Friday 18 October 2013

Review: Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson
Publisher: Orchard Books
Publication date: October 3rd 2013
My rating: 3 stars 


Before Peter Pan belonged to Wendy, he belonged to the girl with the crow feather in her hair. . . . Fifteen-year-old Tiger Lily doesn't believe in love stories or happy endings. Then she meets the alluring teenage Peter Pan in the forbidden woods of Neverland and immediately falls under his spell. Peter is unlike anyone she's ever known. Impetuous and brave, he both scares and enthralls her. As the leader of the Lost Boys, the most fearsome of Neverland's inhabitants, Peter is an unthinkable match for Tiger Lily. Soon, she is risking everything—her family, her future—to be with him. When she is faced with marriage to a terrible man in her own tribe, she must choose between the life she's always known and running away to an uncertain future with Peter. With enemies threatening to tear them apart, the lovers seem doomed. But it's the arrival of Wendy Darling, an English girl who's everything Tiger Lily is not, that leads Tiger Lily to discover that the most dangerous enemies can live inside even the most loyal and loving heart.

Peter Pan and I have a complicated sort of relationship, parts of me love the idea of Neverland and the idea of never growing up, but then there parts of me that I can be a sore thumb about. I don’t actually remember growing up reading Peter Pan, but the book was given to me by someone at some point, so I always saw it around the house. But I grew up watching Hook the movie starring Robin Williams and have lost count of times I’ve watched it, I was captivated by the world then and then fell in love all over again with the film starring Jeremy Sumpter.

So I was intrigued to learn this whole other story before Wendy. Being the person that I am, I went into this book a little bit confused, I knew what the story would be about, but kind of assumed who would be giving me the story, so was a bit surprised by how we were given the story, it definitely changed my impression about how I felt about certain characters from Peter Pan. To be honest before I wasn’t a huge fan of Tinkerbell, I just felt she was trying to reign on Peter’s and Wendy’s parade. But to see things from her perspective opened my perspective totally. The irritating, selfish Tinkerbell that I once thought she was, actually emerged as an insightful, intelligent individual. It was a truly refreshing experience learning about this whole other love that Peter had through Tink’s eyes.

Tiger Lily was a faithful character, she was loyal to her father Tik Tok and his wishes, but there was always a part of her that wanted more, and that’s where Peter and the Lost Boys came in. It was great fun being with the Lost Boys again, but most of all I enjoyed getting to know Peter’s character before Wendy. Tiger Lily brought out a whole another side to Peter, he was still a leader, cheeky and ferocious when he wanted to be, but there was a really vulnerable side, that it took me some time to getting used to seeing. And the entire relationship between Peter and Tiger Lily was such a bittersweet one, even though I knew which way things would end, I was always hopeful that both characters would get their happy ending, but most of all with each other.

Fans of Peter Pan are sure to devour Tiger Lily up. Jodi Lynn Anderson has created a beautiful and totally believable world that I’d love to be a part of.



24 comments:

Melanie said...

Huh, I never really paid any attention to what this book was actually about but now I am fully intrigued and would love to try this!

Fab review, Jasprit! <33

Keertana said...

Aww, I'm sorry you didn't love this one more, Jasprit! I'm really glad you liked it, though. I think this book kind of blew me away with its honest portrayal of first love, its atmospheric narration, and just the topics it covered. I'm really looking forward to whatever this author writes next, in fact! Lovely review, Jasprit!(:

Unknown said...

I haven't read this one yet, Jasprit. Unfortunately, I also haven't read Peter Pan so I'm not sure how close this is to the original book. But maybe that will be a good thing since I'll be going in without expectations.

maya said...

I've been wanting to read Tiger Lily for about a year and for some reason I still haven't got my hands on it - which you've reminded me that I MUST do soon! I really like Peter Pan, I grew up watching the film and read the book for the first time a couple of years ago, so I'm really intrigued about Neverland before Wendy. Lovely review!

Unknown said...

I've been itching to read this one for a while, I love Peter Pan! It's a shame you weren't mega impressed but at least you enjoyed it :)
Great review, Jasprit!

Mary @ BookSwarm said...

I really dislike Tinkerbell of the original Peter Pan but, you're so right, this one was much better. Poor Tiger Lily. Doomed love.

Anonymous said...

You know how I feel about non-HEAs, Jasprit. It's exactly the reason why I haven't read Tiger Lily yet despite the multiple positive reviews it has gotten.
It does seem like I'm missing out, but I get too moody when books don't end the way I hope for them to.
Lovely review, Jasprit.

