Blog Tour Interview with the Author: SECOND STAR TO THE LEFT by Megan Van Dyke

Blog tour graphic with title in pale pink banner on pink background with image of the book

Genre: Fantasy Romance
Age Range: Adult
Star Rating: 4 stars
Series companion series

Synopsis:

Tinker Bell, banished from her homeland for doing the unthinkable, selling the hottest drug in Neverland—pixie dust—wants absolution.

Determined to find a way home, Tink doesn’t hesitate to follow the one lead she has, even if that means seducing a filthy pirate to steal precious gems out from under his…hook.

Captain Hook believes he’s found a real treasure in Tink. That is, until he recovers from her pixie dust laced kiss with a curse that turns the seas against him. With his ship and reputation at the mercy of raging storms, he tracks down the little minx and demands she remove the curse. Too bad she can’t.

However, the mermaid queen has a solution to both of their problems, if Tink and Hook will work together to retrieve a magical item for her.

As they venture to the mysterious Shrouded Isles to find the priceless treasure, their shared nemesis closes in. However, his wrath is nothing compared to the realization that achieving their goal may mean losing something they never expected to find—each other.

Synopsis taken from Goodreads. Add to your shelves here.

Interview:

What drew you to retelling PETER PAN initially? How has reimagining it affected your opinions of the original tale?

I honestly wish I knew. The idea for this story literally exploded into my head while I was playing with my (then infant) son. The initial spark was this: What if Captain Hook had a curse placed on him that made the seas his enemy, and the one responsible was Tinker Bell, a pixie notorious for selling the hottest drug in Neverland—pixie dust. I have no idea where my mind came up with that, but one minute it just appeared. The concept captivated me so thoroughly that I had to explore it.

Reimagining it has both given me more appreciation for the original and also made it difficult to read or watch other retellings. I associate the characters strongly with my versions of them, so separating that out from whatever media I’m consuming is a challenge for me now. They’re like my babies, and seeing different takes sometimes feels wrong.

SECOND STAR TO THE LEFT takes well known characters from a beloved children’s tale and brings them to life in a very different (and more adult!) way. How easy was it to decide what to keep, what change, and what to subvert, and how by much?

It was strangely very easy to decide what to keep or change because the characters decided for me. Once I had the basic idea for the characters and the story, I let them lead me to their truths. Of course there were things I personally wanted to have in the story: Peter, the Lost Boys, their hideout, the merfolk, etc. However, Tink and Hook are the ones who showed me their perspectives on those things and what they looked like in this version of Neverland. Since this story wound up being somewhat of a prequel of sorts to the canon tale, some characters, like the Darling children, didn’t appear in Second Star to the Left, but they’ll be stepping onto the page when I get to write the sequel.

Other than PETER PAN, were there any other pieces of media, periods of history, or places that you drew on for inspiration?

My in-laws lived in south Florida at the time (and I do now actually, although I didn’t then), and those tropical vibes certainly inspired this story. From sandy beaches to plant-life, humidity, tropical storms, and even the feel of being at sea, a lot of that pulls from my own personal experiences. I also really love history and real-life treasure hunts, so bringing in the historical figure Blackbeard to this fantasy world was a lot of fun and my own little twist on the tale.

Of the different places Tink and Hook travel in this book, where would you most like to travel? What about least?

This is very specific, but I would love it if the Crow’s Roost bar was a real place. I just love the idea of this massive treehouse like bar hanging over a cliff’s edge with a somewhat treacherous rope bridge to cross to get there. It’s my inner child coming to life and spilling out onto the page, but with an adult twist.

As far as the place I’d least like to visit, probably the Shrouded Isles, simply because I would not want to get stuck there. I feel like there are many more treacherous and unnatural things on that island than our heroes encountered. There’s a reason sailors fear it, and I wouldn’t want to become another cautionary tale.

Were there any scenes you had to cut or plot points that surprised you as you were writing or editing the book?

I cut very little from the book in my revisions, which is strange for me. Usually more ends up on the chopping block. As I didn’t fully plot this one out before writing it, there were a lot of things that surprised me though. The twist involving the item on Hook’s necklace and the significance of the wording on it (IYKYK)? I did not plan that and did not see it coming until I was writing the scene and the characters revealed it. Same for another little relational detail that’s spilled in the same part of the book. But once I knew those facts, they made absolute sense and resonated as truth with the characters, so I ran with them.

Do you identify more with Hook or Tink?

Tink and I have more in common, that said, Hook was actually easier to write. He was so open in speaking and sharing his story, but it took a little while to dig into Tink and really get to know her…which tracks for me, too. We’re both determined, inventive, and headstrong, but keep things close to our hearts. And while I can swim (unlike Tink), we both get seasick and unsteady on the water.

Do you have any hints about what readers can expect from this series in the future?

I’ve had an idea (fully plotted and everything) for a direct sequel to Second Star to the Left for years. I really want to write it, and I had actually planned to do so a while ago. However, my publisher encouraged me to do a series of different retellings rather than sticking with one, and since I had many more retelling ideas for other tales as well, I did that.

Was it the right call? Probably not, but I’m really glad I got to tell those other stories as well, so I can’t regret it too much. That said, I do want to write the sequel to Second Star to the Left still, and I plan to once I get my rights back to the first book from my publisher and can release the sequel on my own terms.

I adore writing fairy tales in general, so I’ll be doing more of those as well and have the next one (a Beauty and the Beast retelling titled THE MUSICIAN AND THE MONSTER) coming out in May.

What fantasy romances would you recommend to readers who liked SECOND STAR TO THE LEFT?

For anyone looking for more steamy Peter Pan retellings I’d point them to HOOKED by Emily McIntire or A WORTHY OPPONENT by Katee Robert, though those are both more contemporary AUs than fantasy.

For some good romantasy retellings, definitely check out S.C. Grayson and Tessonja Odette. They both have series that I enjoy. One of my all-time favorite standalone romantasy retellings is ENTREAT ME by Grace Draven. I will never not recommend that book.

Read my reviews of other books by Megan Van Dyke:

Neverland (this series):