especially Tiger Lily and Mary.

But regardless, this is a highly recommended read, and I enjoyed it from beginning to end.

I want to thank Netgalley, the author and his team for providing me with the ARC of this fabulous book.

Would you like to travel to Neverland? Wow, I'll start by saying: If you liked the cover and the synopsis, this book will not disappoint you at all.

Wendy has grown up, but she has never forgotten her childhood "adventures", but time goes by and she has started a family, Peter comes back but it is not for her, it is for her little Jane, Wendy as a brave mother goes after her. I thought I would come across descriptions similar to what Disney taught me as a child but wow, the world is not rosy, there are all sorts of traumas in there and you appreciate having something different, I loved the descriptions too much.
Wendy is a woman with a unique character and personality, so human that she has rights and wrongs, and during the pages of the book all I wanted was to be next to her, the author makes you completely forget the child version of Disney and immerses you into something sinister.

This is a dark return to Neverland.

Wendy knows when Peter turns up at her house and is powerless to stop him taking her daughter, Jane in her place.

The story is told by Wendy In the present, Wendy in the past and Jane. It’s sinister and twisted but somehow it fell short for me. The writing was quite convoluted in places and while I enjoyed the new take on the old story, I didn’t find it convincing and I didn’t really warm to any of the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for my copy of this book.

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.

This was a very interesting sequel to the original Peter Pan story. Sadly, it didn't really impress me that much, although I did enjoy it!

I had to read Peter and Wendy for a class in Children's Literature last year, and what struck me the most about it was how... insidiously creepy it was. While Peter created all of these games for them to play, Wendy, a literal child, was treated as the mother to all of them, only due to her sex. Then there was the racism too, and the way that Peter Pan just had seemingly full control of everything on the island!

Wendy, Darling deals with all of these issues that were present in the original. We see Wendy as an adult, having both a husband and a daughter. There are also flashbacks to just a few years after she returned from Neverland, which she spent in an asylum. The book does take a dark turn in many ways. Her experiences at the asylum are gruesome, and the way that Neverland appears here is a far cry from how it looks like in Barrie's version.

I did like the feminist angling of the story - and the title of the novel is super clever! I also really loved reading about Wendy's relationships. While she is a far cry from a perfect person, she is complex and so are her relationships with her family. I also enjoyed the queer quality of her whole family unit, and it was nice to just see it existing so naturally.

What I really did not enjoy though, was the way the novel is written. Someplaces, the prose is absolutely gorgeous - but then it is really overwritten in places. Whole paragraphs could have been condensed into a few lines. I was also really disinterested in the whole Neverland sections of the novel, and the twist with Peter was kind of meh.

Still, I'd really recommend this to fans of Peter Pan, and those that love feminist retellings of childhood tales!

Thank you for NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange of a honest review!

Unfortunately, due to illness and recurring medical issues, I have not been able to read and review this book. All the best to A. C. Wise and the team at Titan Books for a successful publishing season!!

I absolutely love the idea behind this story, and it doesn't disappoint. This is definitely a book I would pick up in a bookstore and purchase without having read more than a few sentences of description. I will definitely be trying anything else this author writes!