I am always a fan of a re-telling.    I love seeing how an author can manipulate a most loved story and turn it into something completely different.   I am familiar with and have read plenty of retellings, but, for the most part, had read them for use in my classroom.  I was very excited to read one for fun.  Enter, Lost Boy:  The True Story of Captain Hook by Christina Henry.  A story that gives a twist on the classic Peter Pan tale and shows Peter as a villainous, evil mastermind who manipulates the lost boys and eventually creates his greatest enemy.  

Told through the perspective of James, who eventually becomes Captain Hook, we see how Peter’s world of make believe and magic was a farce and the island (known as The Other Place) was truly filled with darkness and danger.  The Lost Boys were not a family, but really waiting for their turn to be Peter’s favourite.  This one really gave off a Lord of the Flies vibe, which I felt was really interesting.    

There were a few things that I didn’t particularly love about this retelling, but I felt they were quite minor.  I felt like Christina Henry really relied heavily on violence to push the plot (which is why I felt like it was very Lord of the Flies).  I don’t usually enjoy this tactic and I especially did not love it since all the characters are children.   
I also did struggle a little bit with the pacing; I found parts to drag significantly which was strange since the book was quite short.  I also did not agree with finding this book in the "horror" category.  Some parts were dark, yes, but I didn’t find anything to be quite scary. 

Aside from those issues, I felt like Henry did a great job, overall, at bringing a different side to the Peter Pan story.  If you are a fan of retellings, think Wicked, then you may enjoy this one!

First of all, this book upset me in a way that most books are never capable of doing. I know a lot of reviewers who will immediately up their rating for a book if it hits them hard, because they consider it a sign of a talented author, and while I can understand that point of view, I don't agree with it for my own reviews. I DNF'd this at 60% but my general rule of thumb is that panning a book at 30%-onward warrants a review.

WHAT I LIKED ➳➳
Lost Boy has an interesting premise (the origins story of Captain Hook), and Christina's writing style itself is very lovely and captivating.

WHAT I DISLIKED ➳➳
First of all, let me preface this by saying that, if this book were an adult fantasy novel, my problems with it wouldn't be so easy to justify, and I'd probably just throw it on the DNF shelf, type up a few quick lines for NetGalley, and leave it alone. That said, while I love macabre retellings and the excerpts of Christina's Alice retellings delighted me entirely, this was too much for me, and I can't personally fathom marketing this to the younger end of the YA crowd.

The book starts off right from the beginning with nonstop death and violence regarding young boys, but what really bothered me the most was the wicked vendetta that Peter and some of the other boys had against Charlie, a 5-year-old the group had recently added to the crew. [(*SPOILER* they stole him from his loving family, rather than "saving" him from an abusive household or orphanage *END SPOILER*) (hide spoiler)]While I can appreciate the thought process that writing this horrifically dreadful narrative about how terrified Jamie (Hook) is for Charlie's life may just be another creepy horror subplot, I felt like Christina took it way too far.

I will absolutely still read Christina's Alice retellings and give her other work a chance, and if you aren't bothered by child abuse, child death, children murdering other children, etc., then have at it. I personally couldn't stomach it and would probably not ever be willing to finish this title in the future.

Thank you to NetGalley and the kind people at Berkley Books for providing me with an ARC. All thoughts in this review are my own honest opinions.

Despite not being a huge fan of Peter Pan (the Disney version, anyway) growing up, I've grown really fond of Peter Pan-inspired retellings/reboots/etc. in the past few years, and I was so excited to see Lost Boy on NetGalley - even more so when I got the  email telling me that I was approved to read it. It did not let me down at all! This is a dark, brutal story that is everything I crave in retellings like these. Some of my favorite retellings are those that are dark and twisty and take classic stories, lands, and characters into new territories that retain the magic of the original, but add in so much more. This was why I loved Heartless by Marissa Meyer and Tiger Lily so  much - they took the classic stories and just completely flipped them. Lost Boy did very much the same, as it is quite a divergence from the ever-popular Disney version and even the original by J.M. Barrie.

Captain Hook has always been one of the main characters from Peter Pan that has most fascinated (Tinkerbell and the mermaids being the others), and Jamie was such a fascinating rendition of this character. He was very real and flawed. He wanted to do good and as a protector to the boys, but he had his own temper and his own tendency towards violence. And there's the fact that as much as he hated Peter, there he was however many years later, still caving to his every request and whim - of course, there are reasons he is trapped under Peter's 'rule,' but it does bring an interesting angle to the story.

