I’m looking for books that have that Peter Pan or Lost Boys kind of energy — adventure, freedom, nostalgia, a little bit of darkness. Basically that vibe of refusing to grow up, living outside the rules, or feeling caught between fantasy and reality.
Doesn’t have to be an actual retelling, just something that feels like that world but written for adults. Could be magical realism, dark fantasy, or even something more grounded but with that same spirit.
Any recommendations?
by No_Exercise_1750
7 Comments
The Child Thief by Brom. Its good heavy anti religion themes though, as the author is a reddit atheist
The shadow of the wind
1000 years of solitude
Is it magic realism you’re looking for??
I second The Child Thief. While it is a modernized reimagining of the Peter Pan story, it definitely hits all the benchmarks you’ve mentioned. Brom does dark fantasy par excellence. In a very different vein, there’s also The Outsiders and Rumblefish by S.E. Hinton.
The 100 year old man who stepped out the window and disappeared for a sillier take on this
I who have never known men for the existential and feminist take on this
Stephen King’s Fairy Tale is exactly what you’re looking for. It’s not horror btw.
Lord of the Flies, perhaps?
The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow.