I love a good retelling, love Peter Pan and enjoyed Darling Girl this year too...so it was a not brainer to request ot read Light of the Second Star. This is an amazing reimagining of Peter Pan. Anyone who loves the classic Peter Pan and the hook will love this story. It’s a great read for those of us who never wanted to grow up.

Thank you to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op & NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book

There’s a reason why Wendy Darling has stood the test of time as a beloved literary heroine. She’s resourceful, whimsical, and just the right amount of haughty, for what is in essence her coming-of-age story. Louisa Webber is… exactly what you would expect from a modern-day author. A young woman, ahead of her time but repressed by the constrains of her society… The trope is as tired as it gets, especially when it’s a character’s only distinguishable personality trait. Retelling a classic piece of literature is always going to be a gamble, but if you are going to insert your own MC, at least make them interesting. The plot itself is nothing imaginative, featuring the pirate Blackbeard capturing Peter Pan and his companion “Jay” trying to rescue him… which feels very similar to the Pan movie. Except this version is a re-imagining of Captain Hook’s origin… as a whiny child. Even more concerning is the romance subplot between child Jay and literal adult Louisa.

In all, Light of the Second Star is boring. Just that.

Thank you to NetGallery for proving an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5499179766
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/75552132-light-of-the-second-star

I love Peter Pan retellings, which is the main reason why I requested this ARC.
It took me a while to get through the book, it was very slow going, especially the first half. While it was important to get to know Lou's story and background, once Lou was in Neverland things got very very slow.
I loved how Jay and Lou met and the overall premise of the story. The ending while not really unexpected, was a good closing to Lou's story. I just did not entirely enjoy the pacing.
Thanks for the ARC, my review is completely voluntary and honest.

✨Light of the Second Star - Vanessa Raccio✨

As someone who loves dark fairytale retellings, this was SUCH an interesting read! The novel focuses on both the past and present of Louisa Webber’s life as she navigates through an intense and lonely childhood into the tricky world of being a young woman, expected to marry for money.

As a child, her only solace was her relationship with her imaginary friend, Jay but as an adult she is consumed by the pressure put upon her by her mother to marry someone she neither knows or loves.

When circumstances and her anxiety reach their peak, Louisa finds herself in another world that seems strangely familiar yet terrifying. The Island, filled with mermaids and pirates (and ruled over by a sinister young boy called Peter) isn’t the escape from reality that it may seem.

This novel was great and it was such an interesting take on the Peter Pan story. I loved the darker psychological elements and the descriptions of life on The Island. I really recommend giving this a try if you’re into thrillers/fairytale retellings/magical realism!

(This is definitely one for adults though, the themes are pretty intense!)

Thank you to @netgalley and @authorvanessaraccio for the e-arc in exchange for my unbiased review ✨📖

#reading #bookreview #review #peterpan #captainhook #lightofthesecondstar #netgalley #earc #advancedreaderscopy #kindle #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #fantasy #fantasyfiction #magical #fairytaleretelling

This story provides a retelling of how Captain Hook came to be. How did his anger towards Peter Pan immerge? This story unravels as we learn of Lou, a young woman who has forgotten her imaginary friend, Jay, and is shocked when she has whisked away to an island and begins questioning everything, she thought to be true.

I love fairy tales and modified tellings of them. It is a cozy and nostalgic subject matter, and I had high hopes for Captain Hook’s origin story. The idea was great, but unfortunately, this book was a bit of a miss for me. I struggled with why I wouldn’t say I liked it. It was very challenging to pinpoint.

I don’t think I liked Lou. Her own privilege blinded her, and the reader was expected to feel as much sympathy towards her as you did for Jay’s group of orphans. This didn’t sit well with me. The first half of the book was slow. I couldn’t figure out why it was so slow; it may have been too much dialogue, or it could not have been enough exciting plot. It was challenging to get through.

The second half got much better! There are some exciting scenes with fairies and mermaids that I adore. The plot picked up, and I found myself liking Lou more too. Another aspect that was well done was the dictatorship we see under Peter. That was a very creative aspect to take!

