Unfortunately, this is the first ARC I have to DNF. I'm unsure whether it really isn't for me (which would be strange, because usually I love Peter Pan retellings), or maybe we just met at the wrong time, but it just couldn't keep me interested. I tried and tried and tried, but kept getting bored and could never read more than a couple pages at once, so I've come to the decision that I'm willing to admit defeat and DNF this story.
I'm giving it three stars because I could see the potential and the writing style was smooth and easy to read, but I just lost interest somehow. It's probably on me and not on the book.

Wendy, Darling was one of my all time favorite reads last year. This book blew away all my expectations. This story gets deeper, more layered, and more intriguing with every page turn and every sentence. The world building takes us right back to that magical mix of London and Neverland, every detail is perfection. The characters are just as well vetted and intricate as ever. I loved being able to come back to them 8 years later, and see how Wendy and Jane are.
To date this is possibly my favorite version of Hook. The complexity of his character was really special. As well as the journey he has to take back to Neverland and to his freedom. Wise has once again turned a childhood classic into the stories of Neverland I didn’t know I needed. A truly beautiful saga.

“Hooked” is a hard book to review because it took me a little longer to get into, but it really got me towards the end… so 3-4 stars.

“Hooked” was really not the book I was expecting. Since it’s marketed as the story of what happened to Captain Hook after Neverland, I assumed it was a standalone set in the same universe as “Wendy, Darling” when in fact it reads much more like a sequel. Wendy and Jane are both main characters in this book and there are a lot of references to their experiences from “Wendy, Darling” that are relevant to the main plot. As someone who came into “Hooked” without reading “Wendy, Darling” I definitely feel like there was enough explanation of the events to not feel like I was missing a big part of the story, but I lacked all of the emotional attachment that would come from reading about it in detail as the characters were experiencing it.

The other unexpected thing about “Hooked” for me was that it had so little action. I was expecting Hook to travel to Neverland fairly early on to fight and kill the beast, but that’s not at all the direction the story takes. “Hooked” focuses a lot more on the emotional than the physical in order to explore themes such as PTSD, survivor’s guilt, and grief. The story was beautifully written, but it did take me a while to get into it.

I also had no idea going into this book that Captain Hook was gay, but I really enjoyed that element to the story and the relationship that they shared. I would have loved to see more of it.

Overall, “Hooked” was not at all what I was expecting but it was totally worth giving it a shot.

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

"You promised me you'd be careful. Your dreams are dangerous things, James."

Captain James Hook is no longer the villain people thought he was in this fantastic reimagining of what happens to the characters of Peter Pan after Neverland.

Following the perspectives of James Hook, Wendy and, Jane Darling, we are taken on a quest through their lives in London and Neverland as the perspective shift from person to person, between past and present.

Peter Pan is not the heroic young boy that the stories make him out to be. Before, Neverland was a place where Hook always felt himself dying, drowning, never able to get a step ahead of his young nemesis.

For Jane, it was a place where she was forced to grow up and experience grief for the first time, but for Wendy, she still pictures it as the safe place she once thought it to be. Through the dark shadows and terrifying beasts, her heart held onto the good, even if she knew there was no good truly there with Peter in charge.

But now, after twenty-two years, Pan's creature, the one that tormented Hook for years, is back for revenge. Will they be able to force the Beast back where it belongs, and make it leave for good? Or will this be the first time that Hook dies but does not come back to life?

As a lover of fairytale retellings and reimaginings, especially Peter Pan ones, this book was so amazing and 100% worth the read! I absolutely loved this new take on Neverland and Peterpan, and showing the dark side of it all.

Reading the perspective of James, especially with his companion Samuel made me so happy, and I was thrown back and so surprised by the suspense that this story manages to hold as well.

Also, as a lover of Jane from the second Peter Pan movie I was so glad to see her get some spotlight in this book! She is badass and fierce and exactly like I would imagine her to be, all grown up.

Thank you so much to the publishers for providing me with an eArc of this novel in exchange for my honest review! I am so grateful and excited to buy my own physical copy to add to my shelf!

Thank you to Net Galley and Titan Books for the E-Arc of this novel.

This is a retelling of Peter Pan through the narration from multiple points of View. It follows Wendy and Captain Hook after their time in Neverland. This book is considered a stand-alone, but would advise reading Wendy, Darling before reading Hooked.

I enjoyed the diversity of the characters and the human elements that the main protagonist were dealing with, such as addiction and grief. I also appreciated how beautifully written the story was despite the multiple POVs and timelines. The writing style is similar to V.E Schwab and I would recommend this author and their books to fans of Vicious or The Invisible Life Of Addie La Rue.

I really have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, I think the writing was beautiful and the imagery made me feel as though I were right there with the characters. HoWeVeRrRrRrrrr I found the plot to be a bit boring and overall a pretty slow pace. Personally, I haven’t read any Peter Pan retellings before and I was never a huge fan of it in the first place. But after hearing about a queer Peter Pan retelling, of course I had to jump on that instantly.

