I was provided an Advance Reader’s Copy of this novella in exchange for an honest review. Special thanks to NineStar Press and NetGalley!
“Lost Boy, Found Boy” is the debut novella of Jenn Polish that puts science-fiction and LGBTQIA+ twists on the origin story of the legend of Peter Pan and his famous home, Neverland. When his partner Mir enlists in the army with ambitions of flying, it’s up to Peter and his programming skills to create an island where the two can stay together and safe.
Overall Rating: ☆☆☆
Writing: ☆☆☆ and 1/2
Characters: ☆☆
Plot: ☆☆☆
The overall premise of this book: AH-MAZ-ING. Neverland isn’t a real island, but a holomatrix, which I’ve assumed to be an in-between of a virtual reality experience and reality itself. Tink is the island’s interface, database, and essential core. Even Hook springs up as a young boy turned cyborg experiment before finding solace on Neverland.
The writing was generally flat, but there were some quotes that literally took my breath away, with this being my personal favorite:
“[H]e didn’t want to drown in his silence when he couldn’t swim in the sea with the others.”
I also thought the programming opening each chapter added a nice touch and helped build the story. It’s through these openers we finally are introduced to our Wendy, Gwen. I thought this was a nice subtle way to introduce one of the Pan legend’s most important characters into the work.
One small thing I have to gripe with is the use of pronouns. Mir, the love interest here, is non-conforming and goes by they/them. This is a little hiccup when the novella opens, but it is something I got acclimated too, as I really enjoyed reading about someone who uses these pronouns. The places I had the hardest time with the pronouns is when “they/them” would be referring to Mir or to a plurality of people or things in any given scene. Also, special shout out to the term “enbyfriend,” which stands for (n)on-(by)naryfriend. I never knew a non-gendered form of girlfriend/boyfriend existed until this novella and I’m very glad to know it now.
The characters didn’t do too much for me, though I give Polish credit for how representational her cast is. Of course, we have non-conforming Mir. And Peter is an FTM transgender, which I also took as a nod to how Peter is typically played by women on stage. Gwen and Tink eventually find romance in each other, though neither of their sexuality is explicit (at least, I didn’t pick up on it). But other than the representation, their personalities all felt a bit flat to me. It was obvious who each character was meant to parallel from Barrie’s original book, but I just couldn’t grab onto or attach to any of them.
The plot was also rather bare-bones. After the creation of Neverland, it’s a series of portals Peter opens to find Mir, only for them to find everyone that isn’t Mir until the final portal is opened with success. I never felt characters bond, with the exception of Tink and Gwen. No one ever develops or changes, though we all know that someday James, AKA Hook, will go rogue. The conclusion also felt rather speedy, as though Polish let the conflict make its way in too late and needed to wrap up post-haste.
I feel that, more than anything, I would love to see this work expanded. I didn’t hate anything in this book or even dislike it with malice. I just wanted more. More explanation of the war that jump-starts the whole story. More character background and context. Just more of everything! The book didn’t fall flat because it was bad or poor quality, it just had so much more world and character building it could have done but didn’t. If this ever turns into a full-blown novel or a novella series, you can sign me up ASAP.
“Lost Boy, Found Boy” will be released as an e-book by NineStar on March 19th, 2018. Be sure to pre-order your copy via Amazon now or the publisher starting the 15th!
