Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Review: Tiger Lily

Author: Jodi Lynn Anderson
Series: Standalone
Publisher: Haper Teen (Harper Collins)
Release: July 3rd 2012
Source: Purchased
Pages: 304 (paperback)
( Amazon | 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.

Peter Pan was never a favorite of mine, nor was I at all familiar with the myths of Neverland. Although adored by many of my friends, it seemed that I never cared enough to read this particular fairy tale, which also explained my initial hesitation towards Tiger Lily. Let me tell you now, my friends, I was such a fool. Tiger Lily was nothing like the ridiculous and predictive story I had expected. Instead, it was a grand display of fascinations and wonderments. I loved exploring Neverland in Jodi Lynn Anderson’s imaginations and the tale of Tiger Lily and Peter Pan is downright heartwarming and tear jerking all at the same time.

Tiger Lily is not our usual 15-year-old teenage girl. In fact, girly and feminine are perhaps the last words you could use to describe her. She is headstrong and a wild hunter, quite skilled actually, better than most of the boys in the village. Although her talents and feral nature made others to isolate her, she enjoys her solitude immensely. Like how she once said, Tiger Lily can live without anyone. But even the hardest and strongest heart has weaknesses - ones that she may not otherwise realize. 

Peter stumbled into her world like a gust of bracing wind. It was not love at the first sight, but curiosity and their shocking similarities brought them together. They are so much alike – both strong-willed, stubborn, and both yearns for true freedom. It ached my heart to see Peter’s attempts of thawing her coldness went unrequited again and again. It’s not that Tiger Lily wasn’t moved, she was just too afraid of getting hurt, too afraid to believe. And sometimes, you let people slip away. 

I can never bring myself to blame her no matter what had happened between them, even if it was completely her fault. Tiger Lily has carried too much baggage for too long – her loyalties, her devotions, her promises, etc. She would never be able to abandon her old life and abandon those who loved and cared for her even though they feared her at the same time. She is not the perfect heroine, not at all. You could even say that she is selfish and revengeful, but she is sincere and genuine. Her flaws and wounds are so real I can't help but pity and admire her. 

Aside from that, the narration done in Tinker Bell's perspective also connected with me deeply. In many ways, Tinker Bell’s role in this story is similar to the roles of you and me. We are privileged to observe everything and everyone, but meanwhile we are pathetically helpless to the tragedies and misfortunes. No matter how hard we try and how much we want to warn them, we can never change what has already been laid out. We are only observers. Although I guess in this case, Tinker Bell is a tiny bit luckier than all of us. Her short journey in the end brought me a satisfying closure to Tiger Lily and Peter Pan’s story. There is always a happily ever after, just not together.


My Rating: ★ (4 stars) 

7 comments:

  1. I have this on my TBR RIGHT NOW. And I'm sooo excited! I haven't seen any negative reviews for it. And I utterly adore Peter Pan. I am or may not have had (have?) a crush on him when I was small (I was so flying to Neverland).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. hahaha I don't know why but I never liked Peter Pan (the cartoon at least :P) You will love this!!! and probably be very sad like me in the end :(

      Delete
  2. Awesome review, Angel! Now I need to read it too, LOL. I have seen many great reviews about this book, I hope I'll like it too, but I'm not sure when will I have enough time to read it :(

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It is definitely worth reading! I hope you would be able to fit it in your reading schedule somehow, it's such a good story.

      Delete
    2. I hope so too, but not this month for sure :)

      Delete
  3. *laughs evilly* YES.
    I was tricked at first, too. But then you start reading and see how magical it really is. Ordinarily I would hate a perspective from an "outside" character like Tinkerbell but, like you said, it's not like that at all! I actually think the story might even be better for that :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. haha, I'm pretty sure it was because of your review that I bought this book ;P I really loved Jodi Anderson's writing. There are tons of super quotable lines in this story, quite brilliant sometimes. I guess I would need to thank you for introducing me to it!

      Delete