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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
Splintered, the modern retelling of Alice in Wonderland with many new takes on familiar characters, started out well, the first few pages are interesting and engaging and I loved the idea. Then it all goes to hell in a handbasket never to resume scheduled programming.
I could rant about everything that was wrong with it, instead I will make a handy bulleted list
• The beginning was good but it gradually got more and more dull until by the end I was forcing myself to finished it
• Jeb. Jeb is an utter tool and completely writing him out of the book would have made it 100% better. He's so controlling it borders on abuse. At one point Alyssa apologises for thinking
• Everything is a test. 'You thought you had to do this to break the curse but that was a test! *later* That test was also a test, this is the real test!' and so on. By the end I didn't believe anything was real. At one point it may also have been a dream.
• Constantly contradicting itself, a lot of people in this book had difficult childhoods but *spoiler alert* Jeb is the only one allowed to use it as an excuse for being a terrible person
• It tries waaaay too hard. Alyssa might as well just wear a sticker that says 'look how different I am, dammit!' I get it, she wears faux dreadlocks, she didn't invent them, calm down.
• So much cheese. So much eye rolling induced 'Be my skatergirl again' is just awful. Might as well have written 'Sk8r Gurrrrl'
• Alyssa kills beetles, bugs and butterflies to shut them up but when other things kill them she can't bear the dying screams. Not an animal lover just a really possessive insect murderer
• Speaking of bugs and insects, Howard researched Wonderland in depth but didn't bother to google how long moths actually live or the differences between moths and butterflies. I don't need an appendix on the zoological facts but any research would have been good
• Also, in research, I know this is a fantastical work of fiction but Alison's mental illness is caused by a curse and she lives in an asylum sometimes in a strait jacket. Not an accurate or healthy portrayal of mental illness
• Alyssa makes about 5 decisions, everything else happens to her or someone tells her what to do. Weak
• Morpheus is much better than Jeb, he's more interesting, he lets Alyssa make her own decisions and learn from her mistakes but Jeb is portrayed as the good guy even though he's just awful. I can't stand love triangles, especially ones where it's implied that cheating is fine as long as you cheat with your soul mate. No it's not, be a better human
• And finally, being with someone out of pity isn't respect: Jeb, you're a terrible fictional person
I could rant about everything that was wrong with it, instead I will make a handy bulleted list
• The beginning was good but it gradually got more and more dull until by the end I was forcing myself to finished it
• Jeb. Jeb is an utter tool and completely writing him out of the book would have made it 100% better. He's so controlling it borders on abuse. At one point Alyssa apologises for thinking
• Everything is a test. 'You thought you had to do this to break the curse but that was a test! *later* That test was also a test, this is the real test!' and so on. By the end I didn't believe anything was real. At one point it may also have been a dream.
• Constantly contradicting itself, a lot of people in this book had difficult childhoods but *spoiler alert* Jeb is the only one allowed to use it as an excuse for being a terrible person
• It tries waaaay too hard. Alyssa might as well just wear a sticker that says 'look how different I am, dammit!' I get it, she wears faux dreadlocks, she didn't invent them, calm down.
• So much cheese. So much eye rolling induced 'Be my skatergirl again' is just awful. Might as well have written 'Sk8r Gurrrrl'
• Alyssa kills beetles, bugs and butterflies to shut them up but when other things kill them she can't bear the dying screams. Not an animal lover just a really possessive insect murderer
• Speaking of bugs and insects, Howard researched Wonderland in depth but didn't bother to google how long moths actually live or the differences between moths and butterflies. I don't need an appendix on the zoological facts but any research would have been good
• Also, in research, I know this is a fantastical work of fiction but Alison's mental illness is caused by a curse and she lives in an asylum sometimes in a strait jacket. Not an accurate or healthy portrayal of mental illness
• Alyssa makes about 5 decisions, everything else happens to her or someone tells her what to do. Weak
• Morpheus is much better than Jeb, he's more interesting, he lets Alyssa make her own decisions and learn from her mistakes but Jeb is portrayed as the good guy even though he's just awful. I can't stand love triangles, especially ones where it's implied that cheating is fine as long as you cheat with your soul mate. No it's not, be a better human
• And finally, being with someone out of pity isn't respect: Jeb, you're a terrible fictional person
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
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: Animal cruelty, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Death, Violence
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love love LOVE retelling of fairy tales/classical stories and this one was quite cool.
