Forever Neverland - Heather Killough-Walden

I was a bit apprehensive about this novel as I found the other book by Heather Killough-Walden a disappointment. It was one of my first reviews and it can be found here http://rushbysrantsandreviews.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/avengers-angel-lost-angels-book-one.html
I slated it! I was unsure whether to bother with this read and I am so glad I did. I read it in a couple of days and couldn't put it down. I was back to reading in the staffroom and at every available point! Here's why.
I have a long standing obsession with pirates. I believe Captain Hook was one of my first fangirly infatuations at the tender age of... well, lets just say I was young OK! The story of Peter Pan is a complicated one I won't get into now and the idea of a sequel has always left me feeling uncertain. This one is a very different take on it, and it worked for me, we find Wendy Darling being bounced between therapists, John has grown into a disbelieving nerd and Michael a troubled child. Peter has become a nightmare of a teenager who has turned to motor cycles and drink, not a bad thing usually but in this case...

Killough-Walden does all the characters justice, keeping them in check with the originals and adding her own spin on it. The hate between Hook and Pan is explored in detail and the reader learns some abhorrent things about the young hero of Neverland. He comes across as a sulky obnoxious spoilt young man who hasn't learnt a thing since leaving Neverland. He has grown up a bit, in body, but certainly not in mind.

The language in the novel is half decent as well and the action scenes are so well written I could not stop reading, I ignored most things going on around me while I was churning through the pages. The only thing that bothered me was the repeated use of the phrase 'off of' (as in get off of my ship) I find this phrase awkward and it could easily be avoided with a bit of a re-write (Get your ass off my ship)

Apart from this, the novel was a splendid read. The romantic aspect of it was cute and the detail which she writes in is fab. If you're a fan of Peter Pan and fancy a bit of a guilty pleasure, this is the book for you!