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Seas

(Wendy Darling #2)

Colleen Oakes (Goodreads Author)

4.30 · Rating details · 807 ratings · 153 reviews

Wendy Darling: Seas finds Wendy and Michael aboard the dreaded Sudden Night, a dangerous behemoth sailed by the infamous Captain Hook and his bloodthirsty 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 whim ...more

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Paperback, 274 pages

Published September 20th 2016 by Sparkpress

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2016 YA Fairy Tale Retellings

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· 807 ratings · 153 reviews

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Apr 01, 2016 TJ rated it it was ok

Shelves: arc, kindle

Received from: SparkPress
Received Via: NetGalley.com

THE REVIEW

Why this book?

I liked the first book in the series

What I thought

This one wasn’t as good as the first. Sure it was interesting to see her life with the pirates and to find out that Hook is actually the good guy. I just couldn’t connect with the story. I kept putting it off for some reason and it felt like it took me forever to finish it. I’m not saying the story was bad though, it was fun and adventurous at parts but at other parts it ...more

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Feb 16, 2016 Colleen Oakes rated it it was amazing · (Review from the author)

A summary:

"Proud and insolent youth," said Hook, "prepare to meet thy doom."
""Dark and sinister man," Peter answered, "have at thee.”

- J.M Barrie, Peter Pan
...more

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May 15, 2016 Stephanie (Bookfever) rated it liked it

Shelves: review-copy, young-adult, fantasy, 2016-publication, netgalley

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 protecti ...more

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Mar 09, 2017 Cassandra rated it it was ok · review of another edition

I may be done with the series.

The first one was a guilty pleasure read but the second one took away the pleasure and just made me feel like I was wasting my time on a bad book. I really loved the first one, solely because I loved dark Peter but this book was all about Wendy. I didn't love Hook and learning his back story.

No longer the retelling I'm looking for. ...more

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Sep 28, 2016 Lisa Mandina rated it it was amazing

Just like with Three Dark Crowns I was contacted back in August to be a part of a Fall YA Tour. Now the books came a little later than planned, so I didn't get to this one before the publishing date unfortunately. I also had asked for the first book in the series, but due to the mix up and late mailing, I didn't get it. Fortunately, the author does a great job of catching you up on what happened in the last book. It's not done in a big info dump at the beginning, although you do get the necessar Just like with Three Dark Crowns I was contacted back in August to be a part of a Fall YA Tour. Now the books came a little later than planned, so I didn't get to this one before the publishing date unfortunately. I also had asked for the first book in the series, but due to the mix up and late mailing, I didn't get it. Fortunately, the author does a great job of catching you up on what happened in the last book. It's not done in a big info dump at the beginning, although you do get the necessary details right away. A lot of what happened is spread throughout the story in appropriate conversations and memories in the right spot. Obviously there will be a few spoilers in my review below, sorry about that. But you can pick this one up and read it without reading the first one if you want.

As you can guess, this is a retelling of the story about Peter Pan. Only in this version, Peter is not the good guy. Captain Hook is still a pirate, and so still not really a nice guy, but in this story he is going to be really all that Wendy has to help her get her brother back from Peter, as well as to keep her safe from Peter's obsession with her. You see Peter Pan is very charming. Not only does he have Tinkerbelle in love with him, but at first, he makes Wendy feel like she is in love as well. But soon she sees him for what kind of a person he really is, when he takes her up flying, and drops her from very high above the ground. He catches her, at the last minute, but uses this as a way to try to make her stay with him. But Wendy now just wants to get her brothers and get back home. Even though according to everyone in Neverland, there is no way back. Wendy and her youngest brother Michael must learn to live on the pirate ship, while Hook tells Wendy his story and his reasons for being after Peter. Wendy will work in the kitchen, and get to know the pirates well enough to call some of them friends, in their own way. As long as she is on the ship, she is pretty well protected from Peter.

Eventually Hook and Wendy will go to find out how to really kill Peter, which will require a dangerous trip alone for Wendy, so that she can ask help from the mermaids. The mermaids who will trade the information for virgin blood. Wendy's blood. Along their travels Wendy will not only have to worry about Peter finding her, but also some of the pirates on the very ship she is on may not be able to be trusted. Along with a big pirate summit where there is mutiny among Hook and the other ships. The mermaids cannot be trusted, and even just to get to them Wendy will travel a path where Peter will almost be able to capture her and stop her.