As someone who hasn’t read this author's previous work, Wendy Darling (2021), I thought that this story was super easy to follow and never once left me in the dark. Jane’s relationship with Timothy and Wendy’s journey back to Neverland 8 years ago was spelled out for me and I didn’t feel like I missed out on anything. That being said, the plot itself of Hooked just did not interest me. I found as I was reading that the only part of the story I was actually interested in was James and Samuel’s relationship. Everything with Jane and Wendy was likely there more so for fans of the original Peter Pan (this is just a guess, I don’t exactly know what about it didn’t interest me).

With the plot itself aside, I did love the characters. James/Hook’s story about PTSD, addition, and falling in love later in life stuck with me the most after reading. I loved every part about his experience with leaving Neverland, weaning off his addiction from the flowers, and being haunted by the tick tock crocodile (clockodile?) while trying to be a good man for Samuel. I also admired the character development between Jane and her mother, Wendy. I was so happy that they were able to mend their relationship and finally understand each other in a way they never had before.

Pointers!!! :
PTSD rep
Addiction rep
Falling in love later in life
MLM romance
Mother/daughter strife
Beautiful writing.

actual rating: 2.5

It's been quite awhile since I read any retellings like this so I thought I would give this one a try but I just never really managed to get invested in it. I think maybe there was just a bit too much going with having it be about Hook AND Wendy AND her daughter or maybe it was just that none of the characters ever really jumped off the page in the way I wanted but this one just wasn't for me. Rounding up to three stars because it was technically well written and there isn't necessarily anything wrong with it, just more of a personal preference thing on my end.

I really wanted to like this book, but sadly, I was just a bit disappointed. I couldn't fully get into it and found myself skimming large sections of the book. The timeline was confusing, I didn't like the multiple POVs, and I wish it had just gotten a little bit deeper into the LGBTQ storyline. Overall, I felt very "meh" about it.

I had requested this book based on my thoughts that it was a retelling of a classic story which I love, not realizing that it is actually a sequel to another book. I think that if I had known that and had read the first one I may have liked this one a bit more. A. C. Wise chose to use multiple point of views which I found some what hard to follow and added some confusion to the book. the relationship between Hook and the other characters was an interesting perspective but it was just not enough to make it a 5 star book.

Don’t let the title and Peter Pan’s tale foul you, this story is dark. This the thing that made the most impression on me since I’ve read the first book ‘Wendy Darling’.

James here from being the villain for many lifetimes turns to the saviour the world needs and will get the help of people that used to his enemies.

Here the lines of relationships blur, and right and wrong is hard to distinguish as the characters struggle themselves to find their place and stance in this world and Neverland.

The approach on Hook’s sexuality is marvellous and it one of the best I’ve seen so far for such strong characters. It hasn’t made him ‘one of the many’ characters but humanised him more, added layers to him and dimension. Such writing skills!

If you love retellings with a twist, I would argue you to read A. C. Wise.

I have not read the first book, Wendy Darling but I decided to give this one a go. I mean, a story focused on Captain Hook and he's gay, SIGN ME UP! How could I resist?

In this book, Captain James Hook has escaped Neverland. He is living alone, in London with what seems to be drug addiction and PTSD. We learn of his relationship and loss of his lover, Samuel as his story unfolds.

The events of the book lead Hook back to the very place he escaped. To be free from Neverland once and for all, he must go back. We meet Wendy and her daughter in the book and Wendy's daughter helps Hook re enter Neverland to end the hold Neverland has on him.

James struggles with his own duality...is he a villain or a hero? Can he be both?

I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone that enjoys a retelling of stories they grew up with.

genre: dark fantasy
The second in a story retelling of Peter Pan, the sequel to Wendy, Darling focuses on 3 main characters: Captain Hook (James), Wendy Darling, & Wendy’s daughter Jane. It follows the aftermath of Hook’s escape from Neverland to London after suffering through Pan’s torments and his beast trapping him in an eternal cycle of miserable death and resurrection and the complete lack of free will. Like a boy manipulating them as though they’re toys. Dark and twisty, it deals with Hook’s trauma and consequential ptsd and substance abuse, loss & grief, the horrors of war, and a damaged mother-daughter relationship.
It was a good story and very interesting concept, but just not for me, hence the 3 stars. I had a hard time connecting to the characters and the writing style and 3rd person pov made it a really slow read for me. But I’d recommend this if you’re a fan of dark fantasy retellings and confronting the hard stuff.
Tw: military trauma, substance abuse, damaged relationships, survivor’s guilt, grief

I wanted to be hooked by this book. I was (mostly). I enjoyed that I saw a different side to Neverland. Hook's backstory was very interesting. But, it lost me a bit in the last few chapters because a lot was going on.
It has a great premise overall but I am left feeling confused, partly due to the shifting narratives and timelines. I understand A.C. Wise has also written another Peter Pan retelling (Wendy, Darling) and it wasn't clear to me if Hooked was meant to be a standalone or a follow up. Maybe it would have been better if I'd read the other one first?
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC of this title. This was my honest review.

