Title: Becoming Hook

Series: Legends of Neverland #1

Author: Mary Mecham

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retelling, Romance

Rating: 4 stars

Rating:

A pirate, a pixie, and a plot to foil Peter Pan…

James Hook never meant to become a pirate, and never dreamed that he would turn against best friend, Peter Pan. Every adventure and eternal youth awaited them… until a pixie exposes a shocking revelation. Tinkerbell’s information forces James into acknowledging that, far from being the benevolent hero he painted himself to be, Peter Pan was kidnapping innocent children.

After accepting the traumatic loss of his hand and of the family he can barely remember, James deserts Pan. In the fight to rescue the Lost Boys, Hook will risk everything, even if that means becoming the most notorious villain in Neverland… or losing the fiery pixie who is stealing his heart.

Can the original Lost Boy vanquish Neverland’s greatest threat? – summary from Goodreads

Becoming Hook is a villainous retelling of Peter Pan with action, secrets, and romance!

This book was so much fun, and such an interesting take on Peter Pan, which I loved! I don’t have any strong feelings about Peter Pan one way or another, but I do find the villainous takes on this story the most intriguing, and this is one of my favorites.

It took me awhile to get into this world. I think the author was still setting up this world, which influenced why it took me awhile to get into it. I do love the world so far. I love the magic and different mythological creatures. It was well done, and I am excited to see more of this world in future books.

Hook was an interesting character. We got to see him grow up, in a way, and we also got his backstory. One of the things that I loved most about this book was that the author took her time to tell his backstory. I love that the time was given to this, and we could really see why Hook became the way he did.

This book also wasn’t the traditional villain retelling. There was an unexpected villain, and this book shows us why Hook is called the villain but isn’t really. The real villain of the story was genuinely twisted and scary. Mecham does a wonderful job of writing this villain, and twisting the story in such a unique way.

The Lost Boys were also an interesting part of the book. I loved all the different iterations of these characters we saw. I wish there was a little bit more of the original Lost Boys in the story, but I love how they were incorporated into the story.

Smee and the Darlings were incorporated into the story in a really unique way, and I loved it. I especially liked that Wendy wasn’t a huge part of the story but still had her place. I think what I loved so much about this book was that it was primarily focused on Neverland and the Lost Boys.

I loved seeing a new side of Tinkerbell as well. It was interesting, and I enjoyed her character. She was fun and determined, and she brought out the best in Hook.

The romance between these two was sweet. Sometimes I wish there was a little more, but overall, I really liked them. They loved and protected each other. It was also friends to lovers, which I always enjoy!

There was a little bit of dual POV in this book, but I didn’t love how that turned out. It would switch randomly, and it was confusing at times. It was largely told from Hook’s perspective, which I enjoyed.

Becoming Hook is a fascinating villainous retelling of Peter Pan, with twists, romance, and action!

Quotes:

“‘Don’t ever fear age, my friend. For with it comes wisdom and the knowledge of a full life.’”