Reviews with content warning for Cursing - The Hazel Wood

I was right. From the first page, I knew this would end up as a four-star read for me. If I hadn't been interrupted by a birth and the need to sleep, I would have finished it in one sitting.

Haunting, flowery, vivid, beautiful, tense, sad, and unexpected, The Hazel Wood is everything a real fairy tale should be. Everything.

It's a bittersweet story flecked with horror and light. All at once hopeful and terrible, it's the kind of mixed-up that reflects real life and dreams and all the things we long for and fear.

It belongs in the same tanks as Coraline and The Ocean at the End of the Lane. One foot on Earth, the other among the fae.

I loved it.

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starligh_314's review against another edition

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taural41's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-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? Yes

3.5

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angeldevoursliterature's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.5

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billievee's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I'll get my one quibble out of the way:

I could see the big reveal coming a mile away, and it started to get annoying when the main character couldn't put two and two together.

That said, this is a very enjoyable read, and oh my gosh... I am in LOVE with Melissa Albert's writing style, especially when we get to the Hinterlands. She paints a vivid picture of a strange, dreamlike world, both awe-inspiring and terrifying at the same time. I only hope I can write half this well someday.

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digerbop's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

A beautifully dark faerie tale. If you've ever wanted to fall into a faerie tale, discovering the lore of a new universe, this story is for you. Full of whimsically dark characters. The overarching larger story is about a girl discovering herself, her past, and choosing her future.

Starts out as less exciting than that. Classic new girl at a new school with teenage problems, which is less of a bother to the story as it sounds, because it's not a large focus, but is simply used as a vehicle to add some backstory and dress setting. It could have been executed better in the beginning, as it starts a bit slow and stilted, but eventually the story comes out and everything happens so fast and magical. Looking forward to more stories in this world.

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sunnydale's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

As someone who loves fairy tales and fairy tale scholarship, I felt so seen. Beneath the story, which was compelling on its own, was the author's clear understanding of why we tell fairy tales and why they hold power over us.

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krhea's review against another edition

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adventurous dark slow-paced

Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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