This might be a good read if you are really into pirates and fairy tales. It’s on the low side of 3 stars. I probably won’t read it again.

I want to thank Netgalley for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Good premise for the book but unfortunately the execution feel a little flat.
The overall pacing of the book was off, way too slow at times.
And the verbiage of the pirate talk was excessive, some things can be implied to the reader and it goes over better, I think this would be one of them.

WOW I loved this book. First book I have loved in a really really long time. An amazing retelling of a beloved childhood story. Thank you so much for approving this ARC. :)

An emotional story

Lou is betrothed at twenty, expected to provide for her mother and sister. It's more important than everything. Jay is on Peter island, but he was once Lou's imaginary friend, sent to protect her during her difficult childhood. As it turns out, Lou still needs his protection... When she ends up trapped on the island with him because Peter has been captured, her life is turned upside down. What she thought wasn't real is, in fact, very real.

I love a Peter Pan retelling, and this one was quite intriguing. It took me a bit of time to really get into the story, especially because there are dual timelines and I'm not a fan of those. After a few chapters though, once the story really started, I was fully into it. The author created a very interesting world of magic and secrets around the original tale and twisted it her way in a very fascinating way. The plot was well-written and even if the pace was still a little too slow for me at times, I had a good time reading this book. The characters were interesting as well, and I really liked the relationship between Jay and Lou because it's not one we see a lot of in this genre. The writing was pleasant to read and immersive. I'm eager to see what will happen in the sequel.

I recommend if you like Peter Pan retellings and aren't afraid of dual timelines.

"But prisons, it turned out, were sometimes a simple matter of perspective."

TW: violence, blood, death, kidnapping, assault, abuse

Light of the Second Star is a twist on the age-old story of Peter Pan. Raccio takes a different approach to the tale of the lost boys by focusing on the idea of an imaginary friend to a child. Jay, a lost boy who is second in command to Peter Pan, is assigned to Lou as her friend. Lou is a possible lost girl who feels unwanted by her family - specifically her mother. Lou is "lost" not in the traditional sense of being homeless or abused, but in that she is well cared for, but emotionally struggles with mental health. Raccio does a nice job on alluding to this struggle with Lou not feeling good enough and, therefore depressed, but also scratching the surface of her mother's postpartum depression that leads to her emotional neglect.

The concept of the lost boys is different in this tale. It is originally unclear how the lost boys are chosen, but the novel gives small glimpses into their real lives prior to being lost boys on Peter's island. These glimpses keep the reader engaged and focused on figuring out a hidden mystery to a beautiful story about friendship and love. The novel itself has multiple triggers, but it plays on the heart as you begin to learn more about each character and their reason for being lost.

Overall, the story was beautifully done and the ending provides a nice foundation for the actual fairytale of Peter Pan, his lost boys, and the pirates they fight. The island itself does lack in descriptive setting to allow the reader to feel truly immersed. Additionally, the fairies and mermaids have changes from the tale itself that are unclear as to the purpose to the story. I would, however, still recommend this tale to any fan of Peter Pan as a wonderful twist on the origin.

My review was collected from an ARC copy through NetGalley.

Thank you to NetGalley and Vanessa Raccio for letting me review this book.

There are memories and feelings in this one. And also beautiful writing! I really, really love this book. It was easy to fall in and let the story take me through itself. I almost want to give it five stars... but maybe 4.75 stars is more accurate. Nonetheless, loved it!

The childhood parts were especially nicely written. Not even sure why, but I really liked them and the way it was written.

I love that there were content warnings. More books should have them.

I recommend this book to everyone who loves to read retellings of fairytales that truly feel like fairytales.

Includes:
Friendship
Memories
Pirates
Fairies
Mermaids

"The island doesn't make things nice and pretty for you...so get your head straight, or stay behind."

Everyone has probably read the story of Peter Pan. They know that when Wendy grew up, she could no longer return to Neverland. But...what if she could? And what if, when she got there, Peter wasn't in charge anymore? Without Peter, Neverland is about to fold in on itself and take Jay, his second-in-command, and what's left of the Lost Boys with it.