The description of Peter was also fantastic and so fitting for some of the images I've had of Peter in my own interpretations. He's this completely unsympathetic 'villain' that is just so true to his character: a boy that insists on staying young forever, living on an island where only young boys and absolutely no girls or adults are allowed, wanting to play and fight all the time? Yeah, I don't think that's someone many of us would want to be around. Peter is awful, but also rather clever and mysterious, and he was developed wonderfully.

The remaining characters were no less developed or interesting than Peter or Jamie. Sal, Nod, Fog, and Charlie my favorites of the children and were all also uniquely developed. Nod and Fog are twins and, to me, the quintessential fit for a place like Neverland. They're just boys who never want to grow and don't mind having a leader like Peter Pan to take care of them. The rest of the boys seem okay with the situation at times, but there does seem to be a bit of lingering suspicion among them regarding the entire situation.

Lost Boy is very much focused on specific character relationships and developments. There are major events that occur, but they aren't really the focus -- it's more about how the characters react and how each event changes the dynamics, even if only ever so slightly. There is meaning in every glance, every touch, every movement - whether it is realized or not, not one action is meaningless.

I also thought the backstory of Jamie and Peter's friendship was really well-written, especially with how slowly the truth of their relationship was revealed and the impact it had. I liked how Neverland and the Other Place (aka, where we all live) existed in relation to one another, as I'm always interested in how alternate places are developed in stories.

Overall, I've given Lost Boy five stars. I'm a huge fan of these types of stories and this one was everything I wanted.

What if you took the well known story of Peter Pan, the boy who wouldn't grow up, and started asking questions.  What if you thought about what a society composed entirely of young boys would be like?  What if you took the old myths of magic and blood, youth and paradise,  and applied their rules to Neverland?  

The answer would be: you get Lost Boy by Christina Henry.  A fantastic, dark retelling of Peter Pan told from the point of view of Jamie, Peter's second in command, who has lived on the island longer than any boy except Peter.  Jamie, who Peter convinced to go to Neverland where they would be young and free and happy forever. As Peter brings new boys to join them he promises them fun adventures raiding pirates, swimming with mermaids, playing what they want, eating when they want, with no one to tell them what to do.  But someone has to teach the boys to defend themselves in pirate raids, how to hunt food, how to tend wounds.  This is what Jamie does.  He becomes the one who looks after them, who protects them, who shoulders the grief when they die.  Because staying young forever doesn't mean you can't die.  There are pirates, accidents, and wild animals, but there are also Battles- because what do young boys like better than to fight?  

We watch Jamie go from disappointed to disillusioned with Peter as Jamie tries to keep the group safe and Peter considers them replaceable.  Things degenerate (or maybe were always like this and Jamie finally realizes it?) into more Lord of the Flies than happy adventures.  Jamie begins to discover the island has secrets even he did not know, although Peter did.  And Peter, finally fed up with the fact that Jamie looks after the other boys, decides the only way to regain Jamie's love and friendship is to destroy everyone that might get between them.

Lost Boy is a compelling, haunting, and at times chilling story: fast-paced and well-written, you can't put it down once you've started.  Your heart aches for Jamie as he begins to realize the truth, and remember truths he had forgotten from the world before the island.  Lost Boy is both a twist of an old classic, and a brilliant story of self discovery, loyalty, and identity that shakes up all your preconceived ideas and invites you to take a new look at Peter Pan and the boy who became Captain Hook.

Fans of ABC's Once Upon a Time will love Lost Boy, as it reminds us that a villain is only someone who's story hasn't been told yet.

Most of us know the story of Peter Pan and Captain Hook. The two caught in an epic battle- Peter as the Boy who doesn't grow old and Hook as the Pirate who lost his hand to an crocodile. But, what happened before that story? How did these two wind up hating one another? That is what is focused on in Lost Boy.

Peter Pan is the fun loving boy who hangs out with his gang "The Lost Boys." The gang fights pirates, wrestle with one another, and follow Peter's every whim. 

Jamie is one of those Lost Boys. He has been on the island, following Peter, longer than any of the other boys. He is Peter's right hand boy. Jamie is Peter's strategist, his conscious, and he is starting to doubt Peter's leadership.

In Jamie's eyes, Peter has started to become too brash and has put the Lost Boys in danger on a number of occasions. He begins to notice that every time a Lost Boy dies, Peter just goes to the Other World to get a new one. Originally, Jamie was one of those children from the Other World, but his grasp on that world is slipping except for a dream that continues to haunt him. Jamie also notices that as he begins to doubt Peter, he begins to grow older. What is Peter's connection to the island and why does he need these boys? Why do the pirates exist on this island, if it is Peter's island? Is Peter a psychopath as Jamie begins to suspect?

