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skimsdmb's review against another edition
3.0
A retelling of Peter Pan and Neverland as one big pan sexual BDSM scene. Not for the faint hearted but certainly an entertaining and at times poignant and beautiful read.
itskathamilton's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This read like a good spoken story or a journal, like you’re in the story brought along by a character. Dark, punk & made me feel like I was back in those years before needing to grow up - in a world of magic and play (but in a kink setting) - the world that so many of us return to, a land of make believe that’s very real. This story about queer family made me feel all kinds of ways. It’s such a good retelling too, with character names and story elements that really are seamlessly adapted.
ebb_and_flow's review
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
rsmo666's review
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
amyreadsandsails's review
Not quite what I had in mind. Not really sure this is going to be a romance and the POV is an unnamed narrator.
fiifarts's review
adventurous
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Drug use, Dysphoria, Mental illness, and Sexual content
Moderate: Addiction
Main character takes advantage of underage individuals (ages are unclear but that's the vibe I got). Grooming.lesbrary's review
5.0
From the first couple pages, I knew Lost Boi was exactly what I was hoping it would be. This is a queer punk D/s retelling of Peter Pan, and it has so much going for it. First of all, the book itself looks beautiful. I love that the black cover with the gold framing and deckle edges makes it almost look like a bible, which is hilarious. I loved that it's from the perspective of one of the lost bois, Tootles. I loved the voice, I loved how well Sassafras Lowrey incorporated and reinterpreted the original story. This was thought-provoking and totally absorbing. Definitely, definitely recommended, though I have no idea what reading this would be like for a straight/cis person with no interest in or knowledge of D/s, and frankly, that's partly what I love about this book. It doesn't try to be accessible to a mainstream audience, and even when I couldn't relate or totally understand, I was so grateful for that.
mxsallybend's review
4.0
Genderqueer element aside, I didn't expect to enjoy this. Fairy tale retellings often fall flat for me; I wasn't sure I could get invested in the plight of homeless bois; and I didn't see how the d/s element could fit in without being exploitative. Much to my delight, it all works, and does so both smartly and erotically. Thhere are a lot of characters introduced at once, but I fell in love with all of them (including the mermaids), and I loved the tension between Hook and Wendi. This is how you remain true to the idea of a classic, but completely reinvent it and make it relevant for not just a new age, but a new community.
siavahda's review
5.0
I really don't know how to talk about this one. It's been nearly twelve hours since I turned the last page, and I'm still raw over it. It feels like bleeding.
This is a queer retelling of Peter Pan; specifically a genderqueer retelling, with heavy D/s themes and a brutal examination of the realities of social services and life on the streets. I found the dialogue pretty weak but there's very little of it; the book is narrated by Tootles, Pan's right-hand boi, and Tootle's voice is wonderful. You'll be amazed and delighted with how cleverly Lowry has taken the elements of the original story and re-imagined them for this world, where Neverland is an abandoned warehouse and the lost boys are really lost bois, a host of genderqueer submissives to their Sir Pan; where Wendy - now Wendi - is coaxed out the window not to play Mother but a D/s Mommy; where Hook is a strict Traditional Top and the Crocodile is a drug. It's wicked and witty and delightful, and amazingly true to the original tale in ways I wouldn't have believed possible had someone told me so before I'd read it.
It's a beautifully readable book - I flew through it in about five hours - not least because it's very difficult to put it down for more than a few minutes. But beyond being a great story and a wonderful re-telling, I've come away feeling that Lost Boi is also a vitally necessary book. Lowrey is writing about some of the least-accepted minorities in the modern West, and about the homeless kids we try to pretend don't exist, and all the ways our society fails them, over and over. It's a beautiful book but a bitter one, full of magic and hope that is unbearably tempered by the unremittingly harsh reality. In a lot of ways it's an uncomfortable book, but it's the uncomfortable stories that most need telling, and reading, and I'm both grateful than Lowrey wrote this and that I managed to find it.
I still don't know what to say about it. I guess I'll finish by saying that this is one of those books I wish I could make compulsory reading in schools, for its wide-eyed look at reality and its unrepentant queer core, for its honesty and its fantasy, its beauty and its ugliness. It's stunning and painful in equal measure, and I think that's what a treasure is supposed to be.
This is a queer retelling of Peter Pan; specifically a genderqueer retelling, with heavy D/s themes and a brutal examination of the realities of social services and life on the streets. I found the dialogue pretty weak but there's very little of it; the book is narrated by Tootles, Pan's right-hand boi, and Tootle's voice is wonderful. You'll be amazed and delighted with how cleverly Lowry has taken the elements of the original story and re-imagined them for this world, where Neverland is an abandoned warehouse and the lost boys are really lost bois, a host of genderqueer submissives to their Sir Pan; where Wendy - now Wendi - is coaxed out the window not to play Mother but a D/s Mommy; where Hook is a strict Traditional Top and the Crocodile is a drug. It's wicked and witty and delightful, and amazingly true to the original tale in ways I wouldn't have believed possible had someone told me so before I'd read it.
It's a beautifully readable book - I flew through it in about five hours - not least because it's very difficult to put it down for more than a few minutes. But beyond being a great story and a wonderful re-telling, I've come away feeling that Lost Boi is also a vitally necessary book. Lowrey is writing about some of the least-accepted minorities in the modern West, and about the homeless kids we try to pretend don't exist, and all the ways our society fails them, over and over. It's a beautiful book but a bitter one, full of magic and hope that is unbearably tempered by the unremittingly harsh reality. In a lot of ways it's an uncomfortable book, but it's the uncomfortable stories that most need telling, and reading, and I'm both grateful than Lowrey wrote this and that I managed to find it.
I still don't know what to say about it. I guess I'll finish by saying that this is one of those books I wish I could make compulsory reading in schools, for its wide-eyed look at reality and its unrepentant queer core, for its honesty and its fantasy, its beauty and its ugliness. It's stunning and painful in equal measure, and I think that's what a treasure is supposed to be.