You know, I could do a review in one word kind of thing, and it would go like this: WEIRD. That’s it. Just, WEIRD, that’s the word that immediately popped into my mind while thinking about this book. But as you know, I’m kind of talkative when it comes to books, so obviously I have more to say than just one word. I buddy-read this once again with the incredible Kat, and I’m glad to have her by my side for this experience, because damn, that book really WAS a unique experience.
ALICE IN WONDERLAND RETELLING…WELCOME TO CREEPY LAND
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““Do you really think these are Alice’s tears?” I ask. “That I’m supposed to make them go away somehow?”
“I’m the wrong guy to ask. I just saw a skeleton with antlers and a forest of aphid-noshing flower zombies.”
On the list of hyped-books everyone talks about and I haven’t read yet, Splintered is there. Gorgeous cover, Alice in Wonderland retelling, fantasy, magic, and all kinds of things I’m looking forward to getting into more, this year. I was thrilled to get into that story, into Alyssa’s family, discover that she’s a girl with her roots deep into Wonderland, her ears lying around to hear what bugs are saying… wait, what? Did I lose you already?
Splintered is a retelling of Alice in Wonderland. Here, we’re with Alyssa, she’s one of the descendants of Alice, and her mother is in an asylum because she hears things. Like, bugs talking and white rabbit kind of things. But Alyssa hears those little voices, as well. And wonderland is real. And it’s time to go down the rabbit hole to prove her mother’s not crazy, and to save her. But Wonderland isn’t anything like what Lewis Carroll wrote in his tale. It’s way more twisted, kind of creepy at times, filled with monsters and bugs you can’t even imagine. This is probably what I loved the most about the book, but also what made me the most conflicted. Seriously, this book is brilliant, because it takes some inspiration from Alice’s tale that you can clearly figure out, yet turns and twists it into something incredible you couldn’t even imagine. Something incredibly creepy half the time, but incredible anyways. Entering the rabbit hole with Alyssa is a thrilling experience, and I loved it, but there was always on the side this touch of horror, of, I don’t know what the hell is happening and where I am and oh my god I am creeped out by this whole thing. I was a tiny bit uncomfortable at times.
CHARACTERS TO CUDDLE, OR TO FROWN AT
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“You can put me down now,” I grump.
“I don’t know. It’s a lot easier to save your ass when I have it riding on my shoulder.”
Let’s talk a bit about the characters. They were just the right kind of awesome, I have to say, and I loved it. If the beginning was a bit slow, especially because I wanted to go down that rabbit hole so badly, I liked getting to know the characters, their relationships, and a bit of Alyssa’s family background with her crazy mother. And a little bit of her craziness, just as well. Alyssa was a great main character, even if, at times, she was annoying, I really enjoyed this whole ride with her. She had just the right sassy things to say at the exact right time, and even if she was confused about her identity, she’s fierce, strong and yet so fragile and you can really see the need she has to save her mother. That was endearing, really. On her side, you get my favorite trope of ever with Jeb, and, I kind of fell in love here. Jeb is Alyssa’s childhood friend and let’s be honest, we ALL want that something more to happen, and we all root for it. At least, I did during the whole story, and I loved each and every single conversation they ever have, their dynamic is GREAT…but why don’t we add something a little spicy to that, and, erm, a little less human? Meet Morpheus, the creepiest and weirdest bookish character I have ever met, yet with a sense of repartee that was awesome, one character you’ll want to hit and cuddle, and can’t help but frown at because CAN WE TRUST HIM? I don’t know. And books where you DON’T know things make me crazy. In a good way? IS THAT WEIRD?
OVERALL
Splintered is a crazy Alice-inspired universe, and I can only take my hat off –okay, imaginary hat-, for this crazy imaginative, brilliant, yet slightly creepy world. I think that’s mostly why I had a bit of a hard time with it, that touch of horror threw me off a bit at times. Yet, going down the rabbit hole for one crazy adventure was almost exhilarating, and I’m definitely looking forward to read more, and hopefully, get used to all this craziness.
Final rating: 3 drops!
Did you read Splintered? Were you fascinated, or slightly creeped-out, or both? Do you want to read it?
Do you know other retellings of Alice in Wonderland? Share your thoughts in comments!
