Peter Darling

TW: Misgendering, dead name usage, suicide attempt

This is an ownvoices trans gay retelling of Peter Pan and just knowing that made me very excited to read it. To tell you all the truth, I actually know nothing much about the story of Peter Pan other than the little I watched on Once Upon A Time, so I wont be able to give any comparisons to the original.

Peter is back in Neverland again after growing up because he couldn't keep on living a lie at his London home. His family continuously refers to him using his dead name/birth identity and never even try to understand him. He tries very hard to live the way they want, to make them happy but he is so miserable that even death feels better. But when he gets the chance to come back, he grabs the opportunity with both hands. Neverland is where he feels truly comfortable in his body.

First half of the book has a lot of skirmishes between Peter and Hook – they each just look for ways to start a fight, almost like they don't want to be away from each other long. There is very subtle underlying attraction that we can feel but the two of them take their own sweet time to arrive at that conclusion. Almost fatal injuries and isolation in a cave force them to acknowledge their feelings – the reason they are always fighting is because it's the only tangible feeling they have to hold on to. But once they do realise that they actually adore each other, there are some very sweet romantic moments followed by a fair amount of angst. Both of them have to decide if they are prepared to leave the dream of Neverland and step together into the real world.

At about 200 pages, this book is very short but the author does a great job developing a believable enemies-to-lovers romance without making it feel like instalove. The island of Neverland, its terrain and creatures, the faeries and Peter's brand of magic is presented fairly well but the shorter length prevents from going into any details. I also would have loved to know more about the backstory of Ernest or even about Hook's first love but we never get the chance to explore all these facets. However, the story is still fully realized, with well written characters and an interesting plot.

I especially fell in love with the ending of the story – it was so adorable and I just wanted to read more about Peter and James's life together. This is a beautiful story of identity, loneliness and love and I would recommend it to anyone who loves fairy tales.

This is probably one of the best books I have ever read.

Peter Darling is a trans, queer retelling of Peter Pan where Peter is the son of the Darlings, and, after ten years, returns to Neverland to find everything is different.
This book was so incredible. The worldbuilding was brilliant; I really liked the way the fairies had been imagined to be more like insects than the typical fairies we're used to. The way Neverland operated as well, bending to the will of Peter (and Hook) was also intruiging and very well-written.

This book touched on so many interesting topics, such as toxic masculinity in trans men, and I found everything it touched to be handled so caringly and with respect and realism.
Peter himself was not a very nice character to begin with, but I still enjoyed reading about him, and his change in character was gradual and sweet.
I found some of the other characters to be a bit lacking, such as the Lost Boys, though that makes sense after the fabrication of the world, how it bends to Peter's will, is revealed. In a way, this, as well as later descriptions of the world after it becomes snowy actually make the world feel quite sad and empty, though no doubt this is intentional, to clearly demonstrate how unreal it all is.

While the other characters lacked depth, this was very much made up for with the character of Hook. He was a fun antagonist and even better love interest, humorous and enjoyable alongside Peter. Their bonding felt realistic, using the forced proximity trope in the cave, and I enjoyed how the world took a step back as the romance between Peter and Hook was prioritised, further adding to the atmosphere of them being the only real people in all of Neverland.
I also really liked the presentation of queerness, especially in a historical setting such as this. The contrast between Hook's comfort in his sexuality and Peter's realisation and both of their denials about their feelings towards one another were very entertaining and interesting.

Possibly the most important thing about this book for me was Peter's transness. His sureness and insistence, how he runs away to Neverland and refuses to return, making the world turn cold and snowy, and eventually returning with Hook, or, James, to his world and being able to be comfortable with his own body, rather than the pretend one created for him in Neverland. This book allowed space for trans pain that I haven't experienced in other trans books. It was so raw and genuine and I was able to connect with Peter and his transness in a very deep manner. I'm glad that Peter didn't stay in Neverland with his faux male body, and returned to our world, able to be happy with the one he already had. It made me reevaluate my beliefs and desires about my own transness and I cried a

“Your obsession is flattering, Pan. And I share it.”“Obsession?”“Is that not what they call it,” Hook said, “when two men can think of nothing but each other?”

