Library Journal SFF Pick of the Month, February 2025

[STARRED REVIEW] “Nebula Award winner Murphy (The Falling Woman) riffs on both Peter Pan and Sherlock Holmes in this delicious romp purported to be written by Jane Darling, granddaughter of the eponymous Mary, as a corrective to J.M. Barrie’s ‘shameful’ misrepresentation of events. When, in 1900, the Darling children vanish from their bedroom, their canine nursemaid, Nana, fetches parents Mary and George from a dinner party. For assistance, George calls in Mary’s uncle John Watson and his employer, the Great Detective Holmes, who takes the case—and eyes Mary as the prime suspect. Meanwhile, secretive Mary, who is aware of the existence of Peter Pan and hostile to Holmes’s intellectual snobbery, broods on how she can rescue her children. Drawing from her own past misadventures, during which she would often masquerade as a boy because Victorian sensibilities decreed too much “brain work” caused women to go insane, she springs into action. Though her husband proves unhelpful, and Holmes attempts to thwart her every move, Mary finds an ally in Sam, a Solomon Islander and former pirate, and together they make their way to a grim Neverland to face down a spoiled and near-feral Peter Pan. Murphy cleverly reworks favorite Victorian stories into something delightfully new. The wit, wisdom, and whimsy on offer here are sure to win fans.” (May)
—Publishers Weekly

[STARRED REVIEW] “Everyone thinks they know the stories of supposed heroes Peter Pan and Sherlock Holmes, but Mary Darling knows them better than most, because once upon a time she and her brother were the children Peter enticed with promises of adventure that turned out to be feckless and reckless for everyone but him. Intelligent, practical, even piratical, Mary made a plan to escape and did. Now, Peter has enchanted her children with the same promises, and Mary plans a journey back to Neverland to stage yet another daring escape. But Mary’s well-planned trip is followed by well-meaning, meddling men who are certain she needs their help: her husband George, her uncle John Watson, and Watson’s famous friend Sherlock Holmes. VERDICT Mary’s story is a dangerous and delightful adventure that turns the bigotry and misogyny of Victorian England on its head as she takes charge of her own life and rescues everyone with the help of her friends. Murphy’s (Women Up to No Good) latest is highly recommended for readers caught up in the recent trend of feminist retellings of well-known tales.”
—Library Journal

“Put the beloved characters of Peter Pan and Sherlock Holmes into the blender of Pat Murphy’s prodigious imagination and you have a book that upends, complicates, situates, and explicates the stories we have always known.” —Karen Joy Fowler, author of Booth

“Pat Murphy illuminates the heroes we think we know and the stories we’re ready to swallow whole. She reveals powerful characters who’ve had to hide in plain sight while saving their world. The result is a rip-roaring tale of magic and mystery.” —Andrea Hairston, author of Archangels of Funk

“Pat Murphy rips off the cloak of 19th-century patriarchy that makes Peter Pan a difficult read in the 21st-century, and reveals the realities that the past held for feisty women, lusty pirates, and indigenous people living under the governance of the British Empire. If you think you have outgrown Neverland, maybe you have. But you don’t have to believe in Tinkerbelle to love this book.” —Eileen Gunn, author of Stable Strategies and Others

“A fresh new take on both Peter Pan and Sherlock Holmes that gives new depth and richness to each, unfolding a whole living, breathing world for readers to explore.” —A. C. Wise, author of Wendy, Darling

“Outstanding characters, a deep understanding of her new fictional world, and clever storytelling round out a novel that’s as exciting as it is emotionally satisfying.” —Richard Kadrey, author of the Sandman Slim series

“A cracking read, a virtuoso act of gender jiu-jitsu, a Sherlock story like no other, a rough trip to fairyland, and the real, true story of Peter Pan. What a book!” —Cory Doctorow, author of Red Team Blues

“Pat Murphy has written a page-turner that is both a rousing adventure and an insightful critique of Victorian literary tropes. This is the real story of Neverland.” —Theodora Goss, author of the Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club trilogy

“A gem of a novel. I haven’t had this much reading fun in ages. A literary mashup that thrilled and tickled me to no end. More please.”—Joe R. Lansdale, author of The Thicket

“Murphy does a masterful job of subverting Victorian tropes while delivering all the fairies, mermaids, and pirates anyone could desire.” —Susan Palwick, author of The Fate of Mice

“A delightful mashup of familiar tales, written by an expert for the reader who hungers for something old, something new, justice borrowed and logical glue.” —Meg Elison, author of Number One Fan

“Full of mystery and fairy magic, grand adventure, and deft character revelations.” —Josh Rountree, author of The Legend of Charlie Fish

“In this wonderful mash-up of the worlds of Peter Pan and Sherlock Holmes, it’s the women who shine. Pages fly as the mystery unfolds and Pat Murphy gives girls and mothers the thrilling adventures they deserve. —Wendy N. Wagner, author of Girl in the Creek

 “Pat Murphy has done it again! A wild ride full of pirates and adventures that will keep you reading straight on till morning!” —Ellen Klages, author of Wicked Wonders

“A gem of a novel. I haven’t had this much reading fun in ages. A literary mashup that thrilled and tickled me to no end. More please.”—Joe R. Lansdale, author of The Thicket

“Murphy does a masterful job of subverting Victorian tropes while delivering all the fairies, mermaids, and pirates anyone could desire.” —Susan Palwick, author of The Fate of Mice

“A delightful mashup of familiar tales, written by an expert for the reader who hungers for something old, something new, justice borrowed and logical glue.” —Meg Elison, author of Number One Fan

“Full of mystery and fairy magic, grand adventure, and deft character revelations.” —Josh Rountree, author of The Legend of Charlie Fish

Praise for Pat Murphy

“Murphy’s [blend] of fantasy and reality honorably recalls the novels of Margaret Atwood.” —Publishers Weekly

“Murphy manages to instill a real sense of wonder into her consideration of the many ways in which we consider both the reality of our world and the nature of fiction itself.” —Strange Horizons

“Evokes a haunting vision of life after society’s collapse, as art becomes magic and combines with the power of love to defeat the engines of war. Highly recommended.” —Library Journal

“A lovely and literate exploration of the dark moment where myth and science meet.” —Samuel R. Delany

“Murphy’s convincing modern setting is a marvelous foil for her frighteningly alien Mayan ghost, and the archaeological material, besides being fascinating in its own right, is put to excellent use in the plot.” —Newsday

*Digital and print ARCs available
*NetGalley and Edelweiss+ newsletter advertisements [Nov/Dec 2024]
*Indie Next nomination campaign/White Box bookseller-mailing [Jan 2025]
*ABA Winter Institute table display and ARC distribution [Denver; Feb]
*Author event at SF in SF reading series [San Francisco; May]
*Author appearance at the World Science Fiction Convention [Seattle; Aug]
*National book club outreach with ARCs and author's discussion questions
*ABA regional association outreach and galley distribution
*Shelf Awareness website author feature
*Science Fiction Writers Association (SFWA) website feature
*Storygraph online sweepstakes giveaway [Spring 2025]