When I received this from NetGalley, I was really excited. I loved what Christina Henry did with the Alice in Wonderland story in her book Alice and Red Queen, so I couldn't wait to see what she did with Peter Pan. Henry did not disappoint either.

I can see individuals hating this book because of how Henry paints Peter. He comes off as a crazed psycho, rather than the fun loving, joyful, Disney Pan. He craves violence, pits the Lost Boys against one another, and has a frantic way about him. He also begins to keep secrets from the rest of the boys and especially Jamie.

At the same time, the book is narrated through Jamie's eyes. We know who he will become from the very beginning, so as he begins to doubt Pan, one wonders- is this just Jamie's perspective or is this really who Peter is? 

The story moves rather quickly and builds to a frantic pace as the book winds up. I found this a great page turner and didn't want to put it down. It is all on the shoulders of Peter and Jamie's relationship and it works in the book. I kept feeling like Jamie loved Peter deeply and it was breaking his heart to  doubt Peter. This was destroying him.

There were a few places in the book that seemed a bit forced, but they were not too distracting. One could figure out, once the reveal was there, what was going to happen to certain characters or who did a key item from the very beginning, but it didn't take away from the read.

I wound up liking this one more than I thought I would. I loved Peter as a frantic psycho. I wound up giving this one 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book early in exchange for an honest review.

Lost Boy: The True Story of Captain Hook by Christina Henry

	Imagine meeting a young boy with promises of an island where you will never grow up. Oh the fun you could have, leaving the world you know to have adventures. Imagine if the world you did know was one where you were unhappy, afraid, alone. Then this island and this boy, Peter, would have everything you could ever want. That was Jamie. He left the land he knew to follow Peter many, many seasons ago. He was the first boy Peter had ever brought to the island. They were best friends and they would never grow old. But as the seasons passed more boys would come. When those boys died either in Battle, during a raid against the pirates, from sickness or the Many-eyes, Peter would go back to the Other Place to get other boys. Jamie would be the one to bury the bodies. He was also the one that made sure the boys were taken care of, looked after, and while everyone had fun, Jamie kept them safe. This is the story of Captain Hook, the boy once known as Jamie, and how he went from being Peter Pan’s right hand to losing his. 

	Jamie is the narrator throughout Lost Boy and he is nothing at all like the villain I remember. He is Peter’s best friend, his favorite and the fiercest fighter that leaves his mark on pirates by taking their right hand by their own sword. But he is also caring, thoughtful and a fierce protector. Even though he is a child, he holds a certain maturity that you would expect from someone older. Henry did an amazing job developing his character and his voice. Through his eyes I learned of the other boys and the truth of Peter, who is a brutal, uncaring child that feeds off violence and parades it off as fun. All of the characters jumped off the page so well developed it was almost frightening. And the island they lived on was full of a certain mysticism where monsters roamed and secrets were hidden.

	I’m a sucker for anything Peter Pan. I fell in love with Disney’s version as a child, loved “Hook” and even watched the short run cartoon show that ran in my childhood. But I didn’t read the novel Peter Pan until I was an adult. I was able to see in Peter Pan the things I wouldn’t have noticed if I read it as a child. Like how Peter “took care of” the boys if they started to grow up. Or what an extremely arrogant trickster he was. I felt bamboozled by the reality of who Peter really was and honestly my opinion of a character I truly loved changed dramatically. Henry’s novel about Captain Hook takes this image of Peter Pan a step further. This novel is dark and brutal with amazing world and character development. I lost myself in this story both horrified an amazed by the lengths that Peter was willing to go to keep Jamie by his side. This is the perfect prequel to Peter Pan and an extremely fascinating background for Captain Hook. It’s easy to feel sympathy for the man that would become Hook and see the cruelty of Peter. The clues were left in Peter Pan that there was more to the boy who would never grow up, something much darker and sinister. Henry exposed all of that in Lost Boy.

"Peter will say I'm a villain, that I wronged him, that I never was his friend. But I told you already, Peter lies."

Oh what a dark delight this book was! I really love diving deep into the psyche of a villain and reading how they were made. But this book is so deliciously different.

The thing with a villain retelling is that you still know who the villain is. Or at least, who they will become. Lost Boy is a richly complex story where villains and heroes are much harder to discern.

In the stories, Peter Pan is always the hero. The cheerful young boy who refuses to grow up, and only wants to bring joy and happiness to children by bringing them to Neverland. Captain Hook we know as the pirate determined to destroy Peter Pan. But what if the story was a bit more complicated than that?