What kind of fanfiction realness.....

This was a delight. Such a creative take on Neverland, the faraway fantasy island where queer kids (and adults) go to flee from the patriarchal, homophobic, gender-norm constraints of the real world. Neverland has always been known as a kind of safe haven for outsiders, but it makes so much sense as a place specifically for people who are persecuted for being who they are or loving who they love. And trans Peter? BRILLIANT, INSPIRED, IT'S CANON, ETC.

And Peter/Hook? I mean, duh.

I just wish this whole book hadn't felt so rushed. I wanted to delve deeper into everything—the backstories, the relationships, Neverland itself. I do feel like the book leaned a little too heavily on its source material, especially for Peter's and Hook's characterizations, particularly in the first half. The second half gave a lot more depth and creativity to their characters, but I still think it could've been taken to another level. This is really just to say that we skimmed the surface of some really great content here, and Little Mermaid voice I WANT MOOOOORE

Upon reading the premise of this one, I scoured the internet, but was unable to find it. I actually ended up getting a library card just so I could. I definitely wish I could buy it. I totally would. Peter in this is so in-character, you never don't see him as Peter. And ditto Captain Hook. I love this take on the story. It fits so much of Barrie's story world of Neverland. I highly recommend to anyone who loves Peter, but would love an LGBT take on the tale.

But a chance of getting lost, he decided, was better than the certainty of losing James.

trigger warnings: transphobia, misgendering

A fantasy m/m romance with my favourite enemies to lovers trope, between Hook and Peter Pan? NICE.

Peter Darling is both a combination of a sequel, a prequel, and a retelling of the Peter Pan story.
Our beloved Peter is a transman in this version, and escapes once more to Neverland in an effort to be the person he really is, and not who his family think he should be (they really don't seem to be a nice bunch). There he reunites with the Lost Boys, and the adventures start all over. But, it's all a little bit stale for him. Things have changed. There's a truce between the Lost Boys and the pirates, and it's just not as fun as it was the first time around, so he decides to go and make his own fun.

He meets Hook again, and nothing makes him feel more alive, less bored, than every meeting he has with him. That's just because they're enemies and he loves the thrill of the fight, right?
As Peter comes to realise, and as Hook realises before him, Peter just loves the thrill of Hook himself.

The adventure never stopped in this book and it was honestly really fun to read. There was danger at every turn for Hook and Peter, especially between them, beautifully demonstrated by Peter pulling a knife on him when they first kiss. It's scary and new and overwhelming, but it's the most real thing either of them have felt in years.
A little bit too real.

This book was a little too short for my liking, so the jump between them wanting to kill/hate each other, and the exact opposite was just a little too quick for me. It did feel realistic though, and I could see how they would develop feelings for each other. I liked that after they left Neverland, they tried to make a relationship work between them. It was a really sweet read and I love the slight differences Austin Chant made between this and the Pan story everyone knows.

I wish we could have seen more of Ernest and his relationship with Peter, and of the rest of the Lost Boys in general. Despite that, this is a wonderful story.

i had high hopes for this book because i love the original story of peter pan, but i'm always up for a retelling. unfortunately, i felt like it fell flat for me because it seemed very rushed. i think it's only a little over 200 pages, and i feel like in order to really do the storyline justice, it needed to have been way more flushed out than it was. there were definitely good moments about the story, but in the end, it felt very incomplete.

So... I enjoyed the book - possibly even really liked it - but I am unable to really say why. I can't really point at anything and say that these are the things I that made me like the book. Except for the fact that I do seem to like enemies-to-lovers if the enemies are actually fighting each other. (This book and Netflix's She-Ra has convinced me of this.)

Pan and Hook are neither the most likable characters, though they are both very interesting. I probably would have gotten more out of the story had I ever read/watched the original. All I know about Peter Pan I gained through cultural osmosis. (And tv shows and books that run in their own direction with the story/characters.)

It's a quick read (I read like three-quarters of it in one morning) and I was excited to know what was going to happen once things started moving.