Thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an Arc to review of this book. This does not alter my opinions/ratings of the book.

I requested this book through Netgalley based on being a Peter Pan retelling. I've always adored the Darling last name. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect, and wasn't sure if this would be a YA or Adult book.
I enjoyed the unique origin story for Peter and Wendy, and appreciated that some details stayed true to the original, like Tink's jealousy. I would almost categorize this as a dark romance, due to some of the more violent twists, and romance scenes in the story line. All in all I enjoyed this story, and the cliff hanger ending. I would rate it a 3.5 only because the dialog felt a bit stiff at times. Still worth a read for fellow Pan lovers!

DNF

Kind of annoyed. I downloaded this one and Losing Neverland (dark retelling ) at the same time from what I thought were two different authors.

WRONG!

I read Losing Neverland, enjoyed it, then cleansed my palette on a cutesy rom-com before going into another Peter Pan retelling… and I noticed similarities as I was reading. Not the first couple of chapters, but as it got to Wendy’s 13th birthday I was sat there going “this sounds familiar…is it just because these things happened in the original Peter Pan and they’re both just adding them in….?”
Nope. I needed to come on here and check and YUP same person wrote both books, just different names.

So I am DNF’ing currently. I may get back to it at some point. Maybe.

This is an updated version of Hooking Peter so technically this is my second time reading it. For some reason I can’t tell what changed between that book and this book but I still enjoyed it.

I just LOVE fairytale retellings and have read a few Peter Pan reimaginings - and this is right up there with some of the most fun ones!

Retelling of Peter Pan. Peter doesn't want to grow up, so goes to Neverland with Tinkerbell.

I felt like the story was well written, and I enjoyed seeing more of a backstory for Peter Pan, but there were parts that were very meh to me. Like, when he goes back to get Wendy. Wendy wasn't my favorite, she was a little annoying to me. The way she acted was more childish than her actual age and was kind of unbelieving, but other than that, I enjoyed it overall. I received an advanced review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily and honestly.

DNF. The characters in this were way too young for me personally to feel comfortable reading about them in a dark romance format. It just felt a bit icky.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book. I learned about Peter’s origin story coupled with a few added twists to the original tale. I believe this book has potential, but it just needs a little tweaking. I liked the story, I just didn’t love it. But I have high hopes that book two will answer several questions I have about the side characters.

I read this and Losing Neverland and enjoyed both for different reasons. I really enjoyed the added aspects of this version, but I think that they need to be combined fully to really appreciate the story! I love the blend of characters and bringing everything full circle.

ARC of Hooking Peter by @evelynbrittany.montgomery

⭐⭐⭐/5

This book piqued my interest due to it being about Peter Pan, though I knew it may not be the same. Here are my main thoughts... SPOILERS SWEETIES!

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*George Darling: walking red flag alert. Likes to gaslight.
*Interesting turn of events in he. It comes to Peter's Mother. One I don't believe was followed through during the story.
*Never too old for a fairytale.
*Go Nana! She was one brave cookie.
*There were some parts of the story I was unsure on Wendys age which clouded the times where it was more R rated.
*Linking with the above point, I feel there was a lot of jumping around and not enough explanation on what had happened.
*Glad I read the book, I would look out for other books by author.

#HookingPeter
#NetGalley

i had such a great time reading this book!! it was so fun. the characters were amazing and sweet and wonderful. it was just such a pure joy and i'm so very thankful to netgalley for letting me read this one early!!!

This one gets 3.5 stars from me. I really liked everything about this retelling of Peter Pan. I loved the characters and the world building. The only criticism I have is that I was so confused about Peter and Wendy's ages. Were they 13? Were they older? I know at the end of the book we find out that Wendy was older. But how old was Peter? With that being said, I can not wait to read the next one!

Thank you NetGalley for three arc in exchange for my honest review

I started off enjoying this book learning about Peter’s back story and how he came to Neverland. But as I got further into it i wasn’t enjoying it as much. I liked how each chapter was from the point of view of the different main characters.

I really enjoyed this! I love a Peter Pan retelling and this didn’t disappoint!! I wish there had been more but that’s just me loving a long book.

You think you know all about Peter Pan and Neverland? You think there is nothing new about the story? Well then step into this world and read about another way the story can be told!