At the beginning of the book, the author talks about how she was inspired to write this story by her daughter asking her to check for monsters in her room. It made her realize there are things from childhood that we forget as adults, like fear of monsters under our beds. She wondered what else we might have forgotten and it gave her the seed of the idea for this book. The story follows a young woman named Louisa "Lou" Webber, age 20, who is about to become engaged and leave her childhood home. Her younger sister, Rosie, is upset by the idea of Lou marrying someone she clearly doesn't love and leaving. She begs her to find Jay, her childhood imaginary friend, and remember all they had together. Lou doesn't remember Jay or believe Rosie that he even exists at first. Then she sees a strange boy appear and follows him into the woods and out to the lake behind her home. Suddenly, she finds herself on the shores of.a very familiar island - but Peter has been captured by pirates, and now, Lou must race against time to save the island, the Lost Boys and. Peter.

This story was very engaging. Lou's story as well as the backstory of Jay and the Lost Boys took several turns that I didn't expect them to take (to avoid spoilers, I'll leave it at that). Ms. Raccio's prose is very dense and lush, and I thoroughly enjoyed her writing style. There is a lot of J.M. Barrie in it, I feel, and I was reminded of the 2003 Universal live action film version of "Peter Pan" as well - in fact, I had to re-watch it several times while I was reading this book - and I could easily see this story taking place within the context of this universe. That said, this book is definitely not one I would say is appropriate for children. Older teens might be able to handle the story, but there are things in it that younger children won't understand, and middle grade kids would probably find upsetting. This adult, however, thoroughly enjoyed the story but not without a few tears shed into some tissue.

As a final thought I hope I'm not wrong to wish that we haven't heard the last of Jay and his adventures. Maybe one day, Ms. Raccio will return to the island and let us know what happens next. Thank you so much to Netgalley, Vanessa Raccio, and Victory Editing Netgalley Co-op for the advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this retelling of some of the characters out of the Peter Pan story. This book makes Captain Hook some understandable, so likeable, and it definitely frames Peter as a bit of a sociopath, which, fair. The timeline jumps took a bit to get used to. But the combined stories of Jay and Lou, flowing along felt so sad, changeable if only for a small choice, and yet so unstoppable. Definitely heed any trigger warnings for suicide. This is probably well done and depressing.

𝑫𝒖𝒕𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆, 𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒍𝒆 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒅. 𝑰𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒃𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒌 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒐𝒐𝒓 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒈𝒖𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒔 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒓𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒇𝒕. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒊𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝒊𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓, 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒑𝒍𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒆𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒉𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒓. 𝑫𝒖𝒕𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒉 𝒐𝒇 𝒑𝒖𝒓𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆, 𝑳𝒐𝒖𝒊𝒔𝒂. 𝑵𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕.

Light of the Second Star is a beautiful, albeit heartbreaking reimagining of Peter Pan and the story of how Captain Hook came to be. I think I can honestly say this is the best retelling of Peter Pan I have ever read and I have read a lot of retellings!

The story has two main timelines- the first happens when Lou is a child and befriends a mysterious little boy named Jay. A beautiful friendship blooms between the two but there’s one problem- Lou is the only one who can see him. Many years later, Lou is a woman of 20 betrothed to a man she barely knows as is expected of her. She has no time for imaginary friends, magic and pirates anymore- only duty to save her widowed mother and beloved little sister, Rosie who may have an imaginary friend of her own. After a terrible argument, Lou finds herself on a mysterious island and taken captive by a band of mysterious children- one of which is Jay, who she doesn’t remember. Desperate to return home, Lou convinces Jay and his band of forgotten children to help her navigate the deadly island- but the longer she stays the more of herself she loses…

𝑺𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒚 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒚 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔. 𝑺𝒉𝒆 𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒉𝒊𝒎 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕, 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒔𝒐𝒖𝒍, 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒐𝒅. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒔𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒏 𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒉 𝒐𝒓 𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒚.

