Hey guys, this is Abi here,
And you must be bored stiff of reviews by this point, but I still have a lot to do!
But never fear, there's my March Wrap Up at the end of the week, and a new TBR on Monday, so you'll get a break then.
But right now, I'm reading so many amazing books that I have to share my thoughts on them!
Sorry.
Now, this next book had some hype, so I hope you enjoy it!
Title: The Hazel Wood
Author: Melissa Albert
Genre: Fantasy, fairytale retelling
Release date: 30th January, 2018
Status: Book 1 in the Hazel Wood duology/trilogy (don't know yet)
Pages: 355
Blurb: "Alice has spent most of her life on the road,
always one step ahead of the strange bad luck
biting at her heels. But when Alice's grandmother,
the reclusive author of a pitch-dark fairy tales,
dies alone on her isolated estate- the Hazel Wood-
Alice discovers how bad her luck can really get.
Her own mother is stolen away- by a figure who claims
to come from the supernatural world where the fairy tales
are set. Alice's only clue is the message left behind:
STAY AWAY FROM THE HAZEL WOOD.
To rescue her mother, Alice must venture first to
the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her
grandmother's tales began..."
My Thoughts
Now, I wasn't really going to pick this up when it came out, but it was on a deal in Tesco. So naturally, I bought it, because I was aware of the hype it was getting from Booktube.
Also, it seemed dark and creepy and something I would be able to fly through.
Once I got into it, it kind of was.
At the start, it was kind of a slow burner because, based on the premise, there was a lot of background to get through. But once we were through that, it got super super interesting! And it totally took me by surprise too!
Which is something that I like, There's nothing like the thrill of reading something normal (this book started off with a sort of contemporary feel) and then a man that hasn't aged in 10 years shows his face! (No more spoilers than that, I promise).
But that was something that was consistent- the fact that you think the book is going in one direction, and then it surprises you completely and goes into a completely different direction! That was something that I loved.
From the time that Alice tries to search for her mother, the story changes from kind of a contemporary read, it turns into a fairytale/ fantasy read, which made it super dark and creepy and I have to say that I relished that. What made it super dark and creepy was the description of the characters. I read this on the bus and whenever I was reading this and we went over a speed bump, I'd literally jump out of my skin! What also made it so creepy was that these creepy characters would show up in like broad daylight, which was concerning to say the least!
Next, the characters. I wasn't that keen on Alice. She was super hurtful to others all the way through the book. Granted, we find out why at some point, but it still doesn't mean we can forget that she was mean! It's still valid.
There were some characters that I did like, but I'm not going to go into detail about those because they're kind of spoilery.
Also, the book was so fast paced, sometimes it was hard to keep track of something. These parts were also kind of surreal, so that was one thing that made it hard to keep track of what was happening.
But that was my only critique, other than the Alice one.
Overall, this was a solid four star read! I'm glad I picked it up, and even though I can't think about what Melissa could do with a sequel, I'm still going to pick it up when it comes out!
So that's all I have for today!
I hope you enjoyed the review, and I will see you all on Wednesday, with my next review (I'm sorry!)
Anyway, I hope you have a wonderful day and I will see you then.
Goodbye!
-Abi xxxxxx
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