Wendy's Ever After is an enchanting journey back to Neverland. I appreciated the perspective of Wendy as a young adult returning to Neverland. No longer is life so black and white, and she knows more than she did before. There is also more at stake.

I loved the idea of this story, but I just couldn't stay engaged. I think this is more due to my mood than any fault of the story, although the pacing did feel off at times. It's hard to take such a well-known and widely beloved tale and put a new spin on it, but this book did just that. The dive into the setting of Neverland was well done, and I loved the added meaning from the quotes from the original Peter Pan.

Thank you to NetGalley and the Publisher for a complimentary copy of this book to review. All opinions are my own.

Overview:

Language 🤐: Clean

Romance ❤️‍🔥: Kisses only (not descriptive)

Violence ⚔️: There is fighting on the page but I don't remember there being anything overly graphic just a few battles.

⚠️Kidnapping, Death of family members mentioned and talked about ⚠️

Tropes/Micro tropes
- Singel POV
- Instant Love
- Strangers to enemies to lovers
- Not interested in love FMC
- Protective MMC

My Thoughts:

This was a really fun Peter Pan retelling. It was interesting seeing how life had moved on for Wendy but how she still truly longed to return to Neverland that she really couldn't really move on from. When she meets a stranger Liam Blackwell at the ball who reminds her of the time she spent in Neverland and drops hints into the conversation that maybe he knows about Neverland she can not help but follow after Liam to see where he is heading.

Watching Wendy grow and evolve over this story was very enjoyable. This was a story that younger ages could totally read and fall in love with but was quite enjoyable for adults. There was lots of exploration of deep emotions in a way that was appropriate for many ages. The book tackled some of the concept of grief and how it can affect someone.

There were so moments where I felt like some of the characters were a bit immature but we were dealing with an immature Peter Pan. There is growth and just wonderful character in this book. This story pulled me in and fully captivated me. My rating is 4.5 ⭐️ for me happily rounded up!

Thanks NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for the ARC of this wonderful book all thoughts and opinions are my own!

DANG. This one was a miss for me 😭 I REALLY wanted to like it, and thought I would based on the premise - I’m a big fan of Peter Pan & Neverland stories/vibes. There were parts of it I liked, but as a whole, it fell flat.

SPOILERS BELOW:

Pros:
- I absolutely LOVED the beginning in London with Wendy participating in typical “society,” and being intrigued by a handsome, roguish stranger!
- The mystery with Liam & Hook was good. I liked their relationship and how it changed throughout the book.
- Characters overall felt accurate to the original J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan
- The past connection between Hook & Peter Pan was cool

Cons:
- Besides Liam & Wendy’s meet-cute, the romance felt very blah. And I was kinda mad they kissed early by the halfway point of the book.
- Storyline dragged once they got through the first scene in Neverland.
- Peter’s really frustrating and annoying and rude in this book. And yeah, I guess that’s a little more like Barrie’s version of him? But picking up Wendy’s Ever After, I didn’t realize he’d be like that in this book too. I was expecting more of a humorous/fun Peter Pan than a childish whiny kid.
- Hook becoming “not evil” at the end was lame.

I guess the whole point of this book is that adventure is still there as we age into adulthood, and that our childhood dreams and stories don’t always last/aren’t viable as we grow up. But I was left feeling unsatisfied when I finished, and disappointed with how things turned out.

That being said, I can see that this is a book that some people would like - which is why I ended on an overall rating of 3 stars. My personal preference would be close to 2, though 😢

I loved the premise for this book. The characters were nostalgic but also freshly tweaked. I enjoyed seeing Wendy as a older teen, coming out into London society life and all that entails. I did get a bit bogged down in some of Wendy's musings and found myself skimming those parts in favor of moving the plot along. I think this could be recommended to my students who love retellings, and who like adventure. It was romantic but not overly so, my hardcore romance readers might not be motivated enough for this one.

Julie Wright is absolutely brilliant. I loved this version of the continuation of Wendys story. Neverland and all its occupants aren’t what they used to be and Wendy doesn’t quite know what to do about any of it. The story is full of suspense and adventure with a little side of hopeful love. Such a great read!

I really love this author, but it was not one of favorite novels of hers. It was clean, and for that I am grateful, but a little underdeveloped and some things that were predominate in the books, were not explained.

Thank you to NetGalley and Wright for an advanced reader copy in exchange for a fair review. These opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Shadow Mountain Publishing for the opportunity to read an advanced reader's copy of this book for an honest review.

As a fan of the classic “Peter Pan” book, I was excited to read "Wendy's Ever After" to see what happened to Wendy Darling after she and her brothers returned from Neverland.

The story picks up about six years later. Wendy is nearly 18 years old with several suitors vying for her attention. She’s not ready to settle down – especially when she still longs for adventure and secretly hopes Peter Pan will come back for her. But after her father's passing, her mother is pressuring her to choose a well-off match. Wendy agrees to attend a ball to start narrowing down her options.

