saskiajva's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The author has created an incredibly intriguing world full of mysteries and surprises. It starts pretty slow in my opinion but really ramps up by the last 100 pages and is overall worth the read!
Spoiler
I was surprised that the characters spent the majority of the book in New York trying to prove this world even existed. I almost stopped reading around page 200 when they hadn’t gotten to the actual fairy tale world yet, but around page 220 or so the book kicked into high gear and didn’t stop until the very end. I’m glad i stuck it out and the book was worth the read, though i would’ve loved to have gotten to spend more time inside the magical Hinterland as it’s truly the most spectacular writing. The set up did pay off well though, so trust the author and enjoy the read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Racism, Murder, Body horror, and Gore
Moderate: Suicide and Gun violence
Minor: Alcohol
jblovegood's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
It's an interesting concept, though some of the story beats didn't fully make sense to me and the character development didn't feel very compelling. I still enjoyed it, but think it could have been done better.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse, Child death, Death, Gore, Injury/injury detail, Murder, Blood, Child abuse, and Body horror
parchmentandflour's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Spoiler
Hazel Wood was an interesting take on fairytales and what it means when they come to life. Alice was a flawed main character, and while I mostly enjoyed following her story - some of the plot points were rushed and confused.The twist in the middle of the book did not get the proper time dedicated to it and then from there the characters were thrown aside and not really ever explained again.
I liked the world-building but I think it could have used a bit more exploration. It was a pretty short book, so adding additional chapters to build up the plot, especially in the second half of the book.
So, 3/5 and I would probably pick up the sequel in the future in hopes of getting the exploration I wanted from this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, and Death
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Kidnapping
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