Jenny said...

I haven't read the original either Jasprit, but like you I've seen the movie Hook and couldn't love that movie any more if I tried. It's awesome:) I love that we get the story from Tink's point of view, and though I know things won't end with them together which is depressing for the romantic in me, I'm still curious about her journey. Beautiful review!!!

Bystander said...

I have this one on my shelves and I need to read it soon! I love that Tinkerbell tells the story. I've always been a huge fan of the snarky fairy! I'm glad that you ended up liking this one? It seems like you did, but I can't be sure!

Shooting Stars Mag said...

You know, I've never actually read Peter Pan. I did love the movie with Jeremy Sumpter though, esp. because he was from Kentucky and so am I. LOL

Sounds like an interesting adaptation of Neverland.

Heidi@Rainy Day Ramblings said...

I really enjoyed this last year when I read it. I liked learning more about TInk and Lily. It was very sad, though. I wished that the whole thing with Wendy was more developed, though.

Maji Bookshelf said...

oh my God this is from Tinkerbell's POV? I did NOT know that! I love Peter Pan, and yes Tinkerbell was annoying sometimes, but I still loved her! It's so interesting to see things from her perspective! Really looking forward to reading this book now! Great review!
- Farah @ MajiBookshelf

Unknown said...

I really should reread this because you so beautifully wrote this review and now I'm more intrigued :) I don't remember liking it too much, but it sure sounds good! Lovely review :)

Shane @ItchingforBooks said...

Good review. Thanks for the honesty. This sounds like something i'll read soon.

Unknown said...

I didn't enjoy this book but the concept is very original.

-Dannielle

Rachel said...

Terrific review Jasprit! I loved seeing Pan vulnerable too and it was wonderful seeing Tink as inquistive.

Unknown said...

I've never been much of a fan of Peter Pan, really. I always thought he was a little jerk. lol I'm glad you enjoyed Tiger Lily,Jasprit, and found new perspective!

Tanja - Tanychy said...

I'm a huge fan of Peter Pan (he was one of my first book crush boys) and for that reason I adored this book. I totally understand your feelings about it as you're not a huge fan as I am. You're right about how I love the way some things are shown here, differently. But I didn't know that this would be the ending, I expected something different. Great review Jasprit :)

Krazzyme(Young Readers) said...

Wait I'm a little confused .. I thought this was Peter Pan from Tinkerbell's POV .. It's not ??
Great review though Jasprit ;)

Sam (Realm of Fiction) said...

I'm definitely a big Peter Pan fan, so I think I might enjoy this just a little more. I'm glad you liked it well enough overall though. I'm nervous about the ending, as I know I can't really expect a happy one, but I love the idea of this book (and even getting the story from Tinkerbell's point of view), so I look forward to finally giving it a try. Great review as always, lovely! :)

Mel@Thedailyprophecy said...

This book is one of my favorite retellings <3 The POV from Tinkerbell, that heart-breaking ending *sigh* Great review!

Mel@thedailyprophecy.

Carina Olsen said...

Awesome review :) I adore Peter Pan, though I have never read the official book.. and it's been ages since I saw the movies :\ I need to do that soon :D Thank you for sharing your amazing review. <3 Tiger Lily sounds amazing. Though the ending sounds heartbreaking, and I'm not sure I'm ready for that yet.. anyway, glad you mostly enjoyed it :)

Amanda said...

I actually don't know much about the Peter Pan story besides the Disney film. And that film "Finding Neverland." So I started out really intrigued as well. I suppose seeing Peter (and everyone else) through Tinkerbell's eyes was interesting and all, but I HATED that narrative choice. I thought it was super clunky, and since that's such an integral part of this book, it did not end well for me. It looks like you were able to get some enjoyment from this one, though, Jasprit, which is wonderful. There were good things, but I think the narration really just ruined it for me. Oh well.

Beverley said...

I love Peter Pan and I think I'd enjoy this re-telling. It sounds so fascinating how it's about Peter before he met Wendy. I'm curious to see how the author brings her own twist to things and whether we can connect her version of Peter to our much-loved Disney version. The romance seems utterly bittersweet and I'm curious to find out more about Tiger Lily too. The fact that it's told from Tinkerbell's POV makes it seem really unique and thrilling too... not much of a fan of Tink but I'm interested to see how the author portrays her. Fab review, Jas!

And just wanted to say an enthusiastic hello to you and Rachel! Haven't been by The Readers Den in AGES and I have really missed you guys - hope to catch up soon :)

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