A. G. Howard, Splintered, Published by Amulet Books, January 1st 2013.
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.
I might just give this a try now. I have seen a lot of mixed reviews for this one… but it still sounds pretty different and good. Loved your review!
AWw thank you so much! I would love o know what you think about this one. It definitely took me some time to get accustomed to this world, yet it was really brillant 🙂
I have this book on my list of books to read. There was a computer game of Alice where you had to control insanity. The game was creepy.
I really hope you’ll enjoy it when you get to it! Thank you 🙂
I loved this trilogy and I’m totally team Morpheus! I wish I could read it all over again for the first time. As far as the creepiness goes, it was somewhat creepy, but I tend to like that kind of thing. I think I gave all the Splintered books 5 stars. Hope you like Unhinged!! Great review!!
Ahhh I’m so glad to hear you read and loved this 🙂 I’m team Jeb for now though, ahah, but I can’t wait to know more about Morpheus as the series goes on! Thank you so much! <3
Weird is the most fitting word for this book. The whole bug thing is exactly that. I’m juggling a few books, so I’ve yet to see Wonderland, but I’m seriously loving the dynamic between her and Jeb. Please tell me we meet the Mad Hatter or the Queen of Hearts. They are my absolute musts if visiting Wonderland. Ooh, so there’s this Morpheus character that’s a love interest? I like the best friend love triangle, too. I can’t wait to get to that part. Nice review!
I’m glad you agree! Oh, I always admire people who can read many books at a time, I can’t, ahah. I loved Alyssa and Jeb’s dynamic as well, it was just so, so great to read! I can’t wait to know all your thougths about it once you’ve read it all ! 😀
I’ll admit I’m reading them with little success. I picked up a book on Tuesday that wasn’t on my list and read it in a few hours. I guess it depends on the day. I like them together. But I’m assuming they don’t end up together. ?As soon as I finish the book, I’ll post my review. I’m so behind on my reviews.
Oh I get that, there are some days where I want to pick up some book in particular, yet I don’t, because I feel like I need to be committed to the book I am currently reading, ahah. I can’t wait to read your review 🙂
I adore your review! <3 And yes, I definitely agree with you on the "WEIRD" part. Though truth to be told, I love Splintered's quirky and weirdness! Team Morpheus here hehe…
Aww thank you so much Mariana, you’re such a sweetheart <3 I love that it's weird, as well, and I think I will love the second book even more, now that I'm a bit accustomed to the weirdness of it all 😛
I’m really glad you liked this book, and I definitely need to re-read this series soon because I haven’t in ages and I loved the books so much the first time I picked them up!
I think weird is pretty much Wonderland in general, both Howard’s version and Lewis Carroll’s version though Howard’s Wonderland was definitely the darker of the two!
I think if you liked Splintered you’ll enjoy Unhinged and Ensnared as well (I think Ensnared was my favourite of the trilogy). The characters just get better and better; I loved Alyssa’s interactions with both Jeb and Morpheus throughout the trilogy.
Great review! 😀
Thank you so much Beth! <3 I really loved the first book, even if it was a bit weird for my taste at the beginning, I can't deny it's a brilliant retelling, and I'm definitely going to read the next book, you're making me SO impatient for it! <3
That’s all right! I think you should find the second book’s a little less weird 🙂 it’s set mainly in the human world so there’s not much Wonderland in it but it’s still a great read you should really love it, and the third was my favourite of the lot! ❤️
Oh really? I’m a bit disappointed though, I thought she’d get back to Wonderland? I’m even more curious now to see what happens, ahah 😀
Nah, book one is Wonderland and book two is the human world; book three is somewhere different again (I’m not going to say where for spoilers but I think you’ll love it!) I still really enjoyed Unhinged but yeah, like you I wanted her to get back to Wonderand! 😀
Ohhh, I’m kind of excited just as well to explore the human world with such an interesting back story to Alyssa’s character….I’m way too excited now for these books 😛
I’m really excited for you to read them now too 😀 and I definitely need to re-read the series myself like ASAP!
