Read if you like: dark, dangerous fairy tales come to life, fantasy stories grounded in the modern world, and characters you can root for.
The Hazel Wood | Melissa Albert
Series: The Hazel Wood
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dark Fairy Tales
Released: February 8th 2018
Pages: 359
Format: Ebook
Source: Publisher
Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice's life on the road, always a step ahead of the strange bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice's grandmother, the reclusive author of a book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate - the Hazel Wood - Alice learns how bad her luck can really get. Her mother is stolen away - by a figure who claims to come from the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother's stories are set. Alice's only lead is the message her mother left behind: STAY AWAY FROM THE HAZEL WOOD.
To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother's tales began . . .
Released: February 8th 2018
Pages: 359
Format: Ebook
Source: Publisher
Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice's life on the road, always a step ahead of the strange bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice's grandmother, the reclusive author of a book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate - the Hazel Wood - Alice learns how bad her luck can really get. Her mother is stolen away - by a figure who claims to come from the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother's stories are set. Alice's only lead is the message her mother left behind: STAY AWAY FROM THE HAZEL WOOD.
To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother's tales began . . .
This took a bit of time to get going but I really liked it once it did. Suitably dark and fairy tale-y, with a couple of shocking twists (one was fun, one was not.) I liked the main characters (loved Finch) and there was enough secretive stuff to keep me guessing. The book really came into it own when it entered the Hinterland (fairy tale world), though - I loved all the darkness, bloodiness, and the world of Stories and their stories.
My only complaint is I found the ending REALLY unsatisfying, and hope the sequel doesn't just spend time with Finch - I want Alice's story to continue too, she deserves so much more than this book!
Clever and inventive and dark as fairy tales are meant to be. A twisty, dangerous tale.
4 stars
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