Darling Girl by Liz Michalski is the fairytale retelling of Peter Pan and it’s definitely my favorite retelling I’ve ever read without question!

This is classified as a dark retelling due to a contrast of characters…however, there is still magical pixie dust 🧚! It’s not anything you would even imagine.

I loved how this story was told from the Darling girls…Wendy’s granddaughter, Holly, has a daughter that has gone missing that has been in a coma for years.
As the story builds, so does the mystery, thrill and horror of one Peter begins to reveal himself for who he has become.

Loved it and I need more retellings turned on it’s head just like this one!!

Thank you for the gifted copy.

This novel is centered in Holly Darling, granddaughter of Wendy Darling, whose famous because of the Peter Pan story. She founds a successful skin care company but she’s marked by a tragic past. She gets a phone call one day that her daughter Eden whose been in a coma for years has gone missing, Eden has also a rare condition, she ages faster than any human being.
She travels to London with her son Jack, who doesn’t know about Eden, to find out what happened and keep them safe from evil Peter Pan. Along comes Jane her mother and ex military Christopher Cooke (and yes he lost his arm in war and has a hook prothesis) to help her. I truly enjoy a novel that pulls me in and keeps me engaged. I thought this was very creative and well done. My only complain is the Peter Pan confrontation part at the end. I wanted more.

I adore a good fairy tale retelling.

Unfortunately the personalities of the characters were incredibly underdeveloped, and the the author did not adequately describe the physical appearance of the characters. This made it hard to imagine the characters, as they were new, which made it difficult to truly become attached. I truly felt for Holly’s plight as a mother who has experienced such devastating losses, and Jack is definitely the angsty teenager who wants independence. I’ve seen several reviews stating Holly is unlikable and unrelatable, but she was put in an impossible situation. I enjoyed the darker nature of this tale, as fairy tales do tend to have a darker origin than the typical Disney stories, but a good deal of the story felt forced.

𝘊𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘲𝘶𝘦!

Someone described this book as darkly magical and I couldn’t agree more. Wow, I never imagined that reading about a dark Peter Pan would be this addictive. You need to read this.

Thank you Suzy Approved Book Tours and Dutton, Penguin Random House for this tour invite.

𝗗𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗶𝗿𝗹 by Liz Michalski released May 3, 2022.

https://www.instagram.com/booksandcoffeemx/

I was very excited about this book. A modern retelling of Peter Pan, with dark adult themes and Peter as the villain? Sign me up! Unfortunately, it's not really a retelling, more of a spiritual successor. Darling Girl is told from the perspective of Holly Darling, the granddaughter of the famous Wendy Darling. In this universe, Neverland is real, as is Peter - although he's not the hero as portrayed in the stories.

So what's my problem? This is going to have some spoilers because I'm not sure how to discuss it without spoiling. For starters, Holly is awful. She keeps secrets for honestly no reason, which then predictably blow up in her face. She straight up abandons her daughter, and when said daughter goes missing she makes a bunch of phone calls but does little else. WEEKS go by! She kept her daughter's existence a secret from everyone (this seems highly unlikely to be possible) and is shocked when she finds out this upset her daughter. Not to mention, she uses her daughter's special healing blood to make her son not disabled anymore. It's hand waved as "saving Jack" and she repeatedly says he could die without the injections, but this makes no sense. She references using the blood herself to help heal her leg, and the effects mostly stay despite her not using it for years, but for some reason Jack will die quickly even though he was simply in a wheelchair when she first used it, not about to die. Also it's heavily implied that she uses her daughter's blood to build her skin care line, but makes a big deal about how she only used the blood to save her son's life.... who wasn't dying, just was disabled. Huh.