Jamie is a young boy, Peter's right hand, his best friend.  "I was the first and best and last and always." He was the first boy chosen and will always be the one by Peter's side. They have a friendship that outshines everything, because deep down Jamie knows he is special. That's what he thinks, anyway.

Things with Peter aren't always what they seem. First, Peter tries to hurt the littlest Lost Boy because he just isn't any fun. Boys dying and getting hurt on the island has always been part of the deal. Peter only has time and patience for the games he plays. And Jamie has always accepted this. Because that's the way it's always been and that's the way it will always be. Then Jamie begins to discover that Peter hasn't been telling him everything. Peter keeps secrets. Peter lies.

Suddenly the magic of the Island takes on more sinister tones. With each lie discovered, each secret revealed, Jamie finds his unconditional love for Peter diminishing a little more. Questions Jamie had never bothered asking begin to surface in his mind. What happens when a boy who is kept forever young by magic begins to grow up?

I will admit to having a thing for the Dark Side. I tend to fall for the bad guy, and usually think that villains are victims of circumstance. Misunderstood. But that's usually because we don't see real villains very often.

Henry dives deep into the mind of a villain. She plays in the playground of actual evil. In Peter she has created a young, cheerful, psychopath. He is happy and delighted in whatever game he's come up with. But only when things are going his way. When they don't, he simply fixes the problem. Except, fixing a problem could mean killing a boy.

Peter doesn't think what he's doing is wrong. He doesn't feel bad, or feel regret, or care about consequences. He has no morals. He lives only by the rules he has created in his head, and even those are flexible. Really, Peter cares only about having fun. He also really enjoys being the center of attention. Everyone else is simply along for his amusement. Everyone expect Jamie.

Anytime he is confronted with his actions, or his behavior, or even his attitude, he doesn't see the problem, or even acknowledge the concern. For Peter, a dead boy is no never mind. As long as the games can go on. There is no reason to concern himself with one boy, when he can simply go to the Other Place and get a new one.

Peter does genuinely love Jamie. In the way that only a psychopath can. With utter devotion and obsession. It isn't so much that the other boys aren't of consequence, but that they take Jamie away from Peter. This is the one thing that drives Peter throughout the book. He only wants to be the focus of Jamie's attention and affection. Every decision and action is made in this light.

We rarely get to see such a spot on depiction of a psychopath. Rarer still is to see this portrayal in such an accessible story. For all the darkness in this story, you are still lulled into believing you are reading a fairy tale. When the shock of violence hits you, and it is a shock, and it is grotesquely violent, the reality of the Island floods in. Reading is a constant ebb and flow of delight and horror, again and again and again.

The chilling part about Peter isn't that he is cold, or calculating, although you could make an argument for either. It is more he isn't. He really doesn't have time to care. We are used to our villains being passionate, or vengeful. Full of anger and denial. Peter is just Peter. Concerned only with his fun, his games and himself.

And that's what makes this book so, so good. Because we have a true villain in Peter. We have someone who is clearly wrong, and violent, and bad. But we also have the making of a different sort of villain. Jamie. Because Jamie does become Captain Hook, who is solely focused on revenge. He is full of anger and vengeance. He is passionate in his hatred for Peter. He is the definition of the villain we have come to know.

Peter wronged him. Peter lied to him. Peter made him. And yet, Jamie isn't the villain. But, also, he is. "If I am a villain, it's because Peter made me one, because Peter needs to be the shining sun that all the world turns around. Peter needed to be a hero, so somebody needed to be a villain."

Henry has created a world full of magic, and somehow made it real. Because in life, villains aren't all bad, and heroes aren't all good. Sometimes good and evil is simply a matter of perspective. Life in the real world is much more complex, and things like villains and heroes are harder to discern.

I loved this book! Loved it! It is dark and twisty and full of things that make you gasp. It is full of treachery and violence. Sometimes villains are born. Sometimes villains are made. This book explores both of those ideas and creates a very dark adventure. If you also dabble in the Dark Side, and enjoy reading more complicated story, and aren't afraid of things that go bump in the night, this book is definitely for you!

Lost Boy comes out July 4. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing for approving me to read this ARC!

Christina Henry, who took on Alice in Wonderland in her own unique way and managed to knock it out of the ball park, returns with a new take on Peter Pan in Lost Boy: The True Story of Captain Hook. Before reading Lost Boy, do yourself a favor and pretend that you've never read J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan. Pretend that Lost Boy is instead the prequel to Barrie's novel, or if you must, a re-imaging of the tale that puts the focus on how one boy, best friend of Peter Pan once, became the diabolical Captain Hook who hasn't been given a real chance to tell his own side of things. 