Wendy's thoughts are just to save her brothers and get back to her home where her family is, as well as the man that she really feels she could be in love with. In the end we will lose some of the characters we grow to love, and things will not come out quite the way as planned. There is a big surprise at the end, making me very anxious for the next book, so that I can see what Wendy will do to solve this next obstacle.

This was my first book by the author, even though I have a copy of the ARC of Queen of Hearts sitting on my TBR shelf. I am definitely very excited to read that one now, and I have also ordered my own copy of the first book in this series so that I can read about the whole relationship between Peter and Wendy, and how this version of the fairy tale all began. If you haven't started this author, or this series, I definitely recommend it.

This review was originally published at Lisa Loves Literature. ...more

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Jul 26, 2016 Sigourney rated it really liked it

Shelves: for-review, favourites, netgalley, kindle

Received from NetGalley for review.

‘He may want me, but he does not have my permission to take me. I do not belong to Peter Pan. Or any man, for that matter.’

YES WENDY. So many times, yes. I never knew I could have so many feelings about Wendy Darling, I even hate the name a little less now.

Wendy Darling, badass extraordinaire, returns in Seas having escaped Peter’s clutches only to be kidnapped (rescued?) by Captain Hook. Collen Oakes blew my mind last year with the first instalment in ...more

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Aug 31, 2016 Brenda rated it really liked it

Shelves: netgalley

Not a lot happens in Wendy Darling: Seas. In fact, I can break it down into one or two sentences for you without spoiling anything: Wendy and Michael float around with Captain Hook, find out he's not such a bad guy, and learn how to beat up Peter Pan. There. I can say that it really isn't much more fascinating than that; I'm not revealing any major plot points, but I'm not really missing any either. Everything you need to know is right there.

Surprising though it may be, the nothing that happens ...more

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Jul 11, 2017 BAM Endlessly Booked rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy, e-book, ya, series-have-read, deleted, fairy-tale-retellings

RTC

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Jan 23, 2016 ⋆☆☽ Kriss ☾☆⋆ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: part-of-a-series, owned-physical-books, rellings-and-adaptations

This installment to the Wendy Darling series packs a serious punch of great writing, storytelling, and especially character development. This is a great book! A great follow up to an excellent beginning forged in Wendy Darling Volume One: Stars. I loved this book. But god, how am I to survive the wait for volume three? Those last few pages... like a sucker punch in the gut.

Now that the set up is all fleshed out, this second installment lets us get into a lot of dark undertones coupled with an ex This installment to the Wendy Darling series packs a serious punch of great writing, storytelling, and especially character development. This is a great book! A great follow up to an excellent beginning forged in Wendy Darling Volume One: Stars. I loved this book. But god, how am I to survive the wait for volume three? Those last few pages... like a sucker punch in the gut.

Now that the set up is all fleshed out, this second installment lets us get into a lot of dark undertones coupled with an expanding story line and plot that gets thicker and more complex as it goes. We get background stories, we get history, we get new bad guys, we get a whole lot of side characters, and we get some unique story elements and conflicts added in to make this retelling feel refreshing and new and different in a very good way. Since this book focuses on Wendy's time with the pirates so heavily, there's a lot of action.

The character development is masterfully done. We follow along as Wendy transforms from polite Edwardian socialite to a survivor on a pirate ship who slowly becomes involved in a plan to save everyone and Neverland so she can take her brothers safely home to London and see her parents and love. I love Wendy; Colleen Oakes has given new life and strength to her character. She's amazing and I found myself cheering for her success constantly. Hook and Pan also are pretty well done; more layers get torn away from these two to reveal who these two really are and how they come into their roles as villain and antihero. I also enjoyed the side characters. We even see some growth in John! But he's only in the book for a little while, so it was minimal. I hope to see more of characters like John and Tink especially in the next book.

The story was fast paced, but despite being only 269 pages long in my paperback copy, this book feels very full and rich. For once, its length is not a weakness. Colleen Oakes masterfully used the space to create a fulfilling story full of interesting elements and a well-thought out plot that propels readers through storms and mermaids and pirates and lies and secrets. I was wholly engaged the whole time.

One other prop I have to give the author is the fact that Wendy isn't losing herself to Peter and making her story be that of a romance with a psycho; she still is drawn to him for whatever reason, but she holds onto her family and booth and her self-respect through it all and refuses to end up in that unfortunate heroine situation where a beautiful face and pretty words charm her into enduring mistreatment and sacrificing everything; Wendy knows Peter is bad and that there is no future with him, that saving her brothers and getting home and out of Neverland is what she needs to do, what's best for her and her family. I legitimately hope that in the third book Booth and Wendy are able to end up together and be happy.