Now I know the description sounds like a wholesome, magical adventure but this book is DARK. I actually suggest reading the trigger warnings in case something upsetting may come up. I think what makes this book so dark is the fact every main character other than Lou is a child, so reading some of the things that happened to them was absolutely horrific. And watching Jay, who is a mischievous but otherwise delightful, loving little boy slowly lose himself and become the infamous captain of the Jolly Rodger, Hook honestly breaks your heart. This book is a really emotional journey- it takes the themes of the original book by JM Barrie youth, innocence and growing up and really delves into some dark places. I also loved how there was no romance in this book like most adult books have- just a beautifully developed, platonic love between two best friends who meant everything to each other. The relationship between little Lou and Jay developed beautifully, he really helped Lou through difficult times and the love they had for each other was so pure and hopeful. Older Lou doesn’t remember Jay but feels echos of the way she used to feel with him and it is honestly so beautiful you can tell they have a true connection. Their relationship was one of my favourite things about the book.

𝑺𝒉𝒆'𝒅 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒂 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒂 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒂 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒐𝒎 𝒐𝒇 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒅. 𝑰𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒚, 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒂 𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅 𝒐𝒓 𝒂 𝒘𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒕 𝒂𝒍𝒍.

I adored all of the characters in this book and everyone developed beautifully. The forgotten children all had unique and fun personalities and their reasons for leaving their homes to live forever with Peter Pan are honestly gut wrenching. Peter Pan himself was a fascinating character- he’s written so well I couldn’t help but despise him even if he is a little boy. I’ve always loved the idea of Pan being the truly mad one who tormented Hook to the point of becoming the villain but while this book has this kind of idea, it is not entirely Pan’s fault. Jay’s transition to becoming a villain is so complex and layered- there are some small glimpses early on of him being a tad destructive and prone to tempers, as most children are, but in the end he becomes overcome by grief and desperation just wanting everything to stay the same. The ending is facilitating because you can see both Pan and Hook’s point of view but they are both broken characters at this point so it’s open to interpretation who the real villain is. Speaking of the ending- there was a PLOT TWIST. I never saw it coming and honestly my heart had broken enough during this book.

𝑷𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒃𝒆 𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒆𝒅. 𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒅𝒊𝒅 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒍𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒏𝒆𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒔𝒉𝒆.

The world building in this book was fantastic. The world is beautifully described and it is incredibly immersive. Everything seems so magical and beautiful but there is a constant sense of danger lurking beneath all that. It made for a great atmosphere and brought the story to life! Also, the writing style is brilliant and almost poetic at times- overall a stunning read! I’d 100% recommend this book, it is unlike any other adult book I’ve read and definitely the best Peter Pan retelling out there. It has the same whimsical feeling and themes of the original story, but makes such a unique, beautifully dark tale of youthful innocence and loss, magic and love, growing up and the desperation to hold onto childhood.

This book is released June 6th and available for preorder! I’d like to thank the Vanessa Raccio and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book early in exchange for an honest and unbiased review!

An origin story of Captain Hook before he became Captain Hook. I was really excited for this one but it didn't live up to my expectations. I wish it had been from young Hook's perspective instead of Lou. I get the parallel with Wendy but I think it took away from what interested me in this book.

Light of the Second Star
by Vanessa Raccio

Pub date: June 6, 2023

*Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for this ARC!*

This is a retelling of Peter Pan but not like the one most of us know and love. It is a closer mirror into the original Pan creators’ (J. Barrie) story. It is adult and psychologically really dark and the main characters truly feel alive.

I didn’t know what to expect when I picked up this book but what I wasn’t expecting, and was gladly surprised by, was how I got sucked into this story and couldn’t put it down. The imagery was so vibrant, the characters were so raw and open, it was at times almost overwhelming.

The ending was heartbreaking and my mouth actually dropped open. I’m not usually one to seek out and love books that make you wanna sob but something about the writing of this novel has me changing my tune.

This is definitely one to check out if you’re looking for something peculiar and different to add to your TBR.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Thank you to Vanessa Raccio, Victory Editing and NetGalley for giving me an advance copy in exchange for my honest review.