I hope I can buy those this summer, I can’t wait 🙂
Honestly, I don’t like Alice in Wonderland, I’ve always been creeped out by that story. So I’m not going to be reading this book anytime soon but I’m glad that you liked it!
ahah, I can understand, it’s really a creepy story, and A. G. Howard took it to an even creepier level, ahah. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts on this! 😀
BOOK ADDED TO TBR! This book seems SO GOOD! I’m all for wicked, wild adventures and I LOVE retellings! I haven’t read any Alice in Wonderland retellings so this seems like a brilliant place to start 😉 So glad you enjoyed it and great review!
Ohhh YAY please read that one, I NEED to know how you feel about all this weird world and the characters and JUST EVERYTHING. <3 <3 <3 Thank you so much!! <3
Just reserved it at my library! The feels should be coming soon 🙂 I can’t wait!
Ahhh I am SO excited! I want to know EVERYTHING while you read it 😀
EEEEE if there’s any raving moments, you’ll be the first to hear it 😉 I can’t wait!
I CAN’T WAIT either for all the crazy <3
Amazing review, Marie! I’ve been meaning to read this for sooo long. The cover is absolutely stunning. I love that it has a slight horror twist and is really weird because that’s my aesthetic ? I’m glad you liked it!
Aww thank you so, so much Lauren <3 The cover caught my eye right from the start, and if you like weird books, this one is definitely for you. I hope you'll love that book when you read it 🙂
Great review Marie ! I wanted to buy it but now I know it’s creepy I am not so sure anymore !
Thank you so much! Oh, well if you wanted to buy it, please, do! All the bugs kind of made me feel weird, at first, yet it was a brilliant book. I hope you’ll like it 🙂
LOVE your review! I am also still so glad that we read it together, because weird is the perfect word to describe it and I think I would have freaked out several times had it not been for you being there on the other side of the screen.
I am still not sure when I will be able to read the others. So many books, so little time – that could seriously be my life motto hahaha
AW thank you so, so much Kat! <3 Well, after that book, we NEED to read the next books, I know I really want to! Getting to know Morpheus is one of my main goals now, ahah, so… 😛
It’s definitely a goal of mine too and the fact that he is on the cover of the next one is promising. I already have them all at home, but I have so many books at home hahaha
Just out of curiosity, HOW many books are on your physical TBR right now? 😛
I’m going to try and buy the next books soon, this summer if I can 🙂
Okay, there aren’t THAT many physical books. I have 6 at home. But I also have like 6 ebooks. I just ordered an Owl Crate box today and I won a giveaway and I think the book is arriving this month as well. Soooo … I guess 8 physical books if you count the last two that aren’t yet in my home.
Ohh well that’s okay I guess, ahah, I expected more :P. You ordered an Owl Crate Box? Oh I would LOVE to know what you think about it, and if it’s worth the price? Every month I wonder if I should try this out or not, but…I’m not sure it’s worth it. I’d love to know if you’re happy with it, once you get it 😀
I definitely plan on doing something like an unboxing post for it once I get it.
I wanted to order one for a while now and they had this offer to get 10% off for new members, so I seized the chance. Also, they gave me my personal referral link, which I will include in my post, and if I can get 3 people to order Owl Crate via that link, I’ll get a box for free :O I am not sure I can actually manage that hahaha but I shall try (if it turns out to be recommendable, but I think it will be).
Oh yay, I can’t wait to see that! 3 people and a box for free? Wow, that’s so great! Well, maybe you’ll already make me order, and only have two more people to find 😛
LOL, well then I better send you a link just in case hahaha No, let’s wait until I get the box. I will not recommend anything that I haven’t tested myself.
I will wait eagerly for you to get this box, and see this unboxing then 😀
I haven’t read this yet, but it’s been on my tbr for a long time now, since I absolutely love Alice in Wonderland. For some reason I haven’t picked this up yet. Great review! 🙂 Good to know that there’s a touch of horror. When I do finally pick this up I’ll go in wary!
Oh if you love Alice, you should give this one a try. The author definitely twists Wonderland into a WHOLE other world, it’s kind of crazy, yet it’s brilliant, I really liked it. I guess I’m a bit of a not-too-used to horror kind of person, but there were lots of bugs and stuff that I found kind of creepy, haha 🙂 I hope you’ll enjoy it, and THANK YOU <3