Overall, I loved this book. I polished it off in a single sitting and now feel sort of empty since I don't have the next volume in my hands right to let me have another round of amazing story and more Wendy being so damn cool and admirable with all her growth. ...more

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Feb 05, 2016 Abby Vincere rated it really liked it

Shelves: it-could-have-been-better, excellent-reads-not-on-favorites, peter-pan-retellings-i-ve-read

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I have to admit, after an eager year's long wait for the follow up to "Stars", I'm a bit disappointed. While the descriptions were lovely, the writing overall is fair enough to warrant four stars (I considered bumping it down to three, based on my level of personal enjoyment for this one, but for quality reasons it really deserves four), and it was certainly interesting in its way, there was much left desired.

So I've decided the easiest way to do this review is to divide it into three parts: 1) ...more

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Feb 08, 2018 May͛a [semi-hiatus] rated it liked it

Shelves: could-have-been-better, fantasy, did-not-expect-it-to-be-good, young-adult, cover-yes, reviewed, retellings

This review contains potential spoilers! It's half-rant, after all.

3.5 stars

If I had to grade this book using the educational system at school it would be deemed as...satisfactory. I find second books in trilogies to be really important installments, so I was curious to see how this one would turn out. I liked it waayyyyy better than book one, and it was enough to keep me reading and turning the page.

Let me first make myself clear. The lack of Peter Pan in this book cleared my skin and whitened ...more

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Jun 03, 2018 Kayla rated it really liked it

We've took the story in a whole new direction and I love that ...more

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Jul 16, 2016 Danielle N rated it really liked it

Recommends it for: fans of fantasy and Peter Pan!

Shelves: fantasy, fairy-tale, 2015-2016-to-read

I was hesitant to request an ARC of Seas because honestly, I was unaware this series existed. I had not read volume one.. bad girl. Tsk tsk. But I was too intrigued not to. So I was pretty stoked when I received a copy and quickly downloaded this onto my Kindle and dove in. Fortunately, I felt that enough background was provided regarding previous events it seemed safe to proceed.

This was a truly fun and adventurous retelling, and my first involving Peter Pan (restraining from commenting further ...more

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Dec 25, 2019 Annette rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fairytale-retellings

Normally I have a very strict rule when it comes to binge reading. I just don't do it. I don't wanna risk not being able to get into another book. But, for this trilogy I made an exception. I read the first book last Thursday and I picked up the second book yesterday, which means I will be able to finish the trilogy before the end of the year.

And damn, it was so incredibly worth it to loosen up on this rule! I'm a huge Alice in Wonderland fan, but not even Queen of Hearts got to me like this bo Normally I have a very strict rule when it comes to binge reading. I just don't do it. I don't wanna risk not being able to get into another book. But, for this trilogy I made an exception. I read the first book last Thursday and I picked up the second book yesterday, which means I will be able to finish the trilogy before the end of the year.

And damn, it was so incredibly worth it to loosen up on this rule! I'm a huge Alice in Wonderland fan, but not even Queen of Hearts got to me like this book does. This book, those two books, touched something in me, spoke to me, reached me. I was crying over the last pages of the book, I was holding my breath while the story unfolded and when I closed the book I all of a sudden felt a deafening silence all around me. As if the book had consumed me and I needed time to get back to the real world.

It's hard to pinpoint what exactly works, why this book had this effect on me. But, it for starters has surely partly to the do with the writing style. It's flowery, rich with descriptions and therefore it makes me see the world so vividly. I'm absolutely not someone who sees books like movies, but with these books, with Colleen Oakes, it works. I can almost smell and see the wonderful places in Neverland.

It also has to do with the characters and how Oakes twists them and makes them all interesting and layered. In this book we got to know Hook, Smith and the rest of the crew aboard his ship. We get to hear his side of the story and we get to see his motivation for doing what he's doing. And where these books made me hate Peter Pan (and I already don't have that much love for that guy), they also made me fall a little bit in love with Hook.

And now all pieces are on the chessboard. Peter Pan made his final move before the big war will start. I can't wait to see how it will all play out. I will make sure to take a very deep breath before reading though, because I'm fairly certain the last part of this story will swallow me whole and I'm so ready for it! ...more

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Aug 08, 2018 Rachel Meyer rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, ya-novels, 2018-reads

I don't remember much about the first book in this series, but I do know this one was just as dark and twisted. But in an interesting way.