Anyway, Peter Pan is hardly in this book. It sounds as though they have a long relationship at first, but in actuality they have three brief sexual encounters, the third of which he rapes her. The first encounter is initiated by her and it is really weird, to be honest. He's said to be "older than described" but she's supposed to be at least in her mid twenties, and the whole thing is pretty creepy. There's a Captain Hook and a Nan character that are alluded to be the same characters from the stories, but it's never confirmed and they never remember who they are. Nobody goes to Neverland that we see. Holly's mom, Jane, gets the big rescue action sequence - that happens off page and we are told about later. In fact, there's an awful lot of exposition dumping, but we don't SEE a whole lot happen in this book.

There's allusions to Wendy being scared of Peter, and issues with her father, but none of that is fleshed out. There's allusions to Hook actually being the good guy in Neverland, but we never see it. I kept feeling like there was a more interesting story to be told about Wendy's experiences, but it focused on Holly for some reason.. The more I think about this book, the more annoyed I feel.

I’m so so glad I grabbed a copy of this as my BOTM pick! This is now my top pick in the Peter Pan retellings, which there should totally be more of.

R E V I E W

Peter Pan re-telling but make it dark.

This was fast paced and almost reminded me of a mystery/thriller more than a fantasy. I loved the generational match-up of the original peter pan. The story line was unique and compelling. I thought this was a wonderful debut.

I did feel like the ending did not wrap up as nicely as I would have wanted it too. I wish there was more explanation on how everything ended with her daughter.

Still would recommend for fans of Peter Pan, Dark, Mystery loving readers.

I loved this twisty Peter Pan take right up until the very end where it went a little sideways for me. I was completely invested in the Darling drama, but then ending felt a bit abrupt and messy. I needed more closure.

What would happen if Peter Pan grew up? If he never went back to Neverland? What if it was he who was the bad guy, and not Captain Hook? Liz Michalski's "Darling Girl" poses those very questions to readers, and the answers are disturbing, engaging and entertaining. "Darling Girl" tells the story of Holly Darling, the granddaughter of Wendy Darling, a successful skincare company CEO who will stop at nothing to keep her children Jack and Eden safe. Eden, who has been in a coma for years, suddenly goes missing and Holly knows there is only one person who could've taken her: Peter Pan. Holly sets out to find her daughter and save her from the man everyone believed was a hero, but only she knows is truly a villain.

I really enjoyed this book. Don't get me wrong there were moments that made me feel uncomfortable and cringey; partly from certain events that happen throughout the story but also because a retelling goes against everything I already know about these characters so when they do something against character, it takes a bit to get used to. Especially in "Darling Girl" which is dark, and reads more like a Gillian Flynn thriller than a Disney fantasy. Liz Michalski is a fantastic writer. This novel is a quick read, but packs a punch. The characters are interesting, three dimensional and at times have you rooting both for them and against them. Michalski takes characters that are idolized in J.M. Barrie's classic, and turns them into flawed, conflicted and broken people. Michalski's writing flows well, the story is structured in a way that it feels as though its flying by yet provides a lot of details and descriptions without feeling dense or bogged down. I will for sure be reading future works by this author.

As much as I did enjoy this book, I will be honest in saying that there were some things I wasn't a fan of. For other readers who are going to read this book, please be warned that there is an instance of sexual abuse and, let's be real, child abuse and neglect throughout the book. I am never a fan of sexual abuse or rape in stories (or life), so it's inclusion here felt unnecessary and felt like Michalski was just trying to push past the fairytales origins way too hard. It felt forced and truly given the events leading up to it, didn't make any sense; it was for shock value I'd say. I also wanted more from our main character Holly. I feel like a majority of her storyline is literally just asking: "where is my daughter?" She refuses to see how the actions she has taken have lead to the situation she is, and she continually withholds information from those who are trying to help her, which of course leads her into a deeper hole. I also wish, Peter made an appearance way earlier in the story. Like any good thriller, the MC has to have some run ins with the killer at least a few times before their final showdown, and here Peter just randomly comes in towards the end of the story making it a bit hard to truly understand his impact.

Overall, I would recommend this story, with some trigger warnings, to readers who are looking for a dark, sinister retelling of the classic "Peter Pan." Thank you Net Galley and Penguin Group Dutton for giving me an advance copy!

