Expected Publication Date: January 1, 2013
Publisher: Amulet
Format: ARC
Page Count: 384 pages
Source: Publisher
This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence. Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.
When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.
SPLINTERED was definitely a cool read! Dark and twisted, A.G. Howard packs a ton of action into this new and unknown Wonderland.
The world building in SPLINTERED was... oh, how do I put this lightly? Stunning? Brilliant? Wonderful in every capacity imaginable? Yep, that about sums it up. Howard did a great job at capturing the "wonder" and "dream" feel that Wonderland offers, and even though SPLINTERED is a bit more morbid and dark than the original tale, I couldn't help but turn these pages and never set the book down!
I do have one complaint about SPLINTERED though: I wasn't really a fan of how in the beginning, she just remembered these things from her ancestors. I found it a little weird and off-putting, but luckily, that all changed as we dived deeper into this realm, and I ended up loving it in the end.
The writing style sucked me right away. There is one part right in the first 20 pages where our main character is having a dream, and one line that stuck out to me was: And now, I have no head. I mean, that's INSANE right? Prepare to experience ALL of those feels once you read SPLINTERED. (which you must!) And also, the characters in this novel were memorable and great as well. Our main protagonist Alyssa was definitely a character that a reader could root for. And also, the side characters (Jeb, Morpheus, the original Alice) were fantastic too! A.G. Howard definitely put a spin on these characters, which I love in a good re-telling.
Plus, this is such a unique take on Alice in Wonderland! I've read a couple of re-tellings, and SPLINTERED stands and shines out from the others. Trust me, you want to read SPLINTERED when it comes out in less than a month!
Overall, SPLINTERED was excellent. Besides that one small flaw I had with this novel, SPLINTERED is still a great re-telling of the classic Alice in Wonderland!
M Y R A T I N G :
I do have one complaint about SPLINTERED though: I wasn't really a fan of how in the beginning, she just remembered these things from her ancestors. I found it a little weird and off-putting, but luckily, that all changed as we dived deeper into this realm, and I ended up loving it in the end.
The writing style sucked me right away. There is one part right in the first 20 pages where our main character is having a dream, and one line that stuck out to me was: And now, I have no head. I mean, that's INSANE right? Prepare to experience ALL of those feels once you read SPLINTERED. (which you must!) And also, the characters in this novel were memorable and great as well. Our main protagonist Alyssa was definitely a character that a reader could root for. And also, the side characters (Jeb, Morpheus, the original Alice) were fantastic too! A.G. Howard definitely put a spin on these characters, which I love in a good re-telling.
Plus, this is such a unique take on Alice in Wonderland! I've read a couple of re-tellings, and SPLINTERED stands and shines out from the others. Trust me, you want to read SPLINTERED when it comes out in less than a month!
Overall, SPLINTERED was excellent. Besides that one small flaw I had with this novel, SPLINTERED is still a great re-telling of the classic Alice in Wonderland!
M Y R A T I N G :
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you so much for stopping by! I read every comment and truly appreciate them. I would love to hear your thoughts! If you leave a comment, I'll be sure to leave a comment back on your blog ASAP! -Brad