The key character is Jamie. Jamie, at 8 years old, was the first boy that Peter Pan brought with him to Neverland. Peter promised him that he would never grow up, that he would always have adventures, and that they would be together forever. All he had to do is love Peter, and be his playmate always. Jamie worshiped Peter once, but he has seen the toll that Peter's games have taken on the Lost Boys. Jamie is the best fighter on the island. Boy are both scared of him, and respect him because he, in turn, teaches them how to survive, and he knows where all the bodies have been buried. 

As the years have dragged on, Jamie realizes that Peter isn't the boy he thought he knew. Especially when he takes on being a mentor for a boy named Charlie, and later a new arrival name Sal who is more than I can say. Peter truly believes that the boys are replaceable, and if he loses one, he can always steal another one. Just as long as that boy is presumed to be unwanted. Would I consider this story to be a villain redeemed by alternative facts never heard of before? Quite so.

So, I ask you to do yourself a favor. Open your mind to the possibility that everything that you've been told about Captain Hook is a lie written by Peter and even Disney. Captain Hook is the perfect fall guy for Peter to blame for his truly bizarre behaviors. Pick up and read this story with an open mind and a willingness to extend reality to the possibility that everything that you've heard about Peter Pan is just plain wrong, and that Peter wasn't a nice boy at all. If you can do that, you will enjoy a truly fantastical ride with plenty of action, suspense, and most of all, adventure the likes that we expect from Christina Henry.

I've never liked Peter Pan.

It's one of those stories that just didn't capture my attention and no matter how it's spun, Peter strikes me as an awful little boy. So I was very excited to read of Captain Hook's origins, fully expecting Peter to be the villain and I wasn't disappointed.

I was hesitant to read Lost Boy at first as I wasn't a huge fan of Henry's Alice or Red Queen (then again, I've yet to fine a re-telling of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland that I really like).

The book opens with Jamie (Hook before he was Hook) as "second-in-command" of Peter's boys as they run rampant across the island. But things are changing. Jamie is changing. And that change packed a punch. Despite the writing style not grabbing my attention for some time, Jamie did. Jamie, the boy who cares for everyone else before himself, who wants to see the best in the boys, in Peter, and who is disappointed time and again. My heart went out to him.

Though the story is told from Jamie's perspective, it still provided insight into each of the other boys as, one by one, they reached their limits. This book is not for the faint of heart and features a lot of violence toward and involving children. Henry didn't hold back on that front and every detail is blasted across the pages. The more Jamie realizes that Peter isn't the boy he thought he was, the more gruesome the story becomes.

Especially the big reveal near the end. I felt like I should have expected it, given the way the story was leading up to it, but WHAM it hit me like a semi flying down the highway. I hadn't realized how attached I became to the characters until that moment. It had been a subtle thing, the pull on the heartstrings as Jamie began to lose everything he loved, to become the so-called villain of Peter's island.

I think Henry excelled here to capture the story as some might remember it but also put a horrific spin on it. Though I found the pacing to be a bit sluggish at times, it soon picked up into the shock-and-awe horror I've come to expect from this author.

To be quite honest, I'm not sure how I got through this book. The sheer amount of gore, especially toward the second half of the book, and with children (yes, I know, it's Peter Pan Take 2 but doesn't make it easier to handle)... It made me uncomfortable. And perhaps that was the point, because Jamie was realizing it too and you could feel the shift in his thoughts, his actions. It was all very well done. Just... bloody.

Overall, a horrific origin story for the infamous Captain Hook, but I wouldn't say he's really the villain anymore. If the violence doesn't bother you, then I'd certainly recommend this book. Good writing. Well-developed characters. A darker Peter Pan re-telling, I've never read.

This is the best kind of adventure story--just what you'd expect from a Peter Pan retelling--pirates and mermaids and naughty little boys. But those naughty little boys follow a sort of Lord of the Flies society, where only the strongest survive, and Peter is king.

Not everything is pixie dust in Neverland.

In fact, this is a story about abuse, emotional and physical, and the horrible cycle of gaslighting. Jamie slowly realizes how dismal his situation is, but how does he get himself and everyone else, off the island?

I'm pretty sure my eyes just got bigger and bigger as I was reading this. Christina Henry turned a children's story (though, to be fair, the real Peter Pan is kind of a dark character to begin with) into an intensely deep metaphor for real life domestic violence. THIS IS NOT A DISNEY STORY. There is magic at play, but it is dark dark magic.

