Author: Alyssa B. Sheinmel
Release Date: May 13th, 2014
Publisher: MacMillan Teen Books
Genre(s): YA Contemporary
Pages: 256
*Standalone*
~Spoilers are hidden! Highlight the page to see them!~
Summary (Goodreads):
A twisty story about love, loss, and lies, this contemporary oceanside adventure is tinged with a touch of dark magic as it follows seventeen-year-old Wendy Darling on a search for her missing surfer brothers. Wendy’s journey leads her to a mysterious hidden cove inhabited by a tribe of young renegade surfers, most of them runaways like her brothers. Wendy is instantly drawn to the cove’s charismatic leader, Pete, but her search also points her toward Pete's nemesis, the drug-dealing Jas. Enigmatic, dangerous, and handsome, Jas pulls Wendy in even as she's falling hard for Pete. A radical reinvention of a classic, Second Star is an irresistible summer romance about two young men who have yet to grow up--and the troubled beauty trapped between them.
Review:
*THANK YOU SO MUCH TO MacMillan Teen Books for sending me this book through Netgalley!*
Oh, it was twisty alright. This book was all over the place. I understand it's an arc and all, but wow. >.<
I went into this book expecting a bittersweet summer romance (I should have noticed that "instant attraction" bit- ARGH), a lot of Peter Pan elements, and an emotional search for lost brothers. What I got was insta-love (and insta-family),only names from Peter Pan, and little searching. (To be fair, it did say radical reinvention, but still. It's hardly worth noting its connection to Peter Pan if all it borrowed from the original book were the names and maybe one teeny strand of the plot.)
Where to begin with this book? *throws a dart at my Wheel of Review Starters* Ah. Characters. Wonderful.
Wendy was a mess. Pete was a mess. Jas was a mess. They all were messes. Wendy didn't have a personality; she was so bland. She didn't really seem like a character in this book, but almost a detached narrator. There were a few parts where I kind of did feel for her (when it came to her bond with her brothers), but even that wasn't very emotional for me. Those bits were written prettily, and I can see the feeling the author wanted to invoke in us, but if I can see it, then I'm not lost in it. Any semblance of a personality- she was a character after all- was buried under the lack of common sense. (That scene with that drug. Enough said.)
Pete and Jas were cardboards with make up (my new of describing pretty boys with no personality xD). I felt the author was trying to help us connect with them emotionally, but they behaved really erratically, and needless to say, the no personality thing was a huge turn off. Plus, insta-love with both guys (love triangle. Bleh) was not doing this book any favors.
And the plot? It was... weird. Not as in strange weird, but as in it-goes-all-over-the-place weird. (( In a convoluted nutshell: She's suppose to be looking for her missing brothers, so she goes to hang out with Pete and his gang; every once in a while, she remembers them. Eventually they find out that she's just there to find her brothers (why she never told them is beyond me), they get mad (why?), she goes to Jas (big mistake if you ask me), then something happens along the way (still not sure what that "something" is), Jas and Pete are friends again (um????), and then Jas, Pete, and Bella kinda disappear but not really. )) The book went off on tangents, and the whole book wasn't really focused on her finding her brothers; it was mostly just her hanging with people who surf. So, I guess you might be thinking, "Oh, then she and her 'gang' probably have awesome chemistry and a sweet family bond right?" Nope! Is there such thing as an insta-family? xD It was really random how they were total strangers one minute and then literally a family the next. Plus, that ending was so... weird. (LOL. I'm having a hard time describing this book in any other term but that.) I felt it was super random and abrupt.
The one positive thing about this book was the writing. Weird, huh? (Sorry! Last use xD) You would think the writing would be really awkward and choppy, given the plot and the characters. But actually, the writing was really pretty, and it flowed nicely. The writing gave this book a sort of fairy-tale feeling to it, which I liked... And that's about all I liked. :)
Final thoughts? The second star to the right DOES NOT shine in the night for this one. ;(
(And I was pretty optimistic about this book too! I love Peter Pan!)
