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cozywithraven's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
I really enjoyed this, it was such a fun read. It felt like the author really loved the idea of Wonderland and wanted to add to it (sometimes books like these feel more like they want to force a pre-existing concept into their own version). There was something about this that just sucked me in from the first few chapters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Stalking, Medical trauma, Child abuse, Confinement, Toxic friendship, and Ableism
sarahsbooklife's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I was kinda disappointed with this book. I really love Alice in Wonderland retellings and books that use it as a part of history for the story, but this one just didn't work for me.
At first, I enjoyed this story. Alyssa was an okay main character and I found her more interesting when they were in Wonderland and she kinda took charge of what was happening. But at times she felt like a "pick me girl" which was pretty annoying and I could really feel the 2000s/10s "I'm not like other girls" energy in this story. Her arc did kind of leave some of that behind as the story progressed, and I probably could have even enjoyed this story more because of that. But the thing that annoyed me the most was Jeb.
And the fact this story was drowning in YA tropes.
But first let's talk about Jeb.
Pretty much everything about Jeb annoyed me. I was really hoping that he wouldn't be the main love interest and that it would be Morpheus instead, but sadly Jeb was. I was also really looking forward to him being left behind in the real world when Alyssa went to Wonderland but alas he came along for the ride. And I think it would have been better if he had stayed because he was constantly getting in the way and just being all around unbearable.
He was, I felt, belittling at times. Alyssa's obsession with him put me off him more, especially when they were flirting when he has a girlfriend. (I'm not going to keep going because I could end up ranting forever.) I like when friends-to-lovers is done right and in this book it is far from it. It's honestly a pretty bad attempt at it. And the felt like they were barely even friends 90% of the time.
There were so many things wrong with this book. Like how it talks about mental health and how the MC's mother is treated in a mental health hospital. Which was pretty horrid. The author definitely shoved a lot of misinformation in here, like having the Alyssa's mum in a straight jacket and placed in a padded cell. Something that hasn't been done since the mid-20th century except for in films and TV.
I did like that the author gave a lot of the beings in Wonderland a creepier description, making them seem a little more unsettling. But I felt like she could have taken it a step further. Made it really creepy and maybe a bit more horrifying.
Lastly Morpheus, Alyssa's childhood friend and second love interest, was probably the only reason I finished with this book. He was the only character that I thought was 100% interesting and I think he would've better as the main love interest instead of Jeb.
Honestly, I don't think that this book was worth the hours I spent reading it and I wish I could get them back and I won't be wasting anymore time on this series.
At first, I enjoyed this story. Alyssa was an okay main character and I found her more interesting when they were in Wonderland and she kinda took charge of what was happening. But at times she felt like a "pick me girl" which was pretty annoying and I could really feel the 2000s/10s "I'm not like other girls" energy in this story. Her arc did kind of leave some of that behind as the story progressed, and I probably could have even enjoyed this story more because of that. But the thing that annoyed me the most was Jeb.
And the fact this story was drowning in YA tropes.
But first let's talk about Jeb.
Pretty much everything about Jeb annoyed me. I was really hoping that he
He was, I felt, belittling at times. Alyssa's obsession with him put me off him more, especially when they were flirting when he has a girlfriend. (I'm not going to keep going because I could end up ranting forever.)
There were so many things wrong with this book. Like how it talks about mental health and how the MC's mother is treated in a mental health hospital. Which was pretty horrid. The author definitely shoved a lot of misinformation in here, like having the Alyssa's mum in a straight jacket and placed in a padded cell. Something that hasn't been done since the mid-20th century except for in films and TV.
I did like that the author gave a lot of the beings in Wonderland a creepier description, making them seem a little more unsettling. But I felt like she could have taken it a step further. Made it really creepy and maybe a bit more horrifying.
Lastly Morpheus, Alyssa's childhood friend and second love interest, was probably the only reason I finished with this book. He was the only character that I thought was 100% interesting and I think he would've better as the main love interest instead of Jeb.