Let's start with the points that I liked less : the writing wasn't the best (I'm generally not a fan of the present tense, especially combined with the 1st person narration, and this book was not the exception to my rule) and I was not convinced by the love triangle. One of the possibilities was obviously manipulative (and the author did not, in my opinion, manage to convey to us WHY Alyssa wouldn't see him as such - the childhood link was not used as well as it could have been), and the other one clearly infuriating as he kept making decisions for her. So nope, not a fan here, and if this series is to continue I seriously hope we'll get a better alternative for our heroine.
What I did like though ? The whole atmosphere. A.G. Howard did not hesitate to go (even) darker in her descriptions of Wonderland, and the twists given to the original story are really well thought. The storyline itself was also well managed (aside from the romance).
Did it blow my mind ? No. Did it make me want to read more ? Yes. Would I have given it 3.5 stars had I the possibility to do so ? Certainly (but 4 stars would really be too much for me) !
Let's start with the points that I liked less : the writing wasn't the best (I'm generally not a fan of the present tense, especially combined with the 1st person narration, and this book was not the exception to my rule) and I was not convinced by the love triangle. One of the possibilities was obviously manipulative (and the author did not, in my opinion, manage to convey to us WHY Alyssa wouldn't see him as such - the childhood link was not used as well as it could have been), and the other one clearly infuriating as he kept making decisions for her. So nope, not a fan here, and if this series is to continue I seriously hope we'll get a better alternative for our heroine.
What I did like though ? The whole atmosphere. A.G. Howard did not hesitate to go (even) darker in her descriptions of Wonderland, and the twists given to the original story are really well thought. The storyline itself was also well managed (aside from the romance).
Did it blow my mind ? No. Did it make me want to read more ? Yes. Would I have given it 3.5 stars had I the possibility to do so ? Certainly (but 4 stars would really be too much for me) !
Español:
Este libro sinceramente me encantó ( como bien lo dice su calificación). Simplemente sentí que algunas escenas estaban demás, cómo las escenas de la relación de Jeb y Ali, le sacaría alrededor de 70/80 páginas al libro. Por lo demás me parece un buen libro juvenil y un buen reteling. Además cabe aclarar que soy la fan númmero 1 de "Alicia en el país de las maravillas" y si algo tiene relación a esa novela LO COMPRO.
Retomando el tema de la novela, me gustó muchísimo y noo puedo esperar a tener el segundo tomo de la triología, "Delirios" en mis manos.
English:
I honestly loved this book (as its rating clearly indicates). I just felt like a few scenes had come out, how the scenes from Jeb and Ali's relationship.
I would take approximately 70/80 pages of the book. For the rest, I think it is a good youth book and a good retelling. It is also worth clarifying that I am the number 1 fan of "Alice in Wonderland" and if there is anything related to that novel, I BUY it.
Returning to the subject of the novel, I really liked it and can't wait to have the second volume of the trilogy, "Deranged" in my hands.
Este libro sinceramente me encantó ( como bien lo dice su calificación). Simplemente sentí que algunas escenas estaban demás, cómo las escenas de la relación de Jeb y Ali, le sacaría alrededor de 70/80 páginas al libro. Por lo demás me parece un buen libro juvenil y un buen reteling. Además cabe aclarar que soy la fan númmero 1 de "Alicia en el país de las maravillas" y si algo tiene relación a esa novela LO COMPRO.
Retomando el tema de la novela, me gustó muchísimo y noo puedo esperar a tener el segundo tomo de la triología, "Delirios" en mis manos.
English:
I honestly loved this book (as its rating clearly indicates). I just felt like a few scenes had come out, how the scenes from Jeb and Ali's relationship.
I would take approximately 70/80 pages of the book. For the rest, I think it is a good youth book and a good retelling. It is also worth clarifying that I am the number 1 fan of "Alice in Wonderland" and if there is anything related to that novel, I BUY it.
Returning to the subject of the novel, I really liked it and can't wait to have the second volume of the trilogy, "Deranged" in my hands.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
4.5 I loved the characters and storyline just wish it wasn’t so focused on the love story more on the adventure. But a really good read.
I finished this about five minutes ago and it took me that long to realize that I love this book so much. There wasn't one thing that I didn't love about it and it made me laugh and breathe heavily from page one. The love interests are so mesmerizing in every way (so far, I'm team Morpheus just because). It is now in my favorites and I'm excited to start the second one. :)