Audrey Greathouse
Genre:
YA Fantasy/Fairytale Retelling
Release Date: May
9, 2016
Publisher: Clean
Teen Publishing
ISBN:
978-1634221719
ASIN: B01BPVZPB6
Pages: 302
Goodreads Rating: 3.48
My Rating: 4.5
Book Description:
Magic can do a lot—give you flight, show you mermaids,
help you taste the stars, and… solve the budget crisis? That's what the
grown-ups will do with it if they ever make it to Neverland to steal its magic
and bring their children home.
However, Gwen doesn't know this. She's just a sixteen-year-old girl with a place on the debate team and a powerful crush on Jay, the soon-to-be homecoming king. She doesn't know her little sister could actually run away with Peter Pan, or that she might have to chase after her to bring her home safe. Gwen will find out though—and when she does, she'll discover she's in the middle of a looming war between Neverland and reality.
She'll be out of place as a teenager in Neverland, but she won't be the only one. Peter Pan's constant treks back to the mainland have slowly aged him into adolescence as well. Soon, Gwen will have to decide whether she's going to join impish, playful Peter in his fight for eternal youth… or if she's going to scramble back to reality in time for the homecoming dance.
My Take
on the Book:
When it comes
to my sister and I, we couldn’t be more different. The same could be said about
Rosemary and Gwen, the 2 sisters in this book. My sister is “dead inside” – her
words not mine lol – and I am a bleeding heart. But even with our differences,
there are some similarities and a connection you can only find with siblings.
We annoyingly finish each other’s sentences or blurt out the same sarcastic
thoughts. It’s a bond that comes for a lifetime of each other’s influence.
So being the
bleeding heart that I am, I am not ashamed to admit that I did my fair share of
sniffling in this book. It’s not a sad tale at all. At least not as far as I
can tell but there are some inevitable moments where adulthood and reality rush
in and damage the beauty and innocence of being a child. To me that was the
most profound message in this book. But like many would say… no one in the
world reads the same book, so it is likely that no one else will see what I see
when I’m taken on this marvelous journey.
It was an
extremely well written book and the beginning of what I can only assume is a
new and unique series. I loved every minute of this book; and let me be clear,
I devoured this book in what felt like minutes. There was strong character
development, imagery, scenery.laughter and sadness and even a bit of envy while
reading this book… in my opinion all the things that make a book more than just
good, but great.
My only real complaint
was the open ended final chapter. If this is indeed the beginning of a series,
it’s a good way to gather more readers since you are literally left thinking ‘what the heck just happened’.
4.5
Quills
It’s interesting
because other than some internal conflict and the mention of a war and a few
moments that reflect that war, there was really no conflict. No clear “villain”
and no clear “resolution” and yet I love this book. It’s odd because that’s nothing
at all like me. I usually need a clear beginning, middle and end with all the
fixings, and while the story itself was easy to follow it almost came off as a
steady stream of information. With the book being called the Neverland Wars, I
kind of expected a bit more conflict. But regardless it was an enjoyable read
that likes to poke at emotions.
About The Author
Audrey Greathouse is a Seattle-based author of science-fiction and fantasy. Raised in the suburbs, she became a writer after being introduced to NaNoWriMo during her sophomore year of high school. Since then, she has drafted more than a dozen books, 100 sonnets, and 800 other poems, and a handful of short stories and one-act plays.
After dropping out of her university and beginning training as a circus
performer on the aerial silks, she returned to school to study at Southern New
Hampshire University College of Online and Continuing Education to earn her
B.A. in English Language and Literature, with a minor in Computer Information
Technologies.
Audrey Greathouse is a die-hard punk cabaret fan, and pianist of fourteen
years. She's usually somewhere along the west coast, and she is always writing.
“I received a free copy of the book from the author/publisher for my honest opinion. I was in no way compensated for this review and all opinions are expressly my own”
