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celsius273's review
3.0
The latest installment in the Dorothy Must Die prequel novellas, this third collection tells the tale of Lanadel and how she came to be part of an integral part of the order, Polychrome and her interactions with Dorothy, and Mombi and her story and Pete's became inextricably combined. I think my favorite has to be Lanadel's, but on the whole these were all enjoyable and a really nice fleshing out of the world that Paige has built through all the books and all the novellas.
Again, the first story is of Lanadel and her training with the order and all the things she discovers. However it's not just about her learning to use weapons and magic, what was nice about this story was the way that through her eyes - that of someone living outside of the Emerald City - how Dorothy's actions are impacting all of Oz. Things that happen in this story are alluded to in the main series and in that way, I think this story did what a novella should do - elaborate on a small part of the main series that seems interesting. We get insight into many members of the order - Knox, the witches, the various warriors - especially the way they act and react to each other and just the general dynamic of the order when it's in it's fledgling stages. Perhaps it's not the most happy story, but nonetheless I really enjoyed it.
The second story was about Polychrome and what led her to move Rainbow Falls into the clouds. Essentially, Dorothy breezes in with a nice girl act and Polychrome initially falls for it but eventually shit goes down and the eventual result is the hiding away of Rainbow Falls. We get fun glimpses of Heathcliff and a strange introduction to Bright and while the story overall felt a bit simple and unorganized, it ended up being enjoyable in the end.
The last story was perhaps the most interesting Mombi perhaps was a character that we barely got to learn about in the main series. We learn about how she wants badly to be a witch and how on that quest, she gets tasked with taking care of a boy named Pete. I guess this story is as much about Pete as it is about Mombi and in that vein he gets a chapter of narration where we get to see his oppressive life under Mombi and what he does to live his own life. This was a better novella than Polychrome's but I didn't feel the same connection as I did with Lanadel's, but by no means was it bad.
Really, all of these novellas are nice because they give the little glimpses into the original series that I like yet they are also their own story - kind of like how there were many Oz books beyond Dorothy's original visit. I don't know if there will be more, I'm not exactly sure where the author can pull more stories out, but if there will be, I'm sure you will find me reading them.
Again, the first story is of Lanadel and her training with the order and all the things she discovers. However it's not just about her learning to use weapons and magic, what was nice about this story was the way that through her eyes - that of someone living outside of the Emerald City - how Dorothy's actions are impacting all of Oz. Things that happen in this story are alluded to in the main series and in that way, I think this story did what a novella should do - elaborate on a small part of the main series that seems interesting. We get insight into many members of the order - Knox, the witches, the various warriors - especially the way they act and react to each other and just the general dynamic of the order when it's in it's fledgling stages. Perhaps it's not the most happy story, but nonetheless I really enjoyed it.
The second story was about Polychrome and what led her to move Rainbow Falls into the clouds. Essentially, Dorothy breezes in with a nice girl act and Polychrome initially falls for it but eventually shit goes down and the eventual result is the hiding away of Rainbow Falls. We get fun glimpses of Heathcliff
Spoiler
and a surprising reveal that he actually has powersThe last story was perhaps the most interesting Mombi perhaps was a character that we barely got to learn about in the main series. We learn about how she wants badly to be a witch and how on that quest, she gets tasked with
Spoiler
housing OzmaReally, all of these novellas are nice because they give the little glimpses into the original series that I like yet they are also their own story - kind of like how there were many Oz books beyond Dorothy's original visit. I don't know if there will be more, I'm not exactly sure where the author can pull more stories out, but if there will be, I'm sure you will find me reading them.
saffigon's review
3.0
MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!
Cursing is heavy in this review.
This bind-up isn't bad. It is the second best.
Order of the Wicked:
This follows Lanadel. That's both good and bad. Lanadel goes through the same training Amy did. It's the same damn thing. The only difference is that she isn't the chosen one. There's just a lot of fucking drama. I didn't like dealing with the drama. But we got to see more on a character we didn't know a lot about. That's all I got for this novella. I didn't love it. I didn't hate it.
Dark Side of the Rainbow:
I liked seeing Polychrome in her home environment. The relationship between Bright and Poly develops in this novella. I love those two together. Then, Dorothy comes in and does some shit. She's annoying, she's bratty, she's bitchy. Overall, she's a nuisance. She ruins some shit for Poly, and that's it. I really liked this novella. It sounds bad, but I make it sound worse than it really is.
The Queen of Oz:
This story is okay. We get to see how Pete becomes Ozma and how Pete became gay. That's it. That's the story. Again, I make it sound worse than it really is. It was a decent novella. It wasn't horrible and was actually quite interesting and answered a bunch of questions.
