Brom's "The Child Thief" is a book I constantly debated about whether I liked or didn't like it in the spectrum of the story it was telling, and I ended up landing on the "like" side despite strong reservations about the language and violence in the book (and it gets overmuch in places). Let me first say that if you're expecting just an adult version of Peter Pan, you're quite mistaken. This book doesn't just tell a darker, alternative tale of the classic children's story, it delves into so much darkness that you can't believe that it's all happening in one felt swoop, and some of it has strong repercussions for the group of characters that are involved in the story. I suppose it's one thing to say that if the prologue has Peter stopping a man from raping a young girl in the first chapter, that might have some bearing on what's to come, but I can tell you it gets far more dark.The story revolves around not only a darkly alluring Peter, but also a young boy named Nick who struggles to live on the streets of New York while selling drugs and fleeing for his life. Peter leads Nick on a series of mischievous pursuits, but when they actually arrive in his world, they run smack dab into the middle of an all out war. Let me say that when the collective story is considered, it's actually a tragic tale, and several character deaths occur that may surprise or even shock you. But equally shocking is how much violence, language, and sex this book has. Usually I don't mind if a book has certain graphic elements in it if said elements are relevant to the story, but there were times when it almost became too much and too distracting when I read it. Still, I have a stronger stomach and sense of patience than most. If you are sensitive to any of the elements I've mentioned in this book - you might very well hate it.The ending is a bit half-handed as well, and I can't say that I liked that part of it, but when I look back over the events that occur, the vast majority of the story was worth the read. I wouldn't give "The Child Thief" an overarching recommendation to everyone, but I think in the aftermath it was worth pursuing.Overall score: 2.5/5
