Wendy, Darling is a creepy and timely - dark reimagining of the Peter Pan story and particularly Wendy’s life after the original Peter Pan story!

The story is told in a dual narrative. 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. Sad but this happened to many women at the time.
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, before whisking her away!
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. It brings up thoughts and opinions that make the story much more relevant for the present day.

Thank you NetGalley and Titan Books for the ARC!

This was a great story! I always loved reading Peter Pan and watching various takes on the story as a kid, but this was the first one I’ve read about Wendy, specifically.

It takes place mostly after her original wanderings in Neverland, and honestly gets very dark and intense at times. Her time at an asylum since no one believes her stories, trying to remember secrets from her days with Peter.

Wendy now has a life, a husband, a daughter…she’s getting her life together each day at a time, when Peter returns for a new Wendy…

I definitely recommend this book! The only reason I’m going with 4 stars instead of 5, is that I struggled a bit with the long chapters. It made it harder to hold my attention even though I was sucked into the story.

This was such an interesting book! I haven’t read J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan, but I’m pretty familiar with the story. This was such a creative, dark take on a (sort of) sequel. I enjoyed the changes in time between Wendy as a mother trying to rescue her daughter and after she left Neverland, involuntarily committed for her insistence on remembering everything. The themes about sexuality and monsters, both literal and figurative were super interesting, especially adding in the context of the time period. There were a few times when there were some internal monologues where I found it harder to focus, but overall I really enjoyed this story! I have a feeling if I ever read the original Peter Pan that I’ll think of it a bit differently.
Thanks to NetGalley and Titan Books for allowing me access to this eARC for my honest opinion!

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 our a couple days ago.

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

This book was such an unexpected delight! Wendy Darling has gone and done the one thing Peter told her never to do..grow up. After making her play the role of mother all those years ago in Neverland, he has returned her to and forgotten her in our world. Wendy has grown up with lonely memories of her time in that magical, dangerous place. Memories that endanger her, as her sanity is questioned and her autonomy is stripped from her.

Years after that fateful trip to Neverland, Wendy finds herself doing what she thought she never could...returning. Only this time, she’s truly going as a mother. Because Peter has taken her daughter away in the dark of the night. And Wendy, more than anyone, knows there’s more to Peter than games and fun. A darkness resides within the boy who never grew up and the land he calls home, and if she’s to rescue her daughter she not only has to face that darkness but the darkness within herself wrought by years of trauma in a society where she is deemed valueless.

Armed with memories, love, and a needle, can our Wendy save the day? Or will Neverland claim her and her daughter body and soul?

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the chance to read an ARC of this incredible, strong, beautiful book.

This story was even better than I expected! I love Peter Pan retellings and this is one of my favorites. It was dark, gripping, and much different than other retellings. I loved that I not only got Wendy’s POV, but her daughter, Jane’s, as well. Wendy is a strong heroine in this and I loved that too!

This book! It was good. To be honest, my expectations weren't that high and i was not expecting to like this book as much as i did. The writing was absolutley breathtaking, some sentences like from another world.
The story was suuper dark and had some really serious topics, but they were well written.
I also loved the way the different stories from different times in Wendys life and Jane's POV all came together the further you got into the story. The only thing i didn't love was the ending. It was slightly rushed and i would have liked to know what became of certain people and places after the grand finale.

DNF at 40%

While I came into this expecting a dark fairytale version of Peter Pan, the theme of institutionalization and gaslighting along with genuinely unlike ale characters just keeps me from really enjoying the read. If you like darker themes and are looking for a Peter Pan retelling, this could be a great read for you (which is why I am giving it a neutral 3 stars).

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!

This story was even better than I expected! I love Peter Pan retellings and this is one of my favorites. It was dark, gripping, and much different than other retellings. I loved that I not only got Wendy’s POV, but her daughter, Jane’s, as well. Wendy is a strong heroine in this and I loved that too!

This haunting retelling of the Peter Pan tale is told from Wendy's perspective. We see flashes from different times in her life: as a girl in Neverland, as a young adult sent to a mental institution by her brothers because she refuses to accept that Neverland is not reality, and as a mother of Jane, who gets taken by Peter to become the 'new Wendy.' Wendy must figure out a way to save her daughter from Peter. You will find yourself swept away in this sinister reimagining of Peter Pan.

Book Review for Wendy, Darling

Full feature for this title will be posted at: @cattleboobooks on Instagram!

4 stars to Wendy, Darling by A.C. Wise! A fresh, feminist twist on a classic favorite fairytale?! Sign me up!

Everything you thought you knew about Neverland will be turned on its head. This story portrays a lot of real life issues including mental health, PTSD, etc. and is certainly no fairytale. I really appreciated the realness of this story and how it brought reality to one of my favorite stories. It's easy to fantasize about how much better life would be if you just lived in one of your childhood fairytales but as Wendy, Darling shows, the grass is not always greener on the other side and things are not always as they seem. Now to talk about my gal Wendy. She is such a badass! A survivor who is not perfect but is strong all the same. I think adults who grew up loving this tale will really appreciate this fresh take on it.

Wendy, Darling is on sale NOW! Make sure you pick up your copy today because this book is sure to become a cult classic!