𝘊𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨, 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘲𝘶𝘦!

Someone described this book as darkly magical and I couldn’t agree more. Wow, I never imagined that reading about a dark Peter Pan would be this addictive. You need to read this.

Thank you Suzy Approved Book Tours and Dutton, Penguin Random House for this tour

When my nephew was a toddler, he was a big fan of the animated cartoon Jake and the Never Land Pirates. Since he was such a huge fanatic of the show, for his second birthday, my family thought it would be a great idea if my dad dressed up as Captain Hook for the birthday party. For some reason, my dad weaseled out of the dress-up, and I was forced to go in his place. Well, my nephew wasn’t convinced by my act — I’m not sure if he wound up crying or just was indifferent to my appearance. I can’t remember. I do know, however, that there’s photographic evidence of me in costume somewhere in a family photo album. (Evidence which must be destroyed.) So, yes, I do have my connections to the world of Peter Pan, and thus that is my entrance to reviewing this book. Darling Girl, which is Liz Michalski’s sophomore novel, is a modern-day imagining set in a world where Peter Pan is very real — and he’s something of a bastard. Fans of the original J.M. Barrie novel will probably most appreciate Darling Girl, as the timelines are analogous to Barrie’s work and not, say, the Disney version.

This is a pretty plot-heavy book, but if I were to give a pencil sketch outline, it would be to start with the fact that the protagonist, Holly Darling, is the descendant of Wendy Darling — the young woman who originally had adventures with Peter Pan. Holly is the owner of a New York City cosmetics company that’s about to make the jump to the major leagues. She does have tragedy in her past, though. Her husband and one of her twin sons perished in an automobile accident some time ago. Her daughter, Eden, had an accident, too, by falling out of a tree — she is now in a coma. However, her blood has elements in it that keep Holly’s living son, Jack, healthy. Thus, when Eden goes missing, Holly automatically assumes Peter Pan is behind all of this and is on a plane to London with Jack as soon as you can say, “pixie dust.” The plan is to find Eden so Jack can continue to have vital signs. And so it goes from there.

Darling Girl is a fun, frothy novel, but even though any romantic notions are kind of muted, it does read like a romance novel with its conversational style. Thus, it will probably be of most interest to people who possess a womb. It’s a book about mothers — which is apt considering it was released a few days before Mother’s Day in 2022 — and of family secrets. And, yes, various characters from the Peter Pan universe do make their appearances, which will be fun for fans of the original novel. If you’re more familiar with the Disney-fied version of this, you might be disappointed as there are some rather mature themes here. (I’d say that it probably would boast a PG-13 rating if this were turned into a movie, although there is a sex scene that isn’t too explicit.) Still, this is a not bad, enjoyable novel if you’re into this kind of thing and like your reading fare to be on the lighter side — not necessarily in tone, but in writing execution.

Still, Darling Girl is far from being perfect. The main liability is that the novel’s real star, Peter Pan, is usually nowhere to be seen — the bulky middle third of the book involves a rather laborious search for him in London. It plods on and on and on. When we finally do meet him in the present-day part of the book towards the end, firecrackers go off. A real opportunity, then, has been kind of squandered. Darling Girl has a very The Last Starfighter problem, then: you have a bad guy who doesn’t get much airtime. And what this book needs more of is more of the bad guy to push the plot along, especially since the bad guy is so alluring. But there’s more to this novel that causes it to stumble. The other major problem is that Holly’s backstory is teased out in little bits and pieces, leading the reader to wonder if any plot holes are being created. I think Darling Girl is eventually airtight, but we never get a true sense of what happened to Holly’s husband and son other than they were killed in a car on a slick road on a rainy day. Yes, but how? Was it driver error? A head-on collision? What happened? The novel remains silent on this.