I think my favorite part about this book was the hidden meanings everywhere. Pay attention when Peter talks about playing. It's innocent at the beginning, but he really starts to get twisty as the book goes on. I won't spoil anything else, but this is a story you really want to focus between the the lines, and not just dabble on the surface. You're going to get lost in Neverland. Just make sure you know how to get back out again.

Love, love, love Christina Henry's take on the Hook origin story! In true Henry fashion, there was much brutality and Peter Pan was painted as an absolute villain. I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in twisted, dark fantasy.

In a world full of fairy tales and happily ever afters, it’s always refreshing to read a retelling that has a dark side. LOST BOY: THE TRUE STORY OF CAPTAIN HOOK by Christina Henry definitely fit the bill and I loved every creepy, eerie, and scary moment of it. The entire story was just cloaked in darkness. If you love Peter Pan…well, let’s just say you won’t after reading this retelling.

Jamie is our narrator for the entirety of the book, and we get to see from the perspective of a boy who has been there from the beginning. The story we all know and love about Peter Pan is far from the truth. The promise of never growing up, adventures, and endless fun are how Peter lures his new play things to his island and away from The Other Place. In reality, the island was full of nothing but darkness, death, and danger – in the form of the pirates that Peter taunts, and the Many-Eyed, just one of the monsters that inhabit the island (their entire chapter gave me the CREEPS).

I don’t want to give away too much of the story. It’s an adventure all its own and I would hate to ruin it. Jamie – who will later become Captain Hook – is slowly beginning to see Peter for what he really is and because of this the wonder and love is wearing off. Jamie is slowly beginning to grow up as he learns new things about his friend.

With new boys being brought to the island by Peter, Jamie learns the hard way that caring for and watching over them is a bad idea. Peter will go to extreme and twisted lengths to keep Jamie all for himself. We quickly learn that everything Peter does is just to keep Jamie as his friend and play thing – and he does NOT like to share.

If you want a great retelling with a slasher movie twist, then you need this one! Not only will you love Captain Hook, but your love for Peter Pan might disappear with this one! Henry did an incredible job setting the scene, developing the characters, and building a story so that the reader’s rose tinted glasses are taken off so we can see the real Peter Pan.

I give this 5/5 stars!

Big thanks to Berkley Publishing for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

We all know the story of the heroic Peter Pan, and the villainous Hook. But, what if that story wasn't the whole truth? Lost Boy is a dark, imaginative retelling of the illusive Captain Hook. Christina Henry paints us a dangerous picture of Neverland and our beloved Peter Pan. This one is a story of peril and nightmares, of sorrow and betrayal.

The Plot: Peter promised Jamie they would be friends forever. He promised they would never grow up and never die. Peter made a lot of promises, but the promise he didn't make was to care for the boys he brought to the island and ensure their safety. It's all fun and games until a boy gets eaten by a crocodile, or killed by a pirate.

Lost Boy hooked me from the beginning. I fell in love with the lost boys and cared for Jamie. I feared Peter Pan. I found humor in the games the boys played, and felt sadness when a lost boy died. I felt fear when the boys faced the Many Eyed, and felt wonder when the island was described to me in detail. The author did an amazing job with transforming Neverland in to something dark and dangerous. She made me feel like I was fighting alongside of the boys and gave the characters such depth. I didn't need long histories on each boy to know that they came to the island with Peter because their lives in the Other Place were unsatisfactory, and dangerous even. I felt the childish innocence and the child-like wonder emanating from each character.

Jamie, of course, was my favorite character. He cared so much for the boys, and at one point, cared deeply for Peter. He had a hard life in the Other Place, so it was no wonder that he followed Peter to the island. He was a major father figure to the rest of the lost boys, and through his struggles on the island, it is obvious why he would become Captain Hook.

Peter was such a complex character. It is definitely hard to re-write a beloved character from a classic tale that everyone loves, but Henry did such a phenomenal job with his development and characteristics. He was dark and dangerous. Brooding and conniving, yet he had all the boys fooled in to loving him. He cared only for himself and about having fun and playing games, but underneath he was quite murderous. He definitely prayed on the younger, weaker boys like Charlie.

Charlie is so adorable and lovable. He represents the childish innocence of all the boys. He is kind and caring, and definitely a little gullible. He is taken under Jamie's wing and is a wonderful representation of Jamie's heart.