Honestly, I don't think that this book was worth the hours I spent reading it and I wish I could get them back and I won't be wasting anymore time on this series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood, and Mental illness
Moderate: Forced institutionalization, Medical content, and Alcoholism
Minor: Animal death, Drug use, Death, Cursing, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Addiction, Alcoholism, and Animal cruelty
siglerbooknook's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I truly loved this book. It was super cute and very unique. I find it hard to define this book or describe it in a way that does it justice. It was odd but cute, unique but felt classic, twisted and sinister yet somehow still a comforting read. I love the premise and setting. I adored the twisted changes to wonderland and all the little punk details. I really liked Alyssa as a main character. Both Jeb and Morpheus felt a little forced to me, but I still enjoyed their characters. I can definitely see myself reading this book again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Mental illness, and Schizophrenia/Psychosis
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Bullying, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, and Kidnapping
Minor: Emotional abuse, Self harm, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Drug use, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Sexual content, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Toxic friendship
mygvrses's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
i really enjoyed this book! i loved the writing and even though some of it was pretty predictable and sometimes a little cringey it was very entertaining. i loved the version of wonderland that howard built and her world building was amazing. i definitely need to find a therapist because i liked morpheus way more than jeb lol….despite the incredible amount of red flags. i do think this is a great read as a stand alone and i have a feeling that my opinion of the book will go down if i continue with the series. so i may just be happy with what the end of this book gave me and move on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, and Animal cruelty
Moderate: Death and Violence
booksarefriends_notfood's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Mental illness, Blood, Chronic illness, Death, and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Suicide, Grief, Violence, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Abandonment
machete's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization
donxmore's review against another edition
2.0
The Alice in Wonderland romance book where Alice's great-great-great-granddaughter has to choose between a boy who doesn't respect women or autonomy and a butterfly man who has been grooming her since she was an elementary school child
Two stars for some interesting plot points (namely the sponge), intriguing beginning, and overall enjoyable writing style
Also, I don't know whose idea it was to print this in purple ink, but at times it gave me a headache
Two stars for some interesting plot points (namely the sponge), intriguing beginning, and overall enjoyable writing style
Also, I don't know whose idea it was to print this in purple ink, but at times it gave me a headache
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Minor: Forced institutionalization
wondereads13's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
This is a fun and sexy Alice in Wonderland retelling. It's not very serious, but I like it that way. The main character, Alyssa, is pretty good, but I did feel like her and the love interests needed to stop obsessing over each other from time to time. The writing style is great, and I loved how Howard incorporated the elements of the original story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Forced institutionalization
Alyssa's mother is kept in a mental institution for reasons Alyssa shares and tries to hidesyllareads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
This was an enjoyable if a rather predictable read save for one thing I would like to critique first and foremost once I get to the things I did not like.
Splintered is a dark Alice in Wonderland retelling where our MC, Alyssa, learns that she has to venture into Wonderland to find a cure for her mother who's stuck in a mental institution (more about that later). She's accompanied by an old friend of hers, Jeb, who forms one end of the (rather predictable) love triangle (sadly, the two boys do not fall in love), and experiences various adventures in a rather fucked up version of Wonderland that reminded me of the game Alice: Madness Returns in that it takes things from the original book and cranks them up to the max when it comes to their eerie weirdness.
The setting itself was as bizarre as the premise promised (tho I have to say, the author definitely took more inspiration from the later Johnny Depp movie than the actual children's book. I'm not complaining per se, I'm just saying). The characters were... alright, tho I highly appreciated the fact that one of the love interests, Morpheus, at least calls himself the trash he is (figuratively; he just admits that he hasn't given Alyssa any reason to trust him by the end since he constantly manipulated her without telling her the truth about anything), which, kudos to that, I drink to a fucked up bitch who will at least admit to their nature. The rest of it was pretty standard procedure, which I didn't mind but which also didn't particularly stand out that well.