And I also suppose that it doesn’t help that the novel is kind of a bit silly at times. For instance, a private investigator that Holly winds up meeting happens to have a hook for a right hand. I know this is an allusion to the Barrie novel (which, again, can be conversely a fun thing), but stuff like this is pretty groan-inducing. However, I may be just kvetching at this point because Darling Girl isn’t a terrible read, only a mediocre one. To be honest with you, I did kind of lose interest in the book in its middle third when not much happens — though the novel redeems itself towards the climax. There’s some real pop and sizzle to the end of Darling Girl, which makes one wonder if this was the sort of thing that really could have been deftly edited a bit better. The whole plot points about untangling Holly’s secrets are just not very interesting, given that we know what other characters don’t. In any event, though, Darling Girl is a clever read. If you’re a woman and have an affinity for fairy tales, you’ll probably lap this up. For the rest of us, it could have been written with a bit more skill. Again, though, I’m quibbling. At the very least, Darling Girl is enjoyable enough and won’t leave J. M. Barrie rolling in his grave.

I'll never look at Peter Pan the same way. We grow up and wish to be little kids again. The fairy tale of Neverland seemed magical and carefree. This dark and twisted re-telling has me thinking otherwise.

I want to say first that I hope I can convey to you how much I loved this book. This may well be my top read of 2022 so far. I will be recommending this book to family, friends, and random people on the street.

This book is not just fairy tale characters reimagined. It has taken a fairy tale, brought it into the 21st century by adding incredible and imaginative plot layers while at the same time keeping details from the original 1911 novel.

DARLING GIRL has morally grey characters, family drama, mad science vibes, mystery, thriller, magical realism, and a private investigator named Christopher Cooke (my favorite character) that has a hook for an arm.

This read also made me research the original Peter Pan novel by Sir James Matthew Barrie and go down an internet rabbit hole learning more about him and the 1911 story origins.

If you’ve already read this book, message me if you want to chat. If you haven’t read this book, GET IT NOW!

I don’t want to give any of the plot away so all I’m going to tell you about the book is that this book takes place in the present day and has Wendy Darling’s granddaughter, Holly, on a search for Peter Pan in order to find her daughter and save her son.

Wow!! What an interesting premise that totally pays off. I first heard of this book on Instagram and all I heard was, “Peter Pan is the villain,” and I was sold. I knew nothing else about the book going in. This is dark, delicious mystery with so many Peter Pan Easter eggs. It was so enjoyable and kept me guessing until the end. It’s rare that a book doesn’t give itself away early on, and this is one that will surprise you.

I really wanted to love this book but I found some problematic things in the story. First of all it felt wrong the sex scene with an adult and a "kid", on top of that the author added a rape scene. Then the story was flat lined, looking for Peter in a "real world", took more than 80% of the book to start seeing some action. The ending was so rushed, would've enjoyed action and less looking around. Giving it 3 stars because the story was very original.

Thank you NetGalley and Dutton Publishing for providing me with an eARC of the book for my honest review!

I have some mixed feelings about this book. It was definitely a good, twisted take on Peter Pan. This idea of Peter Pan haunting the Darling family was fantastic, but it missed the mark with execution for me. I think I would've preferred a more Peter centered book if the point was to make him the villain. Or have a POV from Eden who is on the run from him.

I was really enthused about the beginning and how the story felt like it was building up to a reveal. It kept me wanting to read more. However, instead of diving deeper into the past of the Darling family or charging forward with Eden's investigation, we get a lot of unhinged, overbearing mom who can't chill tf out for 2 seconds. She puts her family in jeopardy numerous times because she can't keep it together or be honest to anyone. Holly goes full Scarlet Witch with her "I'll do anything to anyone for my children no matter what" attitude and it gets extremely repetitive for the middle part of the book. It's hard to read through, but I guess that means it was well done if that's what the author was going for. The end wraps up nicely with some bittersweet moments which I did appreciate.

My biggest gripe with the book is the r*pe. That in itself was disgusting and unnecessary, but also wasn't Peter depicted as a boy? I know the scene says he looks older than he was described in the Peter Pan story, but he's essentially a kid? Maybe I missed something because I was trying to get through that bit as fast as possible.

