I read Wendy, Darling last year and really enjoyed it so I was looking forward to seeing how Hook’s story would be told. This book did not disappoint.

I’ve read retellings of some tales where the villain is recast as the hero and how they were doing what was morally right, but nobody could see it at the time – this isn’t that. Hook used to be James, a sailor who set off to help him and his sister make a living; he was on his way home to her when the ocean opened, swallowed him up and spat him onto a beach in Neverland where Peter Pan cast him as his new pirate captain, Hook.

Turned into one of Peter’s villains, Hook’s only purpose on Neverland is to be the villain, to strike fear into the hearts of the Lost Boys only to die time and time again; by drowning, being stabbed, being eaten by a treacherous beast in the depths of the ocean, and yet, by the magic of Neverland, he was able to come back to life, time and time again.

Hook eventually heard tell of a dagger which could sever his and his crew’s connection to Neverland and so he took the risk to escape.

The story we hear from Hook is of a morally grey character who does what is needed in order to survive, and for twenty-two years, he avoided catching the eye of Neverland, until the beast finds him once more.

We get three different character perspectives; Hook, for who we have the present day, his early days back in London after escaping Neverland and his time in Neverland; Wendy Darling who mostly focusses on the present day; and Wendy’s daughter Jane, where we see memories of Jane’s time in Neverland and the present day.

I’m not sure this worked overly well for me, there was so much going on, particularly towards the end, and I’d have liked to have heard more from James; he and the ship’s surgeon, Samuel, were in love and lived together in London after Neverland, but I didn’t feel as though I got to see much of the relationship which was disheartening.

I did enjoy how this book built on the aftereffects of Wendy, Darling, seeing Neverland in disrepair, almost glitching with the way so many different timelines were happening at once, and it added a haunting quality to it.

I found myself confused as to where Peter Pan was during this, it’s implied that he’s stretched out over the sky of Neverland, but it didn’t really make sense, and given the epilogue, I’m not sure there’ll be a follow up book.

An interesting retelling but I’d recommend reading Wendy, Darling first to avoid confusion since this ties up some loose ends from that book.

I really enjoyed the way this author writes, it's very dark whimsical. Something I absolutely loved. I love the take that A. C. Wise took on this retelling. It was beautiful and feminist in the best ways possible. The characters were neither good nor bad and something that is difficult to pull off.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. If you love Peter Pan, dark retellings or even feminist versions of our classic childhood stories, please pick this book up immediately.

A new take on an old classic. I really enjoyed the new light all the characters were placed in this story. It brings your mind to a new place within a book you already know. I whole heartily enjoyed the change of pace with this one.

A well written retelling of a well loved story. It had me ‘hooked’ (excuse the pun) and wanting more. The characters where well written, and so was the overall plot. Definitely recommend.

A brilliant sequel, this book tells the previously unheard story of what happened to Hook after the events of Peter Pan! Daring and adventurous, it's a riveting read which I would recommend to anyone who likes Peter Pan - and even if you're not familiar with the original story, you'll still find this a fun fantasy tale. I'd recommend this also if you like twisted fairytale retellings of any kind!

DNF

I was so excited to read this book and once I picked it up I couldn't get into it. Hooked didn't hook me.

thank you to the author and titan books for providing an ARC via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

i’ll start by saying that i truly appreciate the story's premise. retellings of peter pan are my favorite. but i can't quite put my finger on why i thought the execution was a little...off. the chapters were excessively long. i was content with it until midway part of the book came into play. to be completely honest, everything kind of fell apart after that. despite that i could understand why the author went in that direction, i was unsatisfied with the conclusion hook received and even disliked it a little. it has several intriguing plot ideas and was well-written. even though i really wanted to care about the characters, i never got that attached to them.

It’s no secret I love Peter Pan, hence the name of this blog! I love reading retellings so I just had to read this one. I read Wendy, Darling last year and really enjoyed the new take on Neverland and Peter Pan himself. A.C. Wise has created a world where Peter is a beast controlling Neverland and manipulating everyone into playing his permanent game. The first book focused on Wendy and her daughter Jane, where as this one focuses on James Hook.

‘And a hook! You must have a hook for a hand. That will be your name, Captain Hook, and we shall fight all the time and you will be beastly and terrible, but I will always win.’

There are two different timelines explored in this book. One is when James first appears in Neverland and is forced to begin playing Peter’s games. He endures several different ways of dying and is always revived. So he hatches a plan to escape and tries to bring his crew members with him. I loved that Wise made James queer and the moments between him and Samuel, the only crew member who truly cared about him, were so sweet and heartbreaking.