The adventure continues as Wendy joins forces with Hook, who turns out to be not quite as bad as Peter has made him out to be. I really loved all the pirate parts, and Hook, and watching Wendy grow some more. She's such a wonderful character- tough, yet very ladylike. She's awesome.

We also get to see some new locations and learn some new information about Pete ...more

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Aug 17, 2017 Heidi Goehmann rated it it was amazing

Shelves: ya

There is something about Wendy that makes my heartache, but also that leaves me inspired to be a braver version of myself. Middle novels in a series can kill and I actually loved this one more than the first. The unraveling of Hook's character was exceptionally done and the supportive characters were full fledge fantasies coming to life, while feeling slightly like people you may know in your own life.

Looking forward to the finale! Oh, one last thought... THAT CLIFFHANGER!!!! ...more

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Sep 26, 2017 Nele rated it it was amazing

Shelves: for-sale, series, fairytale

I loved Seas better than Stars, and it's all because of the much-awaited Captain James Hook. He might be a villain, but he's portrayed as a human with his flaws and all. And I adore him.
Yes, I love a good villain.
Wendy also takes a strong stand in this book and I love her for it. ...more

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Jul 29, 2017 Nickie Cleaver rated it it was amazing

I think I might have liked this one better than the first book. I like that Captain Hook is actually a good guy and Peter is the bad one

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Jan 15, 2018 Alicia Miller rated it really liked it

Shelves: read-2018

So this second book in the Wendy Darling series is my favorite so far. I loved spending my time braving the seas on a bonafide pirate ship with crusty sea pirates, bargaining with mermaids, and getting the inside scoop on ancient Neverland lore! AH, so good!! Wendy is slowly, but surely coming into her own and I must say I enjoy this Wendy WAY more than the one in book one. So naturally I can't wait to find out what book three has in store. Very happy with the journey this retelling series has t ...more

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Feb 06, 2017 Elizabeth ♛Smart Girls Love Trashy Books♛ rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, western-europe, siblings, magic, peter-pan, retellings, pirates, edwardian, england, disney-descendants-fairy-tale-retel

-POTENTIAL SPOILERS-

This one was as good as the first, if not better! The first half is slow, yes, but the build-up of the world and the different pirates was really good and I found myself getting invested in everything, like the story about the original Lost Girls.

Actually, all the backstories in this one were really good, especially the one about how Neverland came to be and why Peter Pan is as crazy as he is. I'm hoping he gets redeemed in the third book or something.

Pretty much everythin -POTENTIAL SPOILERS-

This one was as good as the first, if not better! The first half is slow, yes, but the build-up of the world and the different pirates was really good and I found myself getting invested in everything, like the story about the original Lost Girls.

Actually, all the backstories in this one were really good, especially the one about how Neverland came to be and why Peter Pan is as crazy as he is. I'm hoping he gets redeemed in the third book or something.

Pretty much everything I expected from a Peter Pan retelling were present in this book. I love this version of Tiger Lily, and the mermaids were really creepy how they wear crowns made from human bones.

I also liked how Wendy gradually became more independent and sure of herself. She was intelligent, sly, independent, yet still caring towards her younger brothers. I really liked watching her grow and mature throughout this book.

I was also really surprised to find out there's no romance between her and Captain Hook. Reading the synopsis, I thought there would be, but nope! I was actually really tempted to label this book as 'romance' because Wendy does think of her feelings for both Peter Pan and Booth, the bookstore boy, but nothing really happens in terms of romance aside from mere thoughts.

Plus it ends on a cliffhanger! Why! I have to actually WAIT for the third book to come out!! I won't survive!

However there were some weird errors and writing decisions sprinkled throughout this book. Using caps whenever someone was screaming seemed really unprofessional to me, and it's done a LOT throughout the book, it got kinda annoying after a while. Not to mention sometimes someone would say something and there wouldn't be a period or comma indicating the end of that sentence. There were also lots of times in the first half where two or more people would talk in the same paragraph, and I got annoyed by that because sometimes it wouldn't even tell you who was talking, so I had to use guesswork.

Plus there were a lot of swear words thrown in that I feel like were just put there because 'this book is about pirates'. I'm not usually one to make comments like this because normally I don't really care, but they seemed really out of place half the time and made me wonder what age group this was supposed to be aimed at.

I also thought the first cover was the prettiest.