Overall pretty interesting.

The story of Peter Pan was always my favorite book as a child and has remained fascinating as an adult. This dark retelling is a modern day fairytale that includes the elements of good and evil of our time mixed with the fantasy of the original story. I enjoyed listening to the audiobook and the writing flows beautifully.

I had really high hopes for this book, but I just could not get into the story. I was so excited about a Peter Pan retelling, but overall I ended up not being able to finish this title.

An absolute ✨ MUST ✨read! Thank you, Dutton Books, for the gifted copy of Darling Girl by Liz Michalski {partner}

Genre: Fantasy
Trope: Retelling
Format: 📖
Pub Date: 5.3.2022
Star Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆

"I want to experience life, really live it, before I die. I want strange new countries and whatever comes with them, whether it be late-night flying lessons, pirates, or fairies. I want the moon and the silver stars and midnight sky all to myself, when everyone is asleep. I have no husband now, no small children, so perhaps it is my turn at last."

I need everyone to read this book so that you can appreciate the magic that Liz Michalski created, and then we can talk about the story, the characters, and all of the little details that were woven within the book. I don't know if I will ever be able to look at Peter Pan the same way again.

I was genuinely mesmerized by Darling Girl. I wanted to read it, but I didn't want it to end. I'd put the book down and instantly start thinking about the story again. It was a dark book, and Peter Pan is certainly not the good guy — the characters all take on a different persona than the original tale. The reader is given a different look into them — they're dirty, addicted, and very flawed. They are no longer the Lost Boys of Neverland. But, the world that Michalski created was magnificent.

I know I keep talking about the author's small details, but they were exquisite. From the 'damaged' Christopher Cooke, the small feather tattoos on a back/shoulder, the mentions of green and silver colors, and sparkly wings adorning a performer at a party. It was simply perfection.

PS. I beg all Hollywood Gods to snatch this up and turn it into a movie.

📖 A dark retelling of Peter Pan
👩‍👧‍👦 The lengths a parent will go to keep a child safe
✨ Beautiful details
😍 Christopher Cooke
🕵🏽‍♀️ An air of mystery

❌ - drug use, rape

I can't think of another story that is similar to this, it was pure magic, and I hope you add it to your reading list.

“𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚜 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚞𝚜, 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚒𝚗 𝚞𝚜. 𝙼𝚊𝚢 𝚠𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚕𝚢, 𝚍𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚖 𝚍𝚎𝚎𝚙𝚕𝚢, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚏𝚕𝚢 𝚑𝚒𝚐𝚑 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚘𝚗 𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚘𝚠𝚗.“

What can I say about this unique and refreshing take on the classic tale of Peter Pan & the Darling Family? I loved it! I was absolutely invested in this story from page 1. So much so, that I inhaled it whole in less than 24 hours.

“𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚋𝚢𝚜𝚖𝚊𝚕 𝚜𝚊𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐? ‘𝙵𝚊𝚒𝚝𝚑, 𝚝𝚛𝚞𝚜𝚝, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚙𝚒𝚡𝚒𝚎 𝚍𝚞𝚜𝚝?‘“

Set in modern day NYC & London, Michalski’s Pan and Wendy’s descendants are not at all what we expect. And, that’s a good thing. The author’s engaging writing and complex characters completely muddle our perceptions of right and wrong, hero and villain.

“𝙸𝚝‘𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜. 𝙸𝚝‘𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚘𝚌𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚍𝚛𝚊𝚠𝚜 𝚑𝚒𝚖.“

Without giving away too much, I will say that the exploration of the parent/child relationship was brilliant, as was Michalski’s many callbacks to the original tale and its author, J.M. Barrie. The only negative to this narrative was that I found myself missing the characters and their stories as soon as I finished reading. I wanted more. Sequel? I hope so!

“𝚃𝚒𝚌𝚔. 𝚃𝚘𝚌𝚔.“