Title: Tiger Lily
Author: Jodi Lynn Anderson
Publisher: HaperCollins
Publication Date: 7.3.2012
Pages: 292
Genre: Fairytale; Retelling
Series: No
Source: ARC from friend
Rating: D+
Summary (from Goodreads):
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.
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.
Review:
Few books made me quite as excited as Tiger Lily this year. To say that I’m a Peter Pan fanatic is putting it mildly. I adore Peter Pan and everything about Never Neverland—the pirates, the mermaids, and, yes, the Indians. Tiger Lily has always held a special place in my heart, and I have always wanted some sort of back story for her. I felt like with this book I would finally get that. I was even on board with the idea of a Tiger Lily/Peter Pan romance or flirtation.
Which I why I was stunned at how much I really disliked this book.
From the beginning I felt like Tiger Lily was a cold, impersonal girl. I never connected with her. She was silent, stoic and introverted. I was hoping Jodi Lynn Anderson would take this opportunity to flesh out the quiet girl from the book/movie. Instead I got a passionless, emotionless girl who simply moved through life and never enjoyed it.
The only time I felt like Tiger Lily had a spark of personality was when Peter Pan was around, but even that was muted and dulled. I wish there had been more of Peter Pan in the story, but his storyline was (to me) strange and unsettling. Peter Pan has always flirted on the edge of arrogance and childishness, but in this he seemed more outright violent and crass. I was amazed at how much I disliked all the characters here.
I feel like the opportunity was there for a great novel. A lot of people have loved the Peter Pan folklore and stories, but this attempt fell seriously flat for me.
Buy: Amazon | The Book Depository
*If you want a different perspective on Tiger Lily, check out the review at Hippies, Beauty, and Books - Oh My!*
Thanks for sharing your opinion I like it when people aren't afraid to share books that fell short so we know your reviews are honest
ReplyDeleteSound great, i think maybe i will add in my list :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing.
tnx 4 your review / bummr some parts were flat
ReplyDeleteI just got this out of the library today - uhoh!
ReplyDeleteOh, that's a bit disappointing. I still plan on reading it (I love Peter Pan), but I'm kind of bummed it was like that. I was kind of hoping for a spunky Tiger Lily, not an emotionless one.
ReplyDeleteWell, hopefully I won't hate it. I'm still excited for it, and I'm really hoping that I would like it~ :D
Oh good, I'm not the only one who didn't like this book. After all the hype, I was dying to read it, but was only disappointed.
ReplyDeleteI've been seeing this book around a lot and have been wondering if I should read it, but I guess I shouldn't bother. I was concerned that the main character was only 15 so the book might seem immature.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your review. I was told to read this a dozen times, even though I knew it wasn't my kind of book. But after reading your review, I'm finally going to forget about this book & not waste my time.
ReplyDeleteThis is probably one of the only negative reviews I've read towards Tiger Lily on a book blog. It's good to know about the different perspectives, I didn't know the characters were like that at all. So many people said they loved it that I picked this book up but every time I tried to read it I would get distracted. I still want to give it a try but I'll go in with lower expectations. Thanks for sharing. :)
ReplyDelete