There, she meets Liam Blackwell, a mysterious newcomer who seems perfect, but something feels off about him, and Wendy can’t ignore the secrets he might be hiding.

Soon after, Wendy finds herself back in Neverland. The island is as magical as ever, and Wendy is thrilled to see Peter again – but his childishness is more irritating than charming this time. However, Wendy’s fierce loyalty to Peter makes it hard for her to accept anything negative said about him.

Meanwhile, her feelings for Liam are conflicted. She’s drawn to him but can’t get past his pirate connection. Her reactions often feel overly emotional - like she’s grasping for reasons to stay angry with him. Wendy seems very childish at times, but perhaps her emotions are influenced by being back in Neverland. On the other hand, Liam remains a gentleman for most of the book, and I often found myself siding with him more than with Wendy.

The shadow curse is an interesting mystery, but it felt underdeveloped, which made the climax fall a bit flat. I was also left wondering why Liam was often shown checking his pocket watch and called the “timekeeper” by Hook. Sadly, this thread never really went anywhere.

Peter and Hook mostly stayed in character (aside from one really creepy scene with aging magic), but Tinker Bell felt off for much of the story.

That said, I appreciated the clean romance and historical accuracy, especially for a Teen & YA novel. The ending wraps things up in a satisfying way and leaves room for more Neverland adventures. I recommend this book to fans of “Peter Pan” who enjoy a new twist and aren’t overly concerned with the original canon.

I love Peter Pan and a lot of books about him but this wasn’t for me. I love Wendy and her family. If anything I’d give it 3 stars because the story was interesting enough for me to finish it but I didn’t really enjoy reading it.

I really enjoyed the premise and the first five chapters of the book, but found that Wendy’s attitude really annoyed me.

Wendy was constantly irritable and disagreeable in a way that became very tiring, especially when she was becoming outraged with the majority of the things Liam or Peter would say. In her internal dialogue she would dissect their words and find the smallest thing to be mad about. The villainization of both Liam and Peter felt very forced because of how frequently this occurred. These characters may have said or done questionable things but not to the point where we needed to keep hearing the same arguments as to why they were problematic. If the intent here was to portray Wendy as a stubborn character, I think this could have been achieved more subtly and in a variety of different ways. Showing rather than telling how Wendy was unhappy with Liam and Peter would have helped with this problem a bit.

That being said, I really enjoyed the banter Wendy and Liam had early on in the book.

Although the stakes were acknowledged, I didn’t really feel from the tone of the book that things were truly serious. The book definitely captured some of the classic Peter Pan vibes which was probably part of the reason why the darker tone wasn’t quite achieved. The atmosphere just wasn’t really tense enough to build a sense of urgency.

Ultimately this book wasn’t really for me but if you’re a fan of Peter Pan you’d probably enjoy it as a bit of a throwback with some romance as well.

Thank you to Shadow Mountain Publishing for providing me with this book for review via NetGalley!

This was a neat and intriguing take and spin on Peter Pan and Wendy. I appreciated that this was clean and could be read by teens as well. It was sweet and creative and any other lovers of the classic Peter Pan book or movie would enjoy this. There is plenty of adventure to keep you intrigued.

I received a copy of this book. I was not required to write a review.

This was a really sweet continuation of the Peter and Wendy story. I really loved getting to see Wendy get her happily ever after.

“Wendy Darling is drawn back to Neverland, torn between childhood memories of Peter Pan and the mysterious young man who now stirs her heart.”

What an amazing YA read. I absolutely love retellings and story variations of the fairy tales I grew up on and Peter Pan has always been my number one choice. This definitely read as YA and was spice free so if that’s not your jam, you may want to skip it.

The romance between Wendy and Lian was adorable and you could feel their connection on the page. While not the same Neverland that we know, the story was still full of the adventure and fantasy elements that we come to expect from Peter and the entire world of Neverland.

This is a great book for teens or anyone that likes non-spicy YA. I truly enjoyed reading it.

A very special Thank You to NetGalley, Shadow Mountain Publishing, and the author for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I never feel great going into modern Peter Pan novels, mostly because it’s hard to write something that can survive the inevitable comparison to the original. The only exceptions are H.G. Parry’s Heartless, the screenplay for Hook (say thank you to Carrie Fisher for the uncredited rewrites), and maybe this book? It’s not quite on par with the aforementioned Pan lit, but it’s far better than most spin-offs of Barrie’s original work.

This is a sequel and not a retelling or reimagining, which probably helped a lot. And it doesn’t betray the spirit of Neverland (a frequent mistake by modern authors looking to “correct” the original story).

Unfortunately this did have a bit of heavy moralizing toward the end that I didn’t care for (Wendy scolding Peter for being—well, himself—was sort of obnoxious). But for the most part this story wants to answer Barrie rather than re-form him, and that’s all to the good.

