by Lisa Maxwell
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Publication Date: February 2nd 2016
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Pages: 342
ISBN: 9781481432047
Genre: Young Adult | Retelling | Fantasy
Source: Edelweiss
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For as long as she can remember, Gwendolyn Allister has never had a place to call home—all because her mother believes that monsters are hunting them. Now these delusions have brought them to London, far from the life Gwen had finally started to build for herself. The only saving grace is her best friend, Olivia, who’s coming with them for the summer.
But when Gwen and Olivia are kidnapped by shadowy creatures and taken to a world of flesh-eating sea hags and dangerous Fey, Gwen realizes her mom might have been sane all along.
The world Gwen finds herself in is called Neverland, yet it’s nothing like the stories. Here, good and evil lose their meaning and memories slip like water through her fingers. As Gwen struggles to remember where she came from and find a way home, she must choose between trusting the charming fairy-tale hero who says all the right things and the roguish young pirate who promises to keep her safe.
With time running out and her enemies closing in, Gwen is forced to face the truths she’s been hiding from all along. But will she be able to save Neverland without losing herself? (Goodreads)
I know I've mentioned this before, but I absolutely love fairytale retellings!! I've read quite a few of them lately and I have loved each of them, and Unhooked by Lisa Maxwell is no exception!! This Peter Pan retelling had me hooked, and I loved every minute of it!
The main character in the story is Gwen. Gwen has never had much of a stable life. Her mom has moved her from place to place in attempt to avoid the 'monsters' that always seem to be chasing after them. After being kidnapped on the first night in her newest home, Gwen awakes to find herself in on a ship, right in the middle of Neverland. But this is not the Neverland that she knows from the stories. It's vicious and dangerous and nothing at all what it seems.
The characters in the book are great! A few we know from the original Peter Pan tale, but they are completely different than what you'd expect. The characters that I thought would be evil, weren't. And the ones that I thought would be the good guys, weren't. It was a total role reversal, and I loved it! (And I am completely in love with one of these characters now as well. I'm not saying who, just read the book and you'll know who!!) Gwen was a really great main character as well. I love that she was such a strong character, despite everything that she'd been through.
The storyline for the book felt familiar, but so very unique as well. I loved this, as it made me feel nostalgic in a way that only a few retellings have made me feel so far. This book is action packed and very fast paced. I was totally consumed once I started flying through the pages. I totally didn't want this book to end, but unfortunately it did, and that made me very sad. But I still loved it anyway!
Overall; If you're a fan of fairytale retellings, especially those about Peter Pan, you're definitely going to want to check out Unhooked!! I really enjoyed this book so much more than I expected to, and I really hope Lisa Maxwell decides to write more retellings in the future. Add the book to your TBR, and read it as soon as possible. I know you'll love it!
Yay! I want to read this book. It's on my list but I'll have to wait a bit because studies are killing me but it's nice to read good reviews ^^
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!
I adored this one as well! You're totally right about that role reversal! This book had a really sinister feel to it, which I absolutely loved. Great review!
ReplyDelete~ Lefty @ The Left-Handed Book Lover
I love the sound of this book and I can't wait to read it. I love fairy tale retellings and from what I've heard from many people this is an amazing and fun adventure! Thanks for the review! :)
ReplyDeleteGreat review! I love retellings too and I hope to read Unhooked soon. I've heard fans of the book compare it to the version of the Peter Pan/Hook story on Once Upon a Time, a show that I love.
ReplyDelete