Sadly it's a DNF.
I requested this book through NetGalley because it sounded really great. I didn't know it was at least in the same universe as "Wendy, Darling" (which I didn't read). I didn't know it happened years after that book, otherwise I'd definitely had not requested it as my only take about Peter Pan is the Disney movies...

I couldn't understand what I was reading. I usually don't mind when the past unveil itself slowly but here it talked about events without telling what happened. It mentionned characters without telling us what happened. Overall it's super confusing and even going through the book I was still super confused... So I couldn't continue.

I'm putting 2 stars because I believe there'd be way more potential to this book and to this story if it'd be said anywhere in the blurp or in website like Goodreads that it's a book 2 of a series!
(It also could help avoiding bad reviews from people like me who went into it thinking it's a standalone and then doing research on why it seemed to be a continuation of a story instead of a new one)

This is my first A.C Wise book and within pages I knew this author would be added to my auto buy list! Hooked is a retelling that is thoughtful and lush, oozing with humanity and hope.

We meet Captian James Hook who has escaped the tumultuous nightmare of Neverland. Twenty years separate James from Neverland but he is still haunted with the fear of death that always crept after him in his previous life. As our MC copes with his tragic past, events unravel that may bring him back to the very place he longs to escape. With help from another escapee, James must embraces his villain status one last time to end Neverlands endless hold on him.

This is a masterful charter study at its core. Both James and Wendy are complex and relatable, morally grey in the most delicious and empathetic way! If you love lush atmosphere and deep character development this one is a must read!

--
Thank you to Netgalley and Titan Books for providing me with this advanced reader copy to review. All of my ARC reviews are spoiler-free! Hooked is expected to release July 12th 2022

This retelling of Peter Pan and it's such an interesting dark take on the story. Like an Edge of Tomorrow type situation for everyone involved but for extra fun they would lose certain memories.

This book is told through dual timelines from now in London where a grown up Wendy and elderly James (Hook) live but also something dark has been unleashed.

And the other timeline is 22 years before when Wendy did some stuff and destroyed some stuff and dropped the mic and ran with her.

This book had a lot of themes in it like survivors guilt, drug abuse, PTSD and others that flowed throughout.

Plus there's a LGBTQ storyline that I'm here for! 

Thank you titanbooks and netgalley for the e-ARC for my honest and voluntary review.

DNF at 34%. I just couldn't get into this story. I like the concept of following Captain Hook after he's left Neverland, and learning the story behind how he became the villain we all know so well, but there just wasn't enough to hook me in.

I didn't realize this is a sequel to the authors previous book Wendy, Darling. There are many references to earlier events/characters, which made it hard to get into.

I found the story too slow for my taste, and the jumping timelines/events confusing in places.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

I wish I knew sooner that this book was a related to other books from the author. Maybe that’s why I couldn’t really enjoy it as much as I wanted to. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a magical story! But next time I’ll make sure to know when a book is a standalone or if it is part of another. Overall, Peter Pan is my favorite story, and everything related to it it’s a win for me! I give this book 3 starts!

I'm all about Peter Pan usually but this just was not a bit of me. I can imagine it be absolutely loved by others, but this just wasn't my cup of tea.

The writing was good and so were the characters/relationships.

This isn't marketed as a sequel to Wendy, Darling but it would help to have read that book first as there are many references to characters and events that took place in that earlier work in Hooked.

A dreamy, ethereal, fresh take on Neverland and its inhabitants.

This was an interesting read, putting Captain James Hook front and center and making him a sympathetic character. Peter Pan was positioned as this story's antagonist, and even then, only peripherally -- he was largely absent, though his presence was felt. Sharing the majority of the spotlight with Hook is Jane, Wendy Darling's grown daughter, who is studying medicine in male-dominated London, 1939. Jane and Hook both are escapees and survivors of Neverland, who find themselves having to return and face the nightmare they had left behind.

I thought Jane's story was a compelling, feminist-slanting take on the idea of Neverland and the Lost Boys. As Jane is marginalized in her field of study, surrounded by men who look at her as though she is out of place or ought to serve a different purpose, we see this mirrored in Jane & Wendy's experiences of Neverland. Surrounded by the Lost Boys, they look to their singular female figure to be the storyteller, meal provider, and other stereotypically-female roles. We see how damaging that was for the two women, whose actions ultimately cause a fundamental (arguably apocalyptic) change in the fabric of Neverland.

James, meanwhile, shows us that sometimes, a situation calls for a villain instead of a hero. We see his Neverland identity created and cemented, we see him escape from a cyclical existence, and we see him put a decades-old mistake to rights. While his romantic relationship with the ship surgeon Samuel functioned more as a mechanism for nostalgia and regret, it was also humanizing, and it set the stage for James to make higher-stakes sacrifices due to this history of missed opportunities.

Overall, I would agree with some of the comparisons made between A.C. Wise's writing style and that of V.E. Schwab. It's a bit more lyrical, adding to the dreamlike feel of the overall story. At times, the action seems to take a bit of a backseat, but I found this to be true of <u>Addie LaRue</u> in much the same way. Ultimately, this was a solid retelling with a strong voice and point of view.

Thank you to NetGalley and Titan Books for this DRC.