Wow! This is my first reaction to this newly told story of Peter Pan.
I really like the story and already read other versions of a story we all think we know so very well.
When the story starts I really loved that we are still in the old setting with old standards and I really loved the wording used here.
Right from the start we have some small changes showing us Wendy in a totally different light than the original story and the Darling´s are not a loving family. Their marriage is not happy and Wendy shall adopt becoming a wife who accepts all her husband is doing, not saying anything about him and do what her father is telling here to do. She doesn´t want this life and is desperately looking for an escape. She and Peter Pan are friends since quite some time and also he doesn´t want to grow up and be as his father is, life the live his father is expecting of him.
I really like the idea that we learn here who Peter´s mother is and how Neverland is created. Also both characters are not kids any longer compared to the original story. They are a bit older with 18 years and also the dark is lurking in the dark and is showing its ugly face. Who is James Hook, and also how he ended up in Neverland gets here a totally new twist.

For me a wonderful new version of Peter Pan which is not suitable for children any longer. It shows also the dark side of life, how two persons don´t want to live a live their fathers expect them to be and their hope to find a happily ever after.

I couldn’t continue with this book after reading it as a dark romance but with children/teenagers. Something didn’t sit right with me.

Retellings are a favorite type of book for me. Loved this version of Peter Pan. Can’t wait to read the other 3 books to this series.

This book was a difficult read for me. I always loved Peter Pan growing up and I had different expectations for this book. When I reached about 30%, it took an unexpected turn. For me, I do not like reading about teens having a dark romance and several make out sessions at a young age. I am not sure what age range this book is intended for with situations such as Peter unbuttoning her nightgown or Wendy letting out a "sexy moan" because in these scenes, they are still kids and at least one of them is. The whole point of Peter Pan and Neverland is so he never grows. I understand the age gap but the situations aren't appropriate for children that age. I was also super upset that the dad was painted as such a terrible husband who cheats on and beats his wife. The book was a spin on a popular tale and after reading the rest of the book, this was not my cup of tea.

The classic story of Peter Pan with a fun and dark twist.... or it was supposed to be. Unfortunately this one falls short of the mark. This book is so fast paced it difficult to keep up with what is happening. On top of that the timeline is so confusing. Its very unclear how much time passes throughout the book and while the general ages of the characters seem to be important and mentioned briefly its vey unclear exactly how old they are.

It feels at lot like the author had general ideas and plot points they wanted to hit but couldn't figure out how to connect the dots and weave together a well written story so we as the reader are kind of just thrown from scene to scene. It really stood out to me during the pivotal moment in the book when Wendy leaves Neverland without telling Peter goodbye. After that happens the story just flashes forward several weeks in time and we don't get to see Peter's reaction to the news like you would expect.

The romance scenes in the book also feel very bizarre and just like they were thrown in at the last minute because someone just wanted the characters to kiss.

Every chapter and scene in this book had me just questioning what was happening and how we got there and by the last quarter of it I kind of just had enough and decided to skim. In short, the idea for the story was there but the execution just wasn't.

As an avid lover of Peter Pan and Wendy j was very excited to read this retelling. Having the story start off with real life experiences and then adding in the “Neverland fantasy” was a great way to tie in the hope that neverland could be a happy thought away. The middle section of the story set up the struggle Peter and Wendy both faced deciding where they wanted to live their lives forever - and how. And those villains were really plotting as well! There was a bit of a Romeo and Juliet feel to the story as well as a type of real life fated mates. The ending set up the second book well and I am looking forward to seeing where the second book will lead! Thanks for the opportunity to read your story, Brittany!

Let me start by saying thank you to Netgalley and the authors for this ARC. I’m new to the site and I appreciate you all taking a chance on me.

However, I’ll be completely honest - I had to DNF this book halfway through because of the simple fact that they’re only THIRTEEN years old, and the book reads like a dark romance. If the characters were in their 20s or 30s, it be much more enjoyable. But reading about literal children making out and sensually unbuttoning nightgowns and saying they want to explore each other fully, I feel gross. I keep waiting for a time jump to make it a little better but so far the only jump has been Wendy going from 11 to 13.

The description said NOTHING about it being a dark romance. Nothing about ages. Nothing about the amount of sexualized content there would be. Peter Pan even described Wendy as sexy at one point and he is constantly calling her “good girl”… let me remind you they are THIRTEEN.

I liked the overall idea of the story. It was incredibly intriguing to me. However, as some other reviews have said, there were just too many ideas for the length of the book, the world building was good but a little confusing, and the romance was too mature for the age of the characters.