Aside from those complaints, however, I really, really enjoyed this. Please get here soon, third book! ...more

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Oct 10, 2016 Cyra Schaefer added it

Likes:

I think the thing that I liked the most about this series is that Peter is the villain and the pirates are the 'heroes'. I liked learning about life aboard the Sudden Night and seeing Wendy and Michael create relationships with the different pirates. I feel like the only pirate that was actually scary was Smith, the first mate, and I think at a certain point in the book, it becomes all for show.

I like how brave Wendy has to be in this book. She has to be brave with the pirates for Michael. Likes:

I think the thing that I liked the most about this series is that Peter is the villain and the pirates are the 'heroes'. I liked learning about life aboard the Sudden Night and seeing Wendy and Michael create relationships with the different pirates. I feel like the only pirate that was actually scary was Smith, the first mate, and I think at a certain point in the book, it becomes all for show.

I like how brave Wendy has to be in this book. She has to be brave with the pirates for Michael. She has to make some tough decisions when it comes to Michael's safety and how far she's willing to go to help Hook save Neverland.

I liked that there wasn't really any romance in this book. Wendy still thinks about and has feelings for Booth. But there is no love interest for her in this book. It was really REALLY weird, but I swear when I was reading this I kept expecting Wendy and Hook to get together. I'm glad that they didn't because that would be kinda wrong, but I feel like I'm just trained to expect romance in everything I read, I was just waiting for it.

The cliffhanger at the end makes my heart hurt. I need the last installment in this series. Like now.

Dislikes:

The biggest complaint I have about this book is that I didn't feel like it did a really great job of recapping what happened in the first book. I know that Wendy left Pan Island because Peter is an actual monster, but I don't remember much of anything else. I don't remember how the Darling children ended up in Neverland. I don't remember how she actually escaped Pan Island. I don't remember how Wendy and Michael got onto the Sudden Night. I don't really remember anything about Wendy's time on Pan Island.

I mean, there are a few mentions of things that happened in book one, but 90% of the mentions of book one events are Wendy remembering how Smith slit Kitoko's neck when they were looting one of Hook's caves or whatever.

Then for as dangerous as EVERYTHING is made out to be in this book, there seemed to be a distinct lack of actual danger. I can think of two events in this book that struck me as actually dangerous. The pirates on the Sudden Night were marshmallows and Peter barely makes an appearance.

I also didn't really feel like a whole lot happened in this book.

Overall, this wasn't a terribly exciting book. It was a decent sequel and I really enjoyed it. I would definitely recommend this series if you are a big fan of Peter Pan. I am super excited to read the next book, Shadow, next year!
...more

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Mar 06, 2016 Melanie rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, books-i-own

Thank you to SparkPress for the advance copy via Netgalley. The review that follows is my own opinion.

Colleen Oakes is a masterful storyteller. I loved the first book in the Wendy Darling series and I was not disappointed with the second! Oakes paints a lush portrait of a wondrous and dark Neverland where our heroine, Wendy, is caught between a vicious boy who is obsessed with her and a crew of violent pirates. Wendy is a fabulous character - despite her fear she's braving an impossible situati ...more

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Sep 24, 2016 Kayleigh Sparrow rated it really liked it

This book is a little slower than the first, but there is so much character development.
I love how much Wendy has grown and have brave she has become but she's not been turned into so superhero warrior. She's still a normal girl but her love for her family makes her brave, something I find very relatable.
The chapter with the mermaids had me skin crawling and that ending, what! I need the next book now! ...more

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Feb 24, 2016 Moriah rated it it was amazing

Shelves: netgalley, read-2016

Noooooooo!

What is anything? I need more - NOW!
.
Review coming soon-ish.

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Feb 02, 2019 Kelly rated it really liked it

Shelves: re-tellings, young-adult-is-for-everyone

Seas is the second in the Wendy Darling trilogy.

In the first book, Stars, the story starts of quite similar to the Peter Pan tale we all know so well; Wendy and her two brothers, John and Michael, have settled in for the night while her parents head out to an evening party. Soon after, their bedroom window bursts open and a boy, a flying boy, enters the room and their lives.His name is Peter Pan, he tells them, and he comes from a place called Neverland. Through storytelling and wonder, Peter m Seas is the second in the Wendy Darling trilogy.

In the first book, Stars, the story starts of quite similar to the Peter Pan tale we all know so well; Wendy and her two brothers, John and Michael, have settled in for the night while her parents head out to an evening party. Soon after, their bedroom window bursts open and a boy, a flying boy, enters the room and their lives.His name is Peter Pan, he tells them, and he comes from a place called Neverland. Through storytelling and wonder, Peter manages to convince the siblings to follow him back to his magical home. Once there though, Wendy begins to see a darkness that hovers around the edges of the amazing Pan Island, the bubbling Lost Boys, and the dazzling smile of Peter. She sees real violence, threats, abuse. She comes to understand that Peter doesn't just want to love her, he wants to own her, and he is willing to do whatever it will take to make that happen. At the very end of the book, Wendy takes her brother Michael and tries to escape. It is a futile attempt, one that results in their capture by a terrible enemy - Captain Hook.