Cursing is heavy in this review.
This bind-up isn't bad. It is the second best.
Order of the Wicked:
This follows Lanadel. That's both good and bad. Lanadel goes through the same training Amy did. It's the same damn thing. The only difference is that she isn't the chosen one. There's just a lot of fucking drama. I didn't like dealing with the drama. But we got to see more on a character we didn't know a lot about. That's all I got for this novella. I didn't love it. I didn't hate it.
Dark Side of the Rainbow:
I liked seeing Polychrome in her home environment. The relationship between Bright and Poly develops in this novella. I love those two together. Then, Dorothy comes in and does some shit. She's annoying, she's bratty, she's bitchy. Overall, she's a nuisance. She ruins some shit for Poly, and that's it. I really liked this novella. It sounds bad, but I make it sound worse than it really is.
The Queen of Oz:
This story is okay. We get to see how Pete becomes Ozma and how Pete became gay. That's it. That's the story. Again, I make it sound worse than it really is. It was a decent novella. It wasn't horrible and was actually quite interesting and answered a bunch of questions.
bri_morgan's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
brii_brii's review against another edition
challenging
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
deanie's review
4.0
The first set of prequels was quite interesting, dealing with Dorothy, the Wizard, and the immediate aftermath of their actions in the Wizard of Oz books/movie. The second set, about the Cowardly Lion, Scarecrow and Tin Man were good if a little repetitive. By focusing on other supporting characters in a way that creates dramatically different plots, this series is fresh and wonderful.
silkcaramel's review against another edition
3.0
“Unchecked anger is a dangerous place from which to draw your magic. It’s difficult to control. It can consume you totally, transform you into something else. Someone you don’t recognize.”This was my least favorite of the short stories volume because it felt like almost none of it complemented the main story or added anything to it. Polychrome's story was my absolute favorite and though it added little to the main plot, it served to expand the universe and Poly is a very interesting and fun character to follow. I wish she would've been better utilized in the novels, I felt like we've seen too little of her.
The second story, while it could've been interesting since it focused on the Order on its early stages, had two major problems: the main character of the story, who was a whiny, annoying thing, and Nox, who was his usual entitled and brooding (not in a good way) self. There were some hints about some possible plotlines later on, and we might see the MC from this story again, but apart from that, this was really expendable.
The third and last short started out really interesting - we see Mombi first realizing that something was going on with Oz, how she came to take care of Ozma and how Ozma was hidden all these years. But the second part had the same issue than the previous novel did - an annoying MC. And while it did explain some things we saw in book two, there were a lot more left unanswered and it was just an ok prequel. As I said, all in all, none of these added much into the main novels and though some of them were interesting and had bits that made me understand some characters better, I could've done without it.
lizbethandthelifeinbetween's review
2.0
2.5
These stories really did not do it for me. I remember getting very disillusioned with the last books in the franchise when I realized I had to read the novellas to understand a couple of the characters and I do carry a grudge for that, especially because all of Paige's other ebooks serves to complement the series they are from. I still much prefer the two companion books to [b:Stealing Snow|28260524|Stealing Snow (Stealing Snow, #1)|Danielle Paige|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1453999507l/28260524._SY75_.jpg|44880721] than to this series. These three were the weakest links, as for the most part they did not bring anything new or interesting to the story. Also, it has been a very long time since I read the books and these ebooks are basically like missing chapter segments from the books, not a companion.
These stories really did not do it for me. I remember getting very disillusioned with the last books in the franchise when I realized I had to read the novellas to understand a couple of the characters and I do carry a grudge for that, especially because all of Paige's other ebooks serves to complement the series they are from. I still much prefer the two companion books to [b:Stealing Snow|28260524|Stealing Snow (Stealing Snow, #1)|Danielle Paige|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1453999507l/28260524._SY75_.jpg|44880721] than to this series. These three were the weakest links, as for the most part they did not bring anything new or interesting to the story. Also, it has been a very long time since I read the books and these ebooks are basically like missing chapter segments from the books, not a companion.
kelli7990's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
relaxing
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Here’s what this book is about:”Before Amy Gumm lands in Oz in Dorothy Must Die, Dorothy Gale rules a twisted land where the Good have become truly Wicked—and it’s up to the Wicked to stop her reign. Follow your favorite witches from Dorothy Must Die as they form an elusive, secretive group known as the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked and begin training their own army to defeat Dorothy. If the Order wants to save Oz, they’ll need every recruit they can find. But who has what it takes to join the cause?”
I listened to this on Scribd. I really enjoyed this short story collection. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
I listened to this on Scribd. I really enjoyed this short story collection. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of the series.