The Husband brought this book to my attention on Netgalley, and so I requested it. And I really enjoyed it!!

In this book we get to see what happened to Wendy after her journey to Neverland. First of, her parents died on the Titanic, and so she and her brothers had had to grow up too fast. Michael and John have started to forget about Neverland, but Wendy doesn’t. She breaks bones convinced she can fly and overall just cannot let go of Neverland. When Michael returns from the war she falls out to him, and John decides to put her in an asylum. After a few years she gets out and starts her new family. But then Peter comes back, and takes her daughter with him.

I loved this look at some beloved characters. Everything has consequences and we really see those in here. It makes Wendy a very relatable character and you really root for her. She is stern but loving, a proper mother. I also adore some of the side characters in here. They are all really well developed… and where they are not (because they cross over from the original book), the book has an explanation for it. The marriage Wendy ends up in is not traditional at all, yet quite lovely. I love the representation!

The atmosphere in this book is also done superbly. There is a monster on Neverland and things don’t look like Wendy left them behind. And then there is Peter… who is kinda evil. Definitely a bully. All of it gives this book a very dark and somewhat uncomfortable feeling, which made me want to keep reading.

My only issue is with the writing. Although great overall, it is a bit too heavy on the character development. Especially Wendy goes through a lot of self-reflection – how she was changed by what events, why she feels how she feels, what-ifs. And yes it makes for a very relatable character, but at times it is a bit too much. A bit too over explained. Sometimes I just wanted them to get on with the actual plot.

So yeah, this is a dark, character driven story about a grown-up Wendy saving her daughter (who doesn’t need much saving anyway). And I adored it.

It has been a long time since I read Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie or the numerous Disney versions I owned as a child. I also loved a variety of movie adaptions but my favourite being the 1991 movie Hook and this imagery was definitely in my head as I read.

What can I say but WOW WOW WOW I had never thought about what happened to Wendy, John and Michael in the days, months and years after Neverland. This book moves between time periods in Wendy’s life and it isn’t a fairytale happily ever after. The story really starts with Peter in Wendy’s daughters bedroom. What will happen to Jane? Will she be the new Wendy?

This books also has a range of other fascinating characters. Mary who definitely is a perfect character for her own novel. I also love the character of Ned and would love to know more about him.

Find out more here https://pjsandbooks.wordpress.com/2021/06/02/wendy-darling/

If you liked the Peter Pan story arc on ABC's Once Upon a Time you will like this.

Everyone believed Wendy Darling was delusional. Neverland was just some fantasy she never let go of. Sending her to an asylum where they are more concerned with breaking her than helping her. It's a historical piece. We know asylums back then were not helpful.

However, when Peter comes back and kidnaps her daughter Jane, Wendy has to return to the land she had to pretend never existed. Through both of their points of view we discover Neverland is more horror land than fantasy land.

This book follows three POVs. present Wendy, past Wendy, and Jane. There are times when it's a struggle to keep the storyline in focus, but it is engaging and entertaining.

I really enjoyed this very different look at the Peter Pan story. It is dark and at times heartbreaking, but I loved Wendy and her daughter Jane. They were both strong when they needed to be and I enjoyed reading about them.

dnf after 16 pages
trigger warning
<spoiler> being stuck in an asylum, trauma </spoiler>

Years after their adventures in Neverland, Wendy is the only one of the siblings who remembers.
Then, one day, Peter comes - and takes her daughter Jane.

Welcome back to another episode of we need trigger warnings.
The blurp says Wendy is a patient, a survivor, but doesn't delve in deeper. There is no mention of her brother John bringing her to an asylum against her will, where she is shut in and <i>treated</i>. I expect torture in the name of science, and my own health history makes this hit far too close.

I expect publishers to one day do better. Some give content warnings with their books, why can't the others put in the little extra effort? I want better communication between readers and publishers. And I want it sooner rather than later.
Since I feel it's their own fault, I feel justified in giving this rating, even here. This was a netgalley arc, and netgalley flat out refuses reviews without rating. So, here you go. Have it.

The arc was provided by the publisher.

I will never say no to reading a Peter Pan retelling!!! I wasn't a fan of the movie sequel but surprisingly loved this one so much.

A continuation of Peter Pan that focuses more on Wendy and her daughter Jane, in this book you find that after her trip to Neverland Wendy was never able to really let go from her adventure and in adulthood winds up in a mental institute. After a stint in the institute, she gets married and has a daughter of her own Jane. One night Peter comes back for Wendy but upon discovering that Wendy had grown up Peter decides to take Jane as the new Wendy. Jane feels immediately uncomfortable in Neverland and Wendy takes action to stage a rescue.

Throughout this book you get a lot of awesome feminist moments, Jane using her brain to overcome the appeal of Neverland, Wendy using her memory and skills to come up with plans. The girls are just as important as the boys in this adventure on Neverland. Peter is far more sinister in this story, he doesn't do as well as before in tricking everyone into his world of make believe and what is left in reality leaves an uneasy feeling looming over the story.

This is classic Peter Pan, this is classic Neverland it is just told from a new point of view, an adult point of view. It is beautifully crafted in wonder and magic and would delight any fan of the original story.