This is probably the best I’ve seen among the Wendy’s perspective novels, and I thought the author did a good job of deepening her character while not betraying the original. I didn’t really care about Liam one way or the other, but his role does provide something important plot-wise as far as how Wendy looks at both Peter and Hook, and whether perhaps neither of them is Neverland’s primary problem.

The tone of this is excellent, it’s not too romance-heavy, and it’s a nice homage to Barrie while still being its own unique tale.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for providing an advanced copy for an honest review.

I just finished Wendy’s Ever After, and it’s such a sweet, nostalgic twist on the Peter Pan story. Wendy is now 18 and back in London, dealing with real-world pressures like balls, expectations, and what her future should look like. But when she meets a mysterious Navy lieutenant named Liam, she starts to feel that old pull toward magic—and toward Neverland.

What I liked most is how the book blends that dreamy childhood magic with the very real feeling of growing up and not being sure where you belong. Wendy’s torn between her memories of Peter and the possibility of something real with Liam, who has some secrets of his own. The tension builds slowly, and there’s just enough mystery to keep things interesting. The atmosphere is cozy but a little eerie at times, and it really nails that in-between space where you're not a kid anymore, but you’re still figuring things out. There are clever nods to the original story, but it also stands on its own in a really satisfying way.

Final thoughts: If you’re into fairy tale retellings, soft fantasy, or stories about finding your way between the past and the future, this one’s worth a read. It has heart, just enough romance, and a gentle kind of magic that lingers after the last page.

This is a sweet, clever 'sequel' to Peter Pan. And, like Peter Pan, it deals with growing up. It also deals with choices, trying to do the right thing, trying to figure out what the right thing even is. And, love, obviously:)
This is a clean read and the editing is good. I received an ARC from the publisher via Net Galley. I was not required to write a review but chose to do so and the opinions stated are my own.

I hate peter pan, but this book made me rethink my decision/opinion on the movie. I loved that this book is set 5 years after the movie. I loved the mmc.

The book draws you in from the beginning and just makes you want to devour the book in just a few hours.

I found this book to be mid and I felt myself getting board the more the book went on.

My overall rating would be 3,25 stars

This book had me from page one. It is an ingenious retelling of Peter Pan set in 1909 when Wendy is 17. She yearns to go back to Neverland but Peter hasn't come to get her for 2 years. When she finally gets back, things aren't as they were. Will Wendy find love or Deception?

I loved the changes that constantly kept me guessing what was happening, who's the real bad guy, and will Wendy get her happily ever after?

There are no swears or alcohol and level 1 kisses only.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from @netgalley and @shadowmountainpub. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. #Netgalley #shadowmountainpublishing

I honestly loved this continuation of an already wonderful story! What a fun way to explore the characters of Peter Pan! I was drawn in from the beginning! I fell instantly in love with the MMC!

Thank you to Shadow Mountain and NetGalley for this story, all opinions and thoughts are my own!

Wendy's Ever After takes place 5 years after Wendy Darling's adventures with Peter in Neverland. Wendy’s grown up from the girl who once flew with Peter Pan. Now she’s a graceful young woman attending balls and fitting into high society—but she still holds onto the memories of her adventures in Neverland. When she meets a mysterious and charming stranger who reminds her a little too much of someone she once knew, her world is turned upside down—and suddenly, she’s back in Neverland.

This imagined continuation of Wendy's story hooked me from the beginning. Liam is such a charismatic character I probably would have followed him anywhere! I loved their banter and watching them learn to work together. I understood why Wendy didn't know who to believe—Liam or Peter, because I couldn't decide and kept changing my mind. I liked how the author included the original characters into the story—Hook, Mr. Smee, the lost boys, and Tinker Bell.

What I appreciated most is how the story honors the original tale while adding new depth. It’s not just a nostalgic revisit—it’s about choosing who you want to be, letting go of who you thought you had to be, and rediscovering your courage along the way. The romance is heartfelt and the emotional journey really stuck with me.

If you love fairytale retellings that blend whimsy with heart, adventure with romance, Wendy’s Ever After is a lovely trip back to Neverland. I received a copy from the publisher Shadow Mountain Publishing via NetGalley. All opinions in this review are my own.

Peter Pan is one of my favorite fairytales, so naturally I was excited to see tha tthis story makes Wendy the focus. I haven’t come across a version Peter Pan that makes Wendy the central character, or focuses on her life in London after returning from Neverland. I throughly enjoyed that aspect of this novel. The will-they-won’t-they dynamic between Wendy and Liam was just right, though their relationship felt a bit too instant-love to me. But it is a fairytale, so I guess that makes sense. I loved how this story provides a bit of a behind-the-scenes look at the characters from Neverland that Peter Pan fans are familiar with. This is a SUPER fast read, but I honestly think it was the right length. The story progresses at a good pace, and if it was longer, I think it would feel drawn-out. I 100% recommend this one for any fans of Peter Pan.