Book Review: Lost Boys by Christina Henry

Title: Lost Boy

Author: Christina Henry
Publisher: Titan Books
Release Date:

Synopsis: There is one version of my story that everyone knows. And then there is the truth. This is how it happened. How I went from being Peter Pan’s first—and favorite—lost boy to his greatest enemy.Peter brought me to his island because there were no rules and no grownups to make us mind. He brought boys from the Other Place to join in the fun, but Peter's idea of fun is sharper than a pirate’s sword. Because it’s never been all fun and games on the island. Our neighbors are pirates and monsters. Our toys are knife and stick and rock—the kinds of playthings that bite. Peter promised we would all be young and happy forever.

Disclaimer! Please note that this review was previously published by myself over on DarkReaders where I previously blogged, and is reproduced here will full permission.
Review: If that synopsis didn't get you going then I don't know what will. I was excited for this. I am always a big fan of a parody, or rather interpretation of a story, because I love seeing an author take an idea that we know and twist it. It's one of the reasons I love the Terry Pratchett books so much, because he takes an idea and plays with it. I loved Henry's reinvention of Alice, so I was intrigued to see what we'd have here.

We all know the story of Peter Pan, we all tried jumping off chairs thinking happy thoughts and tried to fly. Never land seemed liked this magical plan where we would be forever young. I still act like a child now a lot of the time and say I have Peter Pan syndrome in small doses. But this book isn't about me...It's about Peter and Jamie and the prequel that takes this story to new, dark chilling places. I thought I knew what to except and I was wrong.
The book starts with this intriguing passage, talking about lies and deception, casting the ominous vibe so that you're forever cautious going forward. From there the book flows beautifully, there is excellent pace, with moments of light and dark, intensity and angst, but with this sense of boyish 
frivolity.

Jamie is a great lead character, he is a character you care for, believe in and champion. He sets the tone and with such narration, and from what he tells you, there is potential to find him an unreliable narrator, guiding your thoughts. BUT that couldn't possibly be the case here because of a certain someone. Peter -not the Disney version you think you know - Pan! What an absolute ******************************. If you've seen Once Upon A Time, the Peter Pan of season three is more along the lines of what we get here. You think as you read, it's Peter Pan, he can't be that bad. He's just a boy, a little lost boy who wants to have fun. And he does, he brings boys to the island and plays games, goes on quests and has adventures. Unless of course you don't fit his mould, you don' play hard enough or you question him too much. Then the green goes dark, and this nasty side comes out. This vindictive, viscous character. Of course he's not completely outright with it, he's sly and plays games with the boys both mental and physical. And this fuels the anger that I had for the character, and provides a great sparing point between the characters themselves. The book here becomes more adult and serious encouraging these darker moments.

At its heart everyone here is lost in a different way, and as the book develops and they come into themselves there are beautiful themes of family and friendship, about what it means to grow up and what we'll do for someone we love. And this comes from all sides. Everyone's actions are all done for a reason, as we all do in life, and when we self justify the reasons for it we have to live with those consequences. You really feel that here as the book digs deeper and peels the layers away.  Then those last pages. I was almost cheering, i loved that turn! It just made perfect sense.

I also LOVE this cover. It has this beautiful fairy tale vibe that really suits the story. Normally I've been loving the american versions of the Alice covers, but I think the UK version trumps this time, and though i love the drawings on the american cover the UK is a touch more subtle and magical.

I can probably never look at Peter Pan the same way again and now I'm excited to see what Henry does next. What adventures will we go on who knows but I want more.