Lost Boy is a fantastic, horrific retelling of two characters we have grown up with. Their personalities are redefined so well that you can really believe that this is the true story of Captain Hook and Peter Pan. This book holds all the fun, humor, and child-like wonder that we know and love from the original story, but offers so much more in the way of darkness, peril, betrayal, and heartache. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley Publishing Group for providing me with this free e-ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I have heard of lot about this author from her Alice book but since I am not a Wonderland fan I never tried it. I am on the other hand a Captain Hook fan and I am not a Peter Pan fan which is a good thing cause I hated Pan in this book. :)

Jamie is Peter's first boy and the one he loved the most but as years went by watching all those other boys die because of Peters fun and games he is starting to see another version of Peter. In trying to save the lost boys that are left Jamie starts to grow up. Just a little at a time and he hopes that Peter doesn't notice because he doesn't allow boys to grow up.

Peter never cared about any of the boys but Jamie. He didn't care if a boy got killed as he would just go and get a new boy. When he got Charlie and he was to small to really play with he gets jealous of Jamie's relationship with the young boy. It starts a spiral of events.

I felt so bad for Jamie and could slowly see why he would start to grow up. His blinders are taken off when it comes to the Peter that is not fun but evil. Peter is just pure evil, those who like Peter Pan might not like this book, but since I was not a fan I loved hating Peter. I rooted for Jamie and the other lost boys. Not all the lost boys were great but they never deserved the bad things that happened, well there was one I hated and he deserved what he got but the others didn't.

I have never read the original Peter Pan but I have never been a fan of any of the movies, except Hook, so I don't know exactly how Peter is in that story but this is a very dark story. It has a few features that you might associate with Peter Pan like the crocodile. :) It could be a little gory at times as well. At times in the beginning it was a little slow to me but once it picked up I just had to know how it was going to end.

This book is about the story behind Captain Hook on how he went from being one of the lost boys' of Peter Pan to being Captain Hook. This story focuses on the relationship between Jamie/Captain Hook and Peter Pan.
     Overall I rated this book four stars out of five. This was a very creative story. You can definitely tell how creative the author is by reading this book. I really did enjoy the story. It was dark, but lightly entertaining. The only thing I was wishing for was more excitement. I kept reading waiting for the moment I would fall in love with this book, although I really liked that book this moment never came and I was completely expecting and hoping it would. It seemed that this book was missing something as for what I can't seem to put my finger on it. But I definitely am glad I read this book and am looking forward to reading "The Chronicles of Alice" series that I have already purchased.
     I would like to thank Netgalley, Christina Henry, and Berkley Publishing Group for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Now, I know I haven't read too many retellings, but this one has to be one of my favorites!

Every lost boy that lives on the island was pulled in by Peter's promises of never growing up, never having rules, never having to be told what to do, and of being happy, forever. They were supposed to live happily ever after...

But that's not what happens.

This is a retelling of Peter Pan told from Jamie aka Captain Hook's point of view. I think that's one of the biggest factors that pulled me to this story. I'm a sucker for books told from villains or complex character's point of view. The kind that are "misunderstood" or you can never quite tell if they're good or bad. Jamie fits that well because there is just the one version of him that everyone knows, and this is him telling his side of things. Jamie telling his truth.

Peter doesn't start off too bad. He's kind of petulant and irresponsible, but he is just a kid so you just kind of shrug it off. All the while we have Jamie right next to him and it is the biggest contrast. He's the one always caring about the lost boys, making sure they're clean and fed. Peter makes a joke that Jamie is basically like their mother and that he babies them all too much. That's pretty accurate, but it makes me love him that much more. Jamie was definitely my favorite character in this book. 

It's only when Peter starts telling his "ghost" story that it starts to get a bit creepy. That was when I started going "I think Peter is a little darker than I thought". Things start changing between Peter and Jamie before they get back to the tree, when Jamie is reminded of exactly how dangerous Peter can be. If you like dark retellings this is a good one because there will be danger, blood, violence, and not everyone will survive.

However, it's not until Battle day that the rest of the boys stop blindly worshiping Peter. After the Battle, everyone starts to see Peter in a new way--seeing the worst parts of him. This is also when the boys start changing physically (although it's not explained until later I could kind of guess the reasons behind it). The actual explanation for how the boys stayed young forever was kind what I expected but it was still so twisted and creepy in a way. It fit the story though, because of how selfish Peter was, how everything had to be his way, and how he had to be that "shining sun".

There was also some budding romance in this book that caught me a little by surprise, for reasons I can't exactly give without spoiling a secret about another character. Once I knew about that character though I could see it coming--and I really wanted Jamie to be happy, because he deserved something of his own. I felt like he needed someone else to share the weight of everything he dealt with for years. 

