After some issues with the preorder, I have finally gotten my hands on it! I need to stop trying to preorder things, given how strangely things keep going whenever I try to do that. It’s been a fun year of trying it, at least.
Lost in the Never Woods follows Wendy, a young woman about to head off to the next stage in her life and leave behind the unresolved parts of her childhood. Her brothers went missing when she was young and so did she, but she was the only one who returned. With no memory of what happened, the past continues to haunt her as local children start disappearing. Worse, Peter Pan, the boy from the stories her mother told her as a child, has come to ask for her help.
I do have a soft spot for Peter Pan stories1 and this one did not disappoint. Having this one set in modern day and centering around Wendy’s trauma more than the fictional world of Neverland made it feel a bit more grounded, and made Peter feel a lot more magical by contrast. In doing this, it does create a contrast to how other people have done it before, and I rather enjoyed the experience of having the story focused almost entirely on the experience of Wendy over that of Peter.
It does use the same villain as other ones do, though, which makes me think I was missing something when I read the original back in the day.
It’s not too romance-y, which is nice for me. There’s certainly elements of it in there, but it doesn’t ultimately overtake the story that I came for. And I will note that it’s likely a lot more prominent for the audience that might be looking for it, but, well, it’s me.
Overall, I really enjoyed the book! It’s a lot of fun and a different look at the story from any of the others I’ve read before. If you’re looking for a new take on Peter Pan, definitely check it out.
- Ahem. [↩]