Much of the second book has to do with Wendy and Hook trying to overcome their mutual disdain for each other in the hopes of defeating their common enemy - Peter. Hook knows Wendy has knowledge that will help him. Wendy understands that Hook is probably her best bet at staying safely away from the sadistic behaviors of Peter. It's not easy though to view your enemy through the lens of ally. Hook must ensure her brothers safety, and Wendy has to - without any aid or hinting - come to understand what Peter Pan is, and why he is so powerful. In the meantime, the two, along with the rest of Hook's pirates, are faced with murderous mermaids, treacherous storms, traitors and mutiny aboard the ship. Finally, they know what has to be done and a plan falls in to place, one that will save them and the entire of Neverland forever. Of course, that's when Peter makes a move that threatens to destroy everyone Wendy loves in one fell swoop.

I enjoyed this book, though I didn't like it quite as much as Stars. There are two reasons for this. The first had to do with the formatting/writing style. There were multiple times that the writing was such that I wasn't sure which character was speaking, and I had to read some passages multiple times before I could figure it out. It made the overall experience of reading the story a bit choppy. The second issue I had, was the explanation for why Peter was the way he was. I'm not sure why, but I just didn't like it, and it made the overall world developing of this trilogy a bit wobbly. I do want to know how it ends, so I will likely read the third book; I'm just as excited for to continue as I had been when I first started Seas.

...more

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May 11, 2020 Brinley rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, fairy-tale-retellings, pirate

I liked this book so much better then the first one. Where the first one dragged, I felt like this one kept me excited the entire time. I feel like the author's writing improved immensely between the books, especially her characterization.

What I Liked
-I really liked the setting of Hook's ships, and getting to know each of the pirates. We got to meet more characters in this book, and their motives and actions were much more fleshed out. I really liked Hook, and the way the story of Pan's history I liked this book so much better then the first one. Where the first one dragged, I felt like this one kept me excited the entire time. I feel like the author's writing improved immensely between the books, especially her characterization.

What I Liked
-I really liked the setting of Hook's ships, and getting to know each of the pirates. We got to meet more characters in this book, and their motives and actions were much more fleshed out. I really liked Hook, and the way the story of Pan's history was told kept the book interesting.
-How we got to see a bit more of Neverland, even though the world-building was still a little iffy. The setting changes really helped, because we hadn't seen the magic of Neverland in the first book.
-The ending really surprised me, but in a good way. (view spoiler)
-The deaths in this book were written much better. In the first book, Kitoko's death didn't have much bearing because we weren't attached to his character. In this book, the deaths actually seemed plot-relevant. (view spoiler)
-I loved how we had the villain turned good theme in this story. I was hoping for it at the beginning, and it did not disappoint.

What I Disliked
-How random words were capitalized to add emphasis. It made the writing seem clunky, and was hard to read.
"He frowned. 'WENDY, STOP!'"
Statements like that could have been emphasized in other ways that made the characters seem less childish.
-The scene with Barnaby (view spoiler)
-The world building. Although we did get to learn what killed the fairies, and a bit about the world, we still have no idea how big it is, and why there are portals to other worlds. It was a bit weird for me to read, considering that we knew almost nothing about Neverland.

I would definitely recommend this book, even if the first one wasn't your favorite book. The characters were written much better, and we get a bit of much-needed backstory. It's also not as predictable as the first book because this one deviates from the original tale quite a bit. ...more

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Nov 26, 2017 Jade rated it liked it

Shelves: ya-fantasy

We already know Peter to be an unreliable narrator, so it's no surprise that Hook is not so much a monster but just a man. Pirates, however, aren't always the best people to trust so Wendy has to navigate a tentative agreement with Captain Hook, avoiding Peter, finding a safe place on the ship, and keeping herself and Michael alive. It's quite fun to read, to be honest.

While Stars explored Neverland itself, Seas explores the history of its inhabitants. What really happened between Hook and P We already know Peter to be an unreliable narrator, so it's no surprise that Hook is not so much a monster but just a man. Pirates, however, aren't always the best people to trust so Wendy has to navigate a tentative agreement with Captain Hook, avoiding Peter, finding a safe place on the ship, and keeping herself and Michael alive. It's quite fun to read, to be honest.

