Shadow

Heirs of Neverland, Book 2

By: Kara Swanson

Narrated by: Natasha Soudek

Book two in the Heirs of Neverland series.

©2021 Kara Swanson (P)2021 Oasis Audio

A Book About Pain, Loss, Healing, and Forgiveness

The first book in this series was a bit slow, in my opinion, but in this book, we finally make it to Neverland and the pace really starts to pick up. Overall, I really liked this book, but I did have a couple of minor quibbles, so let's get those out of the way first.

What I Didn't Like: Claire comes across as a bit too Mary Sue-ish at times, but she does have moments of weakness, and she is arguably her own worst enemy. Not the best original character, but also not the worst. My only other real complaint is that I miss some of the characters from the original. Wendy and her brothers don’t show up in the story–not even in flashbacks–and Tink is dead by the time we meet Peter in the first book. Mr. Smee and the pirate crew are nowhere to be seen. The crocodile does show up briefly but has no major interactions with Hook…and Hook himself, though intriguing and complex in the moments we DO get with him, doesn’t get as much “screen time” as I would have liked.

What I DID Like: Despite the fact that it took awhile for me to get into and was a bit OC heavy for my taste, I would still recommend this book series. It’s clear the author is a deep thinker willing to tackle some heavy issues…and she does so with grace, humility, and honesty. On the surface, this mini-series may just be a Peter Pan-themed story about a girl finding herself and her place in the world, but it’s so much more than that. It’s a story about pain and how our response to it can break not only ourselves but those around us. It’s a story about forgiveness and growth and how sometimes even when we try to reconcile with others, they choose to walk away. And it’s a story about healing in all its messy, difficult beauty. Emotional/mental pain is explored with genuineness and compassion in a way that few authors manage. All of the characters are messed up in some way from past traumas and hurts, though how they manage that pain and how their responses affect the people around them differ greatly. Peter tries to forget anything bad ever happened and so, for a long time, never matures and ends up forgetting some important people in his life and good things along with the bad. Claire tries to shut out her negative emotions, terrified that she will hurt someone if she allows herself to feel everything, and hurts herself more than anyone in the process. Connor allows his pain to entirely consume him and anyone who gets in his way. Paige grows so bitter and comes to love wallowing in her pain so much that she won’t allow even the one person she loves to drag her out of it…and destroys herself in the process. And Hook allows himself to do terrible things in the name of love for someone who he can’t see cares more about herself than him. It’s a story of loss, redemption, forgiveness, and healing. And the author doesn’t gloss over things. Not everyone is saved, even when others attempt to make amends…and those who do come out better in the end only do so after great sacrifice and confronting their own personal darkness. Some characters die and stay dead. Some require extensive emotional healing that only time, patience, and love will fix. Magic isn’t a cure-all even in a world where flying and eternal youth are possible. It isn’t always pretty, but there is a lot of truth to it.

Overall, worth the read and a book I'd recommend checking out.

loved this series

you'll love this twist on peter pan. one of the best peter pan series I've read this year

BEST PETER PAN STORY EVER!!🤩

Oh my word!! Where to start?!?! This was the prefect ending and had so many surprising twists and turns to get there!! I loved watching Peter and Claire grow throughout this story!!!🥰

Always kept me interested

This book couldn’t necessarily be described as delightful. But the magic and plot are so real and relatable. They also describe so clearly things that are true for so many kids and how they see ‘magic’ in their lives. I love that she writes strong characters (good and bad) and it’s a cautionary tale, even for adults. Beautiful themes of healing, maturity, mental health, and community. A great read!

Amazing!

A well written and riveting story! You’ll fall in love with the characters. At times it felt like the narration didn’t match the tone of the story, but highly enjoyable nonetheless.