"This was her room, sweetheart. She always belonged here."
"This was her prison. Lou belonged with the birds."

The plot sounded nice and I immediately wanted to dive into the story. Nevertheless, I was a little disappointed because I didn't manage to get attached to the two main characters, Louisa - Lou - and Jay - our future Hook. Lou didn't feel like she was 20 years old at all and her reactions were often inconsistent.
As for Jay, I could have liked him a little more but I couldn't.
However, I would have gladly hugged Benji, Sammy and Henry - even Rosie. As it turns out, secondary characters sometimes make the best stories.

I had a hard time getting into the story, and that lasted until a little over halfway through the book. I did, however, really enjoy the last couple of chapters. I wasn't expecting it at all, I was surprised and I resumed my reading with pleasure.
I nearly shed a tear while waiting for my train. The end is very emotional, get your tissues ready.

What I liked :
- Benji, Sammy and Henry
- Rosie
- The world-building
- The last chapters and the emotion in them
- The descriptions of the different places
- The author's bias regarding the fairies and the mermaids

What I didn't like :
- Lou and Didi
- The slow pace of the first chapters

First of all, I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an advanced electronic copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is a story about a boy who all he wanted was to be accepted and remembered and a girl who above all wanted to be free like a bird🕊️

I really enjoyed this book. The author's style is beautiful and simple, she quickly envelops the reader with a veil of curiosity that does not let up until the very end. This is not a book about romance, but it is very much a book about love, friendship, found family, loss, loneliness and misunderstanding. It teaches us that we should not judge others based on what we think and do not know. A lot of things can be hidden behind one person, one child, and everything could be solved with a conversation, but some, like these characters, do not know this, so fate unfortunately plays the card of sadness and loss.

The author handles difficult topics extremely well through the eyes of children. I am not lying when I say that the author broke my heart on a couple of occasions, but I still want more. I see a huge potential for a sequel. I know that the author intentionally left the ending open to give readers the opportunity to imagine for themselves, but I still have so many questions that I would like to know the answers to. With that, my rating is 4.6⭐️ and I really hope we get a sequel.

ending was amazing but to get to the amazing part there was so much chaos that did not feel strung together. At some points it feels like this book should be for 12-15 year olds but at the same time not because there is lots of trauma and grief and it could even be hard for adults. The idea is strong, the execution takes a bit away from the idea.

I do believe people who are into jumping story plots would like this. It does show how a villain can be created which was nice to read.

A charming look at growing up through a familiar lens but definitely a different perspective. The pacing at time was a little slow and all the time jumps and narrative voice shifts required concentration but the story was woven with charm and was interesting till the end.

I'm not sure what I expected from this book, but that wasn't it. I am a huge lover of Peter Pan so when I saw this on Netgalley I HAD to read it. A dark retelling of how James Hook became the villain we all love to hate, yes please!

The writing was beautiful and I was truly transported back into memories of my childhood where imaginary friends were real, fairytales really could come true and growing up was something way, way in the future.

I adored watching the friendship blossom between Jay & Lou, it was so raw and powerful how much she depended on him as a child when her life was difficult. He brought sunshine into a world where Lou felt she didn't fit in, even with her own family.

Jay couldn't cope with the feelings of loss when Lou eventually grew up and forgot him which is why she ends up on the island. Fighting to get herself home, she begins to remember Jay and her bond with him and the Lost Boys becomes even stronger.

My heart broke for the Lost Boys (and girl) on how they came to be on the island and why Peter chose them. Learning that they were sent to the real world to befriend children who needed someone to distract them from the pain and suffering in their own lives, only to lose them forever when they weren't needed anymore and the children they looked after forgot them.

I'm not going to talk about the ending because of spoilers but I am a little confused so if you want the full review, head on over to Goodreads.

It was a captivating read. I struggled a little with the descriptive parts, sometimes they seemed a little over done so they were hard to follow but if you're a fan of Peter Pan like I am, it's not hard to envision.

Thank you allowing me to read an arc of this book!