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Title: Wendy Darling: Volume 2: Seas
Author: Colleen Oakes
Publication: September 20th 2016 by SparkPress
Genre: Young Adult ~ Fantasy
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo
Rating: 3/5
From the author of Queen of Hearts comes the much anticipated sequel to Wendy Darling.
Wendy Darling: Seas finds Wendy and Michael aboard the dreaded Sudden Night, a dangerous behemoth sailed by the infamous Captain Hook and his blood-thirsty crew. In this exotic world of mermaids, spies and pirate-feuds, Wendy finds herself struggling to keep her family above the waves. Hunted by the twisted boy who once stole her heart and struggling to survive in the whimsical Neverland sea, returning home to London now seems like a distant dream - and the betrayals have just begun.
Will Wendy find shelter with Peter's greatest enemy, or is she a pawn in a much darker game, one that could forever alter not only her family's future, but also the soul of Neverland itself?
I felt basically the same way about Wendy Darling: Seas as I did with volume one, Wendy Darling: Stars. I liked it for sure, though some parts were a little tedious. I did like this book more than the first one, I must say. I also thought the end was the best part of the whole book. And yet again the ending made me say holy crap out loud.
This book is pretty much about Wendy trying to find her place on the ship the Sudden Night among Captain Hook and his frightening crew. But also about protecting her little brother Michael and finding out how Peter Pan got his powers and how she and Hook can defeat him.
Wendy in general is a bit of a Mary Sue but I liked how she tranformed a little in a tougher version of herself while on board with the pirates. After all she went through with Peter in the first book, she had no other choice but to toughen up.
Captain Hook was probably my newest favorite character. He was just like I expect Hook to be, ferocious and brutal but also had some goodness inside of him and also love. I also really liked Smee for some weird reason.
As this book was more about the pirates, Peter wasn't much in it this time around. He was more in it towards the ending. And god, that ending... I hadn't seen it coming at all. Which is why I want the next book so very badly.
Overall, Wendy Darling: Seas by Colleen Oakes was pretty good. It had savage pirates, lethal mermaids, some unexpected twists and one hell of an ending.
Colleen Oakes is the author of books for both teens and adults, including The Elly in Bloom Series, The Queen of Hearts Saga (Harper Collins 2016) and The Wendy Darling Saga. She lives in North Denver with her husband and son and surrounds herself with the most lovely family and friends imaginable. When not writing or plotting new books, Colleen can be found swimming, traveling or totally immersing herself in nerdy pop culture. She currently at work on a standalone novel and another YA fairytale series.
Title: Wendy Darling: Stars
Author: Colleen Oakes
Series: Wendy Darling #1
Publication: October 13th 2015 by SparkPress
Genre: Young Adult ~ Retelling ~ Fantasy
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo
Rating: 3/5
From the Best-Selling Author of Queen of Hearts comes a dark and mesmerizing twist on the beloved Children's Classic, Peter Pan.
Wendy Darling has a perfectly agreeable life with her parents and brothers in wealthy London, as well as a budding romance with Booth, the neighborhood bookseller’s son. But while their parents are at a ball, the charmingly beautiful Peter Pan comes to the Darling children’s nursery and—dazzled by this flying boy with god-like powers—they follow him out of the window and straight on to morning, to Neverland, a intoxicating island of feral freedom.
As time passes in Neverland, Wendy realizes that this Lost Boy’s paradise of turquoise seas, mermaids, and pirates holds terrible secrets rooted in blood and greed. As Peter’s grasp on her heart tightens, she struggles to remember where she came from—and begins to suspect that this island of dreams, and the boy who desires her—have the potential to transform into an everlasting nightmare.
Wendy Darling took me by surprise. I had a hard time rating this book because it felt somewhere between three and four stars. It was quite good but it took me a while to start getting into the book and really liking it. It actually wasn't until the last couple of chapters that I really started getting invested with the story and Wendy.
I've read and seen lots of retellings around Peter Pan and Neverland. Most retellings don't really portrait her as a nice person so that's one way this book makes it unique. The story starts out pretty much the same as the classic tale of Peter Pan we all know with small changes here and there but also some bigger ones that make it a true retelling.
Like I said before, for most of the book I wasn't liking it all that much at first. It had a very strong prologue but it went a little downhill from there. I guess there wasn't much happening and I was getting a wee bit bored. Also, at that point I wasn't liking Wendy all that much. She's nice and all but that's where it stopped for me.
But then the story started getting quite chilling when Peter shows his true colors to Wendy. I thought this was actually a really great turn of events, even though it felt all pretty dark. But it was there that I started caring much more for Wendy and realizing how she truly is a great heroine.
Wendy's brother Michael was adorable but John annoyed the hell out of me. I get that being in Neverland changes people, but he was so disrespectful towards his sister. The Lost Boys were something else. I really liked some of them very much. Especially Abbott. He was a character I wanted to learn more about. And there was Tink. I'm not sure what to say about her except that I really felt sorry for what Peter made her go through and how he treated her.
The writing was absolutely wonderful. I really have nothing negative to say about that. It was at times really beautiful and even lyrical. Basically perfect for a Neverland story. And that ending! Holy crap, I need the sequel right now! So, yeah, be prepared for a cliffhanger!
About the Author:
Colleen Oakes is the author of the Elly in Bloom Series and the upcoming YA fantasy Queen of Hearts Saga (Harper Collins Summer 2016.) She lives in North Denver with her husband and son. When not writing, Colleen enjoys swimming, traveling, and immersing herself in nerdy pop culture. She is currently at work on the final Elly novel and another YA fantasy series called Wendy Darling (Sparkpress, October 2015.)