I was also really pleased with the relationship between Jamie and Peter because of its complexities. On the one hand, Jamie loved Peter so much because of what he'd done for him. They were supposed to be best friends forever... But Jamie could get tired of Peter's antics sometimes, and of having to be responsible to make up for Peter's childishness. I think Jamie made Peter out to be so dependent on him, because Jamie was the first boy on the island, and Peter couldn't stand to share Jamie with anyone. But Jamie was kind of the same about Peter. He needed to know that he was special to Peter, that it would always be just them when it came down to it because he was the first, and that there were no secrets between them. And even though he could really hate Peter at times, he never considered leaving to the Other place. Jamie was just as dependent on Peter's praise and assurances as Peter was dependent on Jamie's love and devotion. It was a very destructive and unhealthy friendship/relationship that made me love this book. 

In the last section of the book things pick up fast and the stakes get raised even more. Everyone knows what kind of person Peter really is, and he's not holding back anymore. Which is as scary as you think it would be when you read/consider everything that he did before in the book. I loved Nod in this part of the book because of how he finally let out everything he felt about Jamie and how he could finally appreciate everything Jamie had done up until then. 

The ending of the book tied things together really well. Pretty much everything I'd wanted to know about Peter was answered. I knew why he had done so many things. And it wasn't so simple as him just wanting someone to play with. He had darker reasons too that made the island seem like less of a paradise. I think how things ended between Peter and Jamie was really fitting because it plays into that whole destructive relationship aspect. Neither of them can really let go of one another, no matter how much hate boils between them. I felt upset coming to the ending because I was rooting for Jamie, and I felt he had been wronged. But I loved it at the same time because it was such a good ending!

I am highly recommending this book for anyone who likes retellings, especially dark retellings! It does feel like it moves a little slow in the first part, but I really enjoyed the focus on character development. The only other thing that knocked it down a peg was that there were so many characters coming and going that sometimes I forgot who these side characters were (not that they were terribly important). But still, just something to keep in mind. 

This wonderful book is coming out on July 4th so please, please, please, go check it out if you have the time because it is well worth it!

*review will be published to my blog on June 26th, I will update with the link at that time

Great job providing a compelling back story for Captain Hook! The plotting and pacing move everything along perfectly. The well-drawn characters will make the reader want to take sides and identify with the injustices they feel. Certain situations are harsh and gory, but not out of line with the nature of the story. Terrific alternative point of view for fans of retold classics.

As always, Christina Henry is a queen.Besides Disney, I don't have a whole lot of exposure to Peter Pan, so this was a more than welcome background to one of Peter Pans' more interesting characters.

This was much better than I expected. It took me a few pages to get in to the style of Jamie, the narrator, but after that I was hooked, pun intended! This origin story for Captain Hook is a riveting look at what made him who he is. The revelations of Peter Pan's origins and just exactly how he stays young were shocking. I will definitely be purchasing this book for my school's library.

Peter lies. Peter is a manipulator. Peter thinks only of Peter. He is not the rescuer of unwanted children. He is not a magical hero or purveyor of fun and excitement. Peter is a monster, but the boys he brings to his island are too naïve to realize, until it is too late, but the boys did have Jamie.

Jamie was one of Peter’s first boys. Jamie was the teacher, the nurturer, the voice of reason, the protector and the one whose attention Peter craved the most. Jamie knew the real Peter, the ugly side of the boy who never wanted to grow up. What he didn’t realize was the length Peter to which would go to keep his island world as his personal fiefdom, until Peter pulled his most cruel stunt ever and Jamie fought back for all the boys lost, all the boys who were tricked by Peter and all the boys who died for his entertainment.

Christina Henry’s Peter Pan is not the fantasy boy in a wonderful world of adventure. LOST BOYis a tale of a truly lost soul in search of the love he never understood, a boy jealous of real little boys who knew family and love and security, a boy just skewed enough to use his “boys” as pawns in his wicked games.

Told through the eyes and heart of Jamie, we see a world that is not as pretty, not so magical, but rife with deceit, treachery and lies, because, as Jamie says, Peter lies…and someone must pay the price. That price will give rise to Captain Hook, as we must decide, was he really the villain or just another of Peter’s victims?

Fabulous story telling with an intriguing concept that feels right as one boy fails to mature while those around him may, but only after they have seen through his façade and learn to think for themselves with both their minds and their hearts. For as much as I felt badly for Peter and his lost soul, there isn’t a boy in this tale that one wouldn’t want to protect and save.

I received an ARC edition from Berkley in exchange for my honest review.

Publisher: Berkley (July 4, 2017)
Publication Date: July 4, 2017
Genre: Fantasy | Fairy Tale
Print Length: 302 pages
Available from: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
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