While Stars explored Neverland itself, Seas explores the history of its inhabitants. What really happened between Hook and Peter? How did Hook come to Neverland? What happened to the Pilvinuvo Indians? What, other than Think, was giving Peter the power he had?

There is so much talking in this book and, unfortunately, a lot of it is info-dumps. Granted they're necessary info-dumps, but I ended up skimming some of them. Whoops. On the other hand, the Darling siblings' interactions with the pirates of the Sudden Night were always fun, and the crew's growing acceptance of the both of them was nice too. The growing friendship between Hook and Wendy is a thing to behold, and I enjoyed a lot of their interactions and observations of each other (when there weren't some of the longer info-dumps anyway).

Wendy develops more as a character in this one. She's understandably on guard for a lot of the novel, particularly in the beginning where she's surrounded by pirates and the ever present threat of Peter Pan is looming in the distance, but she gains more confidence as things go on. By the end, she's taking steps to save her family, bring down Peter, and fix what's happening in Neverland. I'm not saying that she develops as a character just because she stabs Peter at one point in the novel (which is a bonus), but more because she becomes more confident in herself and what she can do. She's comfortable teasing people, giving her opinion, and standing up for herself. It's great to see in comparison to the more timid and subdued Wendy we saw in Stars.

There are a lot of new characters in Seas, and I love almost all of them. Fermina, however, is one of my favourites; she's so nice to Wendy and their interactions made me smile a lot. She brings up some interesting points as to why there aren't any Lost Girls, and just how far Peter will go when someone denies him—not that Wendy needed the reminder, but it leads towards something major for the plot.

Unlike my hopes, Abbott wasn't in this one too much. I was devastated, but Oxley's appearance definitely made up for it❤︎ I missed my Lost Boy Generals.

I have to say that the end of this one was better than the end of Stars. I can't wait to see what happens in Shadow.

[Review is also posted on pay me in tea] ...more

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Jul 13, 2017 Kelly Sierra rated it really liked it

I love Colleen Oakes. She has this knack of taking classic stories like Peter Pan or Wonderland and creating bold new stories that make the females the real heroines of the story. Most of the time these are darker retellings, that take the original hero and makes them the villain, and vice versa. This series is a reminder of that.

When we last saw Wendy, she had been taken by Captain Hook and his pirates, along with Michael, leaving John behind. Wendy had realized that Peter was pretty much a ps ...more

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Sep 29, 2016 Giuliana rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Received Via: NetGalley.com for review

Oh my God, I freaking loved this novel. I had a lot of expectations about this book because I already knew that my favorite pair wasn't going to end up together. Yell at me and do whatever you want: in every retelling of the story of Peter Pan, I always (always!) hope, that Wendy doesn't take the decision to return home and in fact stays with her first love.
But no more talk!
I applied to read the second novel after finishing the first two months earlier, and Received Via: NetGalley.com for review