Slight spoiler, but is anyone else bothered by the hatred Jeb gets? No? Just me? Because damn if that boy doesn't get it from all sides. I agree that he's not the white knight Alyssa sometimes seems to think he is, and the way he's contrasted with Morpheus' obvious wickedness does him a lot of favours he doesn't entirely deserve, but am I really seeing people here saying Morpheus is better because "he at least believes Alyssa can handle herself"?? Excuse me, the main reason he tells her that is so she goes off and becomes Queen for his sake and does him all the favours in the goddamn world without knowing what he wants and what the price for that is?! How is that better than "Hey, so we're in Wonderland, this is fucked up, you're obviously not good at decision-making from my POV because all you do is head straight into danger without even telling me you have a plan, so I might want to protect you from yourself and the rest of the world because you give me no reason to believe you actually can handle yourself"-Jeb? In fact, how can no one see it's actually worse?
I'm not saying either of those guys is good for Alyssa and hey, I like unhealthy relationships in fiction as much as the next gal, especially when the trashy glittery asshole at least admits to being a trashy glittery asshole, but please don't pretend like you have the moral superiority with one ship when in fact, all the dude does is support a woman who does what he wants her to through subtle manipulation.
That is all
Now to the bit I did not like:
The mental illness "rep". I don't even want to call it that, sigh.
Basically, Alyssa's mother is in a mental institution practically from page 0, or even before that, since she's been institutionalised when Alyssa was very young. I say "mental institution"; the book calls it "local asylum".
:))
To make matters worse, Alyssa's visit is one of the most bizarre, irresponsible things this book has ever portrayed, and honestly more a horror-flick, Victorian-esque romanticised version of a mental institution (pardon: Asylum :)) ) than anything else. Wicked nurse with giant syringe, inscribed with the patient's name? Check. Letting the inmate dress like Alice in Wonderland, then leaving her unsupervised when she got in there in the first place because she hurt her daughter? Check. Using a straitjacket on her for multiple days in a row? Obviously.
Now I don't know if the author's intentions were ever to portray mental illness/institutions realistically. If yes, then she has failed, and dare I say in the most offensive way possible. If no, then at least she has not failed in doing what she wanted to do but it still doesn't sit right with me to use mental illness as a prop to make your story grittier or "weirder" for weirdness' sake. Please stop that.
If you intend on reading this book, please be aware of this - either because it might want to make you be careful reading through or because you need to understand that this kind of aesthetics~ shtick is seriously not a good look or move.
Splintered is a dark Alice in Wonderland retelling where our MC, Alyssa, learns that she has to venture into Wonderland to find a cure for her mother who's stuck in a mental institution (more about that later). She's accompanied by an old friend of hers, Jeb, who forms one end of the (rather predictable) love triangle (sadly, the two boys do not fall in love), and experiences various adventures in a rather fucked up version of Wonderland that reminded me of the game Alice: Madness Returns in that it takes things from the original book and cranks them up to the max when it comes to their eerie weirdness.
The setting itself was as bizarre as the premise promised (tho I have to say, the author definitely took more inspiration from the later Johnny Depp movie than the actual children's book. I'm not complaining per se, I'm just saying). The characters were... alright, tho I highly appreciated the fact that one of the love interests, Morpheus, at least calls himself the trash he is (figuratively; he just admits that he hasn't given Alyssa any reason to trust him by the end since he constantly manipulated her without telling her the truth about anything), which, kudos to that, I drink to a fucked up bitch who will at least admit to their nature. The rest of it was pretty standard procedure, which I didn't mind but which also didn't particularly stand out that well.
I'm not saying either of those guys is good for Alyssa and hey, I like unhealthy relationships in fiction as much as the next gal, especially when the trashy glittery asshole at least admits to being a trashy glittery asshole, but please don't pretend like you have the moral superiority with one ship when in fact, all the dude does is support a woman who does what he wants her to through subtle manipulation.
That is all
Now to the bit I did not like:
The mental illness "rep". I don't even want to call it that, sigh.
Basically, Alyssa's mother is in a mental institution practically from page 0, or even before that, since she's been institutionalised when Alyssa was very young. I say "mental institution"; the book calls it "local asylum".