Rating: 1.5 out of 5
~Spoilers are hidden! Highlight the page to see them!~
Summary (Goodreads):
A twisty story about love, loss, and lies, this contemporary oceanside adventure is tinged with a touch of dark magic as it follows seventeen-year-old Wendy Darling on a search for her missing surfer brothers. Wendy’s journey leads her to a mysterious hidden cove inhabited by a tribe of young renegade surfers, most of them runaways like her brothers. Wendy is instantly drawn to the cove’s charismatic leader, Pete, but her search also points her toward Pete's nemesis, the drug-dealing Jas. Enigmatic, dangerous, and handsome, Jas pulls Wendy in even as she's falling hard for Pete. A radical reinvention of a classic, Second Star is an irresistible summer romance about two young men who have yet to grow up--and the troubled beauty trapped between them.
Review:
*THANK YOU SO MUCH TO MacMillan Teen Books for sending me this book through Netgalley!*
Oh, it was twisty alright. This book was all over the place. I understand it's an arc and all, but wow. >.<
I went into this book expecting a bittersweet summer romance (I should have noticed that "instant attraction" bit- ARGH), a lot of Peter Pan elements, and an emotional search for lost brothers. What I got was insta-love (and insta-family),only names from Peter Pan, and little searching. (To be fair, it did say radical reinvention, but still. It's hardly worth noting its connection to Peter Pan if all it borrowed from the original book were the names and maybe one teeny strand of the plot.)
Where to begin with this book? *throws a dart at my Wheel of Review Starters* Ah. Characters. Wonderful.
Wendy was a mess. Pete was a mess. Jas was a mess. They all were messes. Wendy didn't have a personality; she was so bland. She didn't really seem like a character in this book, but almost a detached narrator. There were a few parts where I kind of did feel for her (when it came to her bond with her brothers), but even that wasn't very emotional for me. Those bits were written prettily, and I can see the feeling the author wanted to invoke in us, but if I can see it, then I'm not lost in it. Any semblance of a personality- she was a character after all- was buried under the lack of common sense. (That scene with that drug. Enough said.)
Pete and Jas were cardboards with make up (my new of describing pretty boys with no personality xD). I felt the author was trying to help us connect with them emotionally, but they behaved really erratically, and needless to say, the no personality thing was a huge turn off. Plus, insta-love with both guys (love triangle. Bleh) was not doing this book any favors.
And the plot? It was... weird. Not as in strange weird, but as in it-goes-all-over-the-place weird. (( In a convoluted nutshell: She's suppose to be looking for her missing brothers, so she goes to hang out with Pete and his gang; every once in a while, she remembers them. Eventually they find out that she's just there to find her brothers (why she never told them is beyond me), they get mad (why?), she goes to Jas (big mistake if you ask me), then something happens along the way (still not sure what that "something" is), Jas and Pete are friends again (um????), and then Jas, Pete, and Bella kinda disappear but not really. )) The book went off on tangents, and the whole book wasn't really focused on her finding her brothers; it was mostly just her hanging with people who surf. So, I guess you might be thinking, "Oh, then she and her 'gang' probably have awesome chemistry and a sweet family bond right?" Nope! Is there such thing as an insta-family? xD It was really random how they were total strangers one minute and then literally a family the next. Plus, that ending was so... weird. (LOL. I'm having a hard time describing this book in any other term but that.) I felt it was super random and abrupt.
The one positive thing about this book was the writing. Weird, huh? (Sorry! Last use xD) You would think the writing would be really awkward and choppy, given the plot and the characters. But actually, the writing was really pretty, and it flowed nicely. The writing gave this book a sort of fairy-tale feeling to it, which I liked... And that's about all I liked. :)
Final thoughts? The second star to the right DOES NOT shine in the night for this one. ;(
(And I was pretty optimistic about this book too! I love Peter Pan!)
Rating: 1.5 out of 5
2 comments:
Aw, I'm so sad you didn't like this book. The blurb sounds really good, but it's sad that the book turned out to be so disappointing. Peter Pan is one of my favorite stories so I was hoping for this to be better. Great review!
-Kimi at Geeky Chiquitas
Yea :( I love retellings with a twist, and I really did expect a lot more out of this one :(
Thanks for stopping by!
Hope you have a fabulous week! (And Happy Pi Day!) :)
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