‘Behind the Devil, I saw that you could be whatever you chose-if you chose. Not just what Pan made of you.’

In the present timeline, Jane is living in London with her friend, until her friend is taken by mysterious shadows and turned into a shadowy imprint of herself. On a visit to London, Wendy bumps into James and they all begin to unravel the mystery of Neverland once again. This was a very immersive book and it definitely doesn’t paint the joyful Neverland that I remember as a child. It’s quite dark but still an enjoyable retelling!

I enjoyed this book, it was easy to read and held my attention. I will be reading more from this author :)

‘Hooked,’ by A.C. Wise falls flat as a non-sequel LGBT follow up to Wendy, Darling. While, okay, there are probably better options in the world of Pan.

On paper, this book is the perfect one for me. In reality however, it was just a bit boring.
It had so much potential!

I LOVE RETELLINGS!! This multiple POV and timeline version of Peter Pan was well written and creative and kept me captivated through each turn of the page. It can get a bit muddled, but I took notes while reading as I typically do. Overall, a great retelling and I would read again.

This story had a lot of promise but it just wasn't a good suit for me in the end.

I loved the unique spin on the characters and the role reversal in regards to who the hero and villian were but beyound that, I didn't find much that I enjoyed.

The story was slow and often boring and I seriously considered not finishing it on several occasions.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me a free digital copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review.

First DNF at 23% I tried to get in to this one I really did but everyone is pick it up if get a couple pages in and get so bored. Hook was just boring and so slow. I know I didn’t give it the standard 40% but it just felt like a waste of time. Maybe I’ll come back to it at some point and it’ll be better but for now I just couldn’t force myself.

I will always be interested in a Peter Pan retelling and this one with its twist with hook and Wendy was so much fun. It was a very unique and modern retelling with multiple povs. I really enjoyed it

I do love a retelling but I just couldn’t get into this one. Maybe it’s because I haven’t read the first “Wendy Darling” but I couldn’t invest myself into the story or the characters.

I did love the unique story and the fact that Peter was the evil character in the story. I liked the multiple POVs and how you got to go back in time to see the start of Hooks story.

I wanted so badly to be enthralled with this story. I'm a sucker for a retelling and I loved the idea of a deeper dive into Captain Hook. What I didn't exactly vibe with was the messy mix of POVs, at times I found myself re-reading entire chapters to make sure I was reading it from the proper POV. It was slightly confusing, albeit, very well written. It's not a book to put down and come back to time to time, it's one you want to read in one sitting if possible to avoid confusing yourself on who is doing what, and where, and when. All in all, I can definitely see people enjoying this if the can follow the POVs easily!

As an avid fan of Peter Pan, this was an incredible take on the story of Captain Hook and the world of Neverland set in the 1800s. This beautiful story is poetic with beautiful prose that takes you into the heart of three characters' journeys that intersect. A tragic romance coincides with the story of an adult Wendy and her daughter Jane as Captain Hook struggles with his identity as James and the pirate he left behind. An amazing read that should be on everybody's shelves!

I really wanted to like this book because I like any Peter Pan adaption that points out the fact that Pan is the villain, because he is the worst. HOWEVER, the first 60% of this book was a mix between telling the story of Hook's life and getting Wendy, Jane, and Hook into the same place. It was such a slow pace and I was waiting for something to happen other than off the page deaths. Then once the story actually picks up, everything is resolved at a rather quick pace with no real consequences or cleanup. It just seemed like a half finished story and I wanted so much more from it.

Pirate and villain, Captain James Hook, is a feared man in Neverland. He has died many times, courtesy of the actions of Peter Pan, suffering each and every time. When Hook has an opportunity to escape through a doorway in the sky, he takes his chances, regardless of the consequences or costs. Finding himself in London, Hook discovers that he hasn’t completely escaped, and that Pan’s monster is still after him, leaving innocent victims in its wake. Hook finds help in the unlikeliest of places, however,  when he crosses paths with someone from his past, Wendy Darling, as well as her daughter, Jane. Does Hook have one more battle in him to vanquish Pan’s monster?

I wanted to like Hooked, but it just seemed all over the place. I was often confused about where things were going within the story and how I even got where I was; it was hard to follow at times. I did like the characters. I grew to have a level of sympathy towards James. Wise took a villain and turned him into a likable and, while flawed, compassionate individual. I also liked Jane. She is a strong woman, and I absolutely loved how progressive she is for the time period.