:))
To make matters worse, Alyssa's visit is one of the most bizarre, irresponsible things this book has ever portrayed, and honestly more a horror-flick, Victorian-esque romanticised version of a mental institution (pardon: Asylum :)) ) than anything else. Wicked nurse with giant syringe, inscribed with the patient's name? Check. Letting the inmate dress like Alice in Wonderland, then leaving her unsupervised when she got in there in the first place because she hurt her daughter? Check. Using a straitjacket on her for multiple days in a row? Obviously.
Now I don't know if the author's intentions were ever to portray mental illness/institutions realistically. If yes, then she has failed, and dare I say in the most offensive way possible. If no, then at least she has not failed in doing what she wanted to do but it still doesn't sit right with me to use mental illness as a prop to make your story grittier or "weirder" for weirdness' sake. Please stop that.
If you intend on reading this book, please be aware of this - either because it might want to make you be careful reading through or because you need to understand that this kind of aesthetics~ shtick is seriously not a good look or move.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Forced institutionalization and Mental illness
Moderate: Bullying and Infidelity
_roctopus_'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
My feelings about this are... conflicted to say the least.
I absolutely love the world and the story and the twist that Alyssa is a descendant of the Red Queen (or Queen Red) and not Alice like she originally believed . I love the creepier side of Wonderland and the adventure Alyssa went on. These parts of the book made me want to give this 4 or 5 stars.
That being said, I hate the love triangle with every fiber of my being. Especially Jeb. I hate him.
minor to medium spoilers detailing why:
He is very controlling of Alyssa always trying to protect her even when she doesn't need to be. This isn't cute in this case because he holds her back from what she is trying to accomplish, sometimes literally. And what's even worse is that she views this as good and romantic, she calls him her knight in shining armor which (ignoring how cringy that is) is disgusting. Alyssa knows more of what to do in this world, but Jeb acts like she is a weak girl in need of protection that only he can provide. The most infuriating part is that SHE LETS HIM and thinks of him as her savior. Her biggest character development is when he is not there and she finally thinks and acts all by herself realizing she can save herself. But even then she is still constantly wishing he was there and I just *screams*. Now I'm not saying Morpheus is a great option and honestly Alyssa should ditch them both, but he is by far the better option because he actually believes she can take care of herself.
I can live with a love triangle (heck my one of my favorite types of books are YA dystopian novels so I'm used to love triangles), but I cannot deal with this Jeb crap. It's honestly so toxic and Morpheus even sometimes points it out and Alyssa still doesn't care. Needless to say, I will not be continuing with the series because I cannot deal with this nonsense even if the adventure and world are amazing.
I absolutely love the world and the story
That being said, I hate the love triangle with every fiber of my being. Especially Jeb. I hate him.
minor to medium spoilers detailing why:
He is very controlling of Alyssa always trying to protect her even when she doesn't need to be. This isn't cute in this case because he holds her back from what she is trying to accomplish, sometimes literally. And what's even worse is that she views this as good and romantic, she calls him her knight in shining armor which (ignoring how cringy that is) is disgusting. Alyssa knows more of what to do in this world, but Jeb acts like she is a weak girl in need of protection that only he can provide. The most infuriating part is that SHE LETS HIM and thinks of him as her savior. Her biggest character development is when he is not there and she finally thinks and acts all by herself realizing she can save herself. But even then she is still constantly wishing he was there and I just *screams*. Now I'm not saying Morpheus is a great option and honestly Alyssa should ditch them both, but he is by far the better option because he actually believes she can take care of herself.
I can live with a love triangle (heck my one of my favorite types of books are YA dystopian novels so I'm used to love triangles), but I cannot deal with this Jeb crap. It's honestly so toxic and Morpheus even sometimes points it out and Alyssa still doesn't care. Needless to say, I will not be continuing with the series because I cannot deal with this nonsense even if the adventure and world are amazing.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Torture, Sexism, Gore, Forced institutionalization, Emotional abuse, Confinement, Car accident, and Body horror