Oh my God, I freaking loved this novel. I had a lot of expectations about this book because I already knew that my favorite pair wasn't going to end up together. Yell at me and do whatever you want: in every retelling of the story of Peter Pan, I always (always!) hope, that Wendy doesn't take the decision to return home and in fact stays with her first love.
But no more talk!
I applied to read the second novel after finishing the first two months earlier, and even then I did jumps through hoops to get it. In fact, I crossed continents (literally), made the request at a local bookshop, and finally got into my hands this book a few weeks later.
At the beginning of the novel we find Wendy and Michael prisoners of the frightening ship of Captain Hook. It seems she made a poor choice to leave Pan Island. Wendy is on the brink of despair but resists for love for Michael, John, her family and for herself.
Seas is a smooth, well-written, vivid detailed and colorful reading. It almost seems to be catapulted into Neverland's world. This is a detail that is missing in many retelling of the Peter Pan story: the inability to perpetrate Peter's world in all its colors, its facets and its inevitable wonder. Oakes was perfectly successful in the task.
Of all the characters, of course, Peter is the one that interests me and fascinates me the most. The boy who would not grow up is so detailed and complicated that it is impossible not to be charmed by him. Peter is really in love with Wendy and this is the thing that kept me from hating him, because you know that underneath all that darkness, it lurks a feeling that can love and then find the light. Wendy, however, uses his love to be Hook's ally. Perhaps this is the only thing that bothered me about the novel: using love for a different purpose. At the same time, however, I realized that there was no other way for the main character to go on.
Wendy can be called a feminist because she openly says that she doesn't belong to either Peter Pan to Hook neither any man, and this, in an Edwardian society, it's really very important. Moreover, in a modern world like ours, marked by a bitter struggle against the injustice of the female world, to put a secondary character, whenever subjected to the will of man as Wendy Darling, as a girl who thinks of herself and fights for what she believes in is something extraordinary. Wendy repeats a phrase several times in the book: "I don't belong to anyone." I think this is the line that changes her, lead her to mature and think. Although she has belonged to many men in her life, in a circumstance or another, she realizes that she actually belongs to herself. I think that in an sexist age like ours, reaffirming the values of feminism, is a very important lesson to learn and coming from a YA and especially from a retelling of a classic tale ... well, the whole thing leaves me breathless.
What you feel for Hook is confusing. We move from liking him, to hate, love, and finally we don't understand how we feel. At the end of the book, one cannot help but wishing that he, more than anyone, gets his too long denied happy ending.
The pirates are fearless but appealing from the outset. They become attached to the girl and her small adorable brother. Despite their bloody nature is constantly shown the human side is often mentioned, making it all the more credible.
In all versions of Peter Pan, Smee was the most personable and friendly pirate; in this book is really rather unbearable at the beginning of the novel. When you slowly discover his character, in the end, you can't help but love him as a grumpy grandfather.
The stories told are a lot and are built in an ordinary and magical puzzle. The description of the characters is so well done that it actually feels like the plot of a movie. The language that Oakes uses is surreal, so enchanting to make you get goose skin.
What most strucks me was the description of places, characters, Neverlandish universe that usually doesn't appear in the other novels inspired by the original story. Oakes takes it all, mixes imagination, esoteric, mystery, magic and above all reality and creates a universe very close to our dreams, but so different that you can't help but be stunned by it. To take a small example, Hook's ship is frightening: there are bones that serve as stairs.
In Neverland, Wendy, John, Michael learn to see the world with different eyes, to take care of themselves, to take care of their family.
The relationship between Hook and Wendy is among the most complicated and the finest in the novel. It has often been suggested, narrated and dreamed of a love affair between the two, between these different extreme Victorian worlds, because a relationship between the female protagonist and the villain is always something well accepted. The relationship that is told however is very different. A sort of mutual respect is established between the two: Hook keeps her prisoner in his ship to his shady purposes against his enemy, but at the same time protects and saves her.
While reading, you completely identify yourself in the context, and you almost expect to live in contact with the situation that surrounds Wendy, who feels alone in the world, with a very heavy weight on her shoulders: protect her brothers and escape from Peter's love, who, despite being dangerous, nevertheless grants her a way out to her girl problems. He allows her to look at the world with eyes full of mischief, to not conceal her true nature, to be wild but mostly to be free. With him she dreams big. That's why I can't condemn at all this twisted love story.
When I found out what was behind the very essence of Peter, I hoped with all my heart that my ship would became canon. As explained by Hook, Peter can't love and feel with full feelings because the shadow would prevent that. I very much hope that Wendy is able to find that part of Peter preserved in humanity because Oakes confuses me, gives me hope, and throws me into panic. And then she writes these words "You are the fire that burns me alive." I really hope that Peter is free of his shadow to be with Wendy. That's why I'm afraid of the next volume. Please, don't disappoint me Colleen !!
If I could, I would ask the translation rights of the novel in Italy, because this novel is to be known and shared. The author has done an immense, courageous and above all magical work. So if you are looking for romance, adventure, courage, something that marks a wound in your heart, then you will have found the right novel in this one.
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Oct 29, 2019 The Belle With the Books rated it really liked it

As someone who genuinely loves J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan, I was initially unsure of any sort of retelling of the story. I read the first in this series last year and immediately loved it. Peter is so different in this story than in the original. Yes, he is still mischievous and egotistical, but also manipulative and menacing. Oakes has done a wonderful job giving infinite depth to the story of Peter Pan v. Hook. Wendy is finding out so many things about Neverland and the people there. Oakes has in ...more

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About Colleen Oakes

Colleen Oakes

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Colleen Oakes is the bestselling author of books for both teens and adults, including The Black Coats, Queen of Hearts Series, The Wendy Darling Saga and Sister of the Chosen One. She lives in North Denver with her husband and son. When not writing or plotting new books, Colleen can be found swimming, traveling or immersing herself in nerdy pop culture.

You can visit her webpage at: www.colleenoak ...more