Braswell’s retelling did a good job staying true to the vibe of the original Disney movie. Never Land was very whimsical, and the characters felt accurate. I liked the way she wrote Wendy; this version of her was fiercer, cleverer, and more creative. I also liked Wendy and Tinker Bell’s friendship. Although the fairy had some rather ridiculous moments of jealousy, I liked her, and the way she and Wendy worked together when it was most needed.

Beyond that, I’m not sure what I think of the book. There were a lot of elements included that I felt weren’t fleshed out enough: one of the Lost Boys being a girl, Hook’s growing mental instability, the witch Hook made a deal with, the gods Wendy and Tink sought out for help, Tink’s fairy friend Thorn that Wendy instantly and rather randomly developed a crush on. I’d prefer if the whole Wendy and Thorn thing was erased from existence, though I did like Thorn himself.

The book could’ve been so much more interesting and memorable if the aforementioned elements had been properly developed. We could’ve had meddling gods. Pirates that allied with a witch to increase their chances of winning against Peter and the Lost Boys. Their dark, corrupt magic against the good, imaginative magic of Never Land. A villain losing his mind as his side lost the fight. Never Land defying real-world gender norms. I would’ve devoured that book.

Not that this one was bad. I liked it, for the most part. I will say, though, that the middle portion dragged considerably. This could’ve, and probably should’ve, been a good 100 pages shorter. I also wish we’d seen more of Peter Pan, as aside from the brief prologue, we don’t see him until the last 150 pages. That’s when Wendy meets him for the first time, though he already knows her because he and Tink would go to the Darling house to listen to the Never Land stories Wendy told her younger brothers. It doesn’t make sense to me that a Peter Pan retelling would feature so little of Peter.

Overall, Straight on Till Morning is neither the best nor the worst Twisted Tales book I’ve read. I’d recommend it if you’re looking for a fun read, so long as you don’t go in with incredibly high expectations.