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kerrygibbons's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
1 rainbow
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Physical abuse, Gun violence, Child death, Death, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Panic attacks/disorders, Medical content, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Car accident, Confinement, Torture, and Violence
Minor: Blood, Death of parent, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Stalking, Bullying, and Addiction
The themes of this book are dark and involve children going missing, emotional abuse, andhistoryoftape's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I struggled to get into this book after having super high expectations for the premise. I'm glad I ended up picking it up again, because the story started picking up a bit just after where I'd stopped. I really enjoyed how it set up my initial suspicions, then made me question them over & over again by giving what seemed to be clearcut answers that contradicted them, only to have them confirmed in the end
Sometimes I felt the book leaned too much into previous characterizations of Wendy and Peter, but the further on it went the more I could feel the characters becoming the author's own. The ending came abouta little contrived, the fact that all of a sudden she could just decide that now was a good time to remember what happened, but then again, she did just get information that changed what she thought she might remember so I'm not quite sure about how to feel about that Everything after that point was well thought out, the twist was great, the ending truly bittersweet. And the epilogue was just open enough for me to start spinning my own possibilities. also, kind of a cool parallel how as a pediatrician Wendy will be helping kids on this side of the afterlife, and Peter will take care of the ones she might not be able to save... A comfort?
One thing I found slightly unrealistic though was that none of the kids spilled the beans on Peter Pan. The lie of there being a different kidnapper leaves them with a heap of trauma they can't really talk about-at least to their parents. I mean sure, being consistently scared by a shadow to feed it seems hard to explain, but man is that different from mere confinement.
Sometimes I felt the book leaned too much into previous characterizations of Wendy and Peter, but the further on it went the more I could feel the characters becoming the author's own. The ending came about
One thing I found slightly unrealistic though was that none of the kids spilled the beans on Peter Pan.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Car accident, Gun violence, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Alcoholism, Blood, Violence, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Alcohol, Medical content, Panic attacks/disorders, and Addiction
Minor: Stalking and Chronic illness
the_ash37's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
*the plot twist*
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Torture, Blood, Child death, Kidnapping, Violence, Death, Gore, and Gun violence
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Stalking
be aware of the plot twistsaltylane's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I liked the book okay, but the “final battle” ending felt… idk, like it didn’t really make sense? I don’t know why, but even when things were going on—like action/fighting—I would sometimes get bored. I’ve noticed this author tends to describe things excessively with interiority, sometimes repeating the information in slightly different ways multiple times… I don’t know if it counts as “telling” rather than showing, though, since it can be important to get a character’s feelings on what’s happening.
The author also often includes a “best friend” who would be great to get to know more about and get to interact with in the story… but then gives them very little “screen time” and focuses on the two characters with a romantic connection. Maybe they have a hard time juggling multiple character interactions at once?
Overall, I think this book has a very interesting and unique spin on the “Peter Pan” story. I feel like the author struggled to find a believable way to end the main conflict, which is a shame because the surrounding plot seemed pretty solid. The writing style wasn’t for me, but I’m sure others can easily enjoy the book regardless.
The author also often includes a “best friend” who would be great to get to know more about and get to interact with in the story… but then gives them very little “screen time” and focuses on the two characters with a romantic connection. Maybe they have a hard time juggling multiple character interactions at once?
Overall, I think this book has a very interesting and unique spin on the “Peter Pan” story. I feel like the author struggled to find a believable way to end the main conflict, which is a shame because the surrounding plot seemed pretty solid. The writing style wasn’t for me, but I’m sure others can easily enjoy the book regardless.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Death, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, and Child death
Moderate: Torture, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Minor: Medical content, Stalking, Vomit, Self harm, and Suicidal thoughts
emfass's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Read this book in anticipation of Aiden Thomas coming to visit the Bad Bitch Book Club - they were an utter delight and I also now have a huge crush on them. Aiden told us during their visit that although Cemetery Boys was published first, Lost in the Never Woods was written first, as their thesis project for their MFA in Creative Writing.
I haven't yet read Cemetery Boys, but was so excited for this one because Peter Pan is probably my favorite story, and I absolutely love retellings. I think this story does some very interesting things with exploring the psychological connections to the Peter Pan story, and in the way it explores grief and trauma and memory. It was much darker than I expected, but I really liked the fresh take on the story of Peter Pan and Wendy.
There were a few times I struggled with the pacing and staying engaged. The reveals at the end are a great payoff and make perfect sense for the story, but parts of the plot leading up to that felt a little slow...though on the flip side, that also allowed for slowing down enough to sit with some of the after-effects of trauma. (Also I just seem to be in a grumpy reading slump in general right now, and am having trouble getting swept away in books like I was just a couple months ago.)
CW: Kidnapping, grief, death, gun violence, child death
I haven't yet read Cemetery Boys, but was so excited for this one because Peter Pan is probably my favorite story, and I absolutely love retellings. I think this story does some very interesting things with exploring the psychological connections to the Peter Pan story, and in the way it explores grief and trauma and memory. It was much darker than I expected, but I really liked the fresh take on the story of Peter Pan and Wendy.
There were a few times I struggled with the pacing and staying engaged. The reveals at the end are a great payoff and make perfect sense for the story, but parts of the plot leading up to that felt a little slow...though on the flip side, that also allowed for slowing down enough to sit with some of the after-effects of trauma. (Also I just seem to be in a grumpy reading slump in general right now, and am having trouble getting swept away in books like I was just a couple months ago.)
CW:
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Grief, Gun violence, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Blood, Car accident, Confinement, Medical content, and Violence
Minor: Alcoholism, Medical content, and Stalking
jams's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I’ve spent almost two months trying to find a remotely coherent way to articulate my feelings on this book seeing as most my reactions while reading amounted to “dude, mood” “wait what” “oh Damn” and “please can every character just get some therapy”. This book absolutely destroyed me emotionally. In the best way possible. Peter Pan has always been a favourite of mine and Cemetery Boys my favourite book of 2020 so when I found out about this adaption it shot to the very top of my most anticipated releases and did not disappoint. In fact it exceeded my expectations.
Wendy as a character is so loveable and her anxiety, fear and guilt are so real that I truly felt every emotional hit as they came. Pair that with Peter’s lightness, his unending love and need to care for others and you get this really sweet dynamic of two teens trying to do better and get each other through a really awful time. I truly think LITNW is some of the best written trauma I have seen in YA.
This is a book about trauma, grief and having to grow up too soon. Yet it balances these heavier themes with amazing moments of humour and fluff, and ultimately feels incredibly hopeful.
Anyway I think it's safe to say that Aiden Thomas is a favourite author of mine now and I absolutely cannot wait for his future releases.
Wendy as a character is so loveable and her anxiety, fear and guilt are so real that I truly felt every emotional hit as they came. Pair that with Peter’s lightness, his unending love and need to care for others and you get this really sweet dynamic of two teens trying to do better and get each other through a really awful time. I truly think LITNW is some of the best written trauma I have seen in YA.
This is a book about trauma, grief and having to grow up too soon. Yet it balances these heavier themes with amazing moments of humour and fluff, and ultimately feels incredibly hopeful.
Anyway I think it's safe to say that Aiden Thomas is a favourite author of mine now and I absolutely cannot wait for his future releases.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Grief, Kidnapping, Medical content, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Stalking, and Violence
Moderate: Medical trauma
Minor: Addiction, Alcoholism, Car accident, and Gun violence
content warnings: loss of family members, grief, severe trauma/ptsd, anxiety/anxiety attacks, compulsion, night terrors and insomnia, kidnapping, some descriptions of injury and violence
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