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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
Throughout the first section of the book, I honestly thought I was going to give the book two stars, for it's vague writing and it's totally horrendous take on the Oz story. Take for example this gem of a passage:
"...a million different liquids, big canisters heaping with I don't know what, and plants and herbs I didn't recognize. The light was dim, but warm and cozy, too."
Really paints a picture, right? Um, no.
Or this one:
"Her walls were covered with some type of white gold, which further intensified the glow."
Huh?
And the plot line - a trailer-park girl from Kansas, Amy, escapes her pill-popping, party-hard mom and deadbeat dad when her trailer is picked up a tornado and is deposited in Oz. But this Oz is different - the place is being sucked dry of magic by the evil Dorothy, who returned from Kansas because she wanted attention, enslaved Princess Ozma, allowed the Scarecrow to start doing human experiments on the good people of Oz, and just generally ruined things for everybody. The "wicked" witches join forces to dethrone the evil Dorothy and train Amy to be their secret weapon because... Dorothy Must Die.
I can't make this stuff up.
There's some really grisly stuff in here, too, which of course turned me off. Amy fights a pregnant teenager in the first chapter. The Cowardly lion tears off people's limbs and rips out someone's eyeball (and then eats it, if I'm remembering correctly - I was skimming at that point). The Scarecrow peels back his stuffing and has Amy, in the guise of a maid, inject his exposed brain with bodily fluids (ewwwwww). Necessary? I don't think so, but only because I've read YA that DOESN'T rely heavily on the violent/gross factor to characterize the antagonists as evil... but that's just me.
And just when I thought you couldn't salvage this train wreck - I became engrossed. The last 50 pages or so were pretty tense with great action, and I thoroughly enjoyed the reveal of who the mysterious "Pete" actually is and the reappearance of the Wizard. It barely elevated this one to a three star read and... dare I say... I really want to know what happens.
Damnit, do I have to read the sequel? Because - spoiler alert - even though the title is Dorothy MUST die... she doesn't.
THREE STARS.
"...a million different liquids, big canisters heaping with I don't know what, and plants and herbs I didn't recognize. The light was dim, but warm and cozy, too."
Really paints a picture, right? Um, no.
Or this one:
"Her walls were covered with some type of white gold, which further intensified the glow."
Huh?
And the plot line - a trailer-park girl from Kansas, Amy, escapes her pill-popping, party-hard mom and deadbeat dad when her trailer is picked up a tornado and is deposited in Oz. But this Oz is different - the place is being sucked dry of magic by the evil Dorothy, who returned from Kansas because she wanted attention, enslaved Princess Ozma, allowed the Scarecrow to start doing human experiments on the good people of Oz, and just generally ruined things for everybody. The "wicked" witches join forces to dethrone the evil Dorothy and train Amy to be their secret weapon because... Dorothy Must Die.
I can't make this stuff up.
There's some really grisly stuff in here, too, which of course turned me off. Amy fights a pregnant teenager in the first chapter. The Cowardly lion tears off people's limbs and rips out someone's eyeball (and then eats it, if I'm remembering correctly - I was skimming at that point). The Scarecrow peels back his stuffing and has Amy, in the guise of a maid, inject his exposed brain with bodily fluids (ewwwwww). Necessary? I don't think so, but only because I've read YA that DOESN'T rely heavily on the violent/gross factor to characterize the antagonists as evil... but that's just me.
And just when I thought you couldn't salvage this train wreck - I became engrossed. The last 50 pages or so were pretty tense with great action, and I thoroughly enjoyed the reveal of who the mysterious "Pete" actually is and the reappearance of the Wizard. It barely elevated this one to a three star read and... dare I say... I really want to know what happens.
Damnit, do I have to read the sequel? Because - spoiler alert - even though the title is Dorothy MUST die... she doesn't.
THREE STARS.
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I started this book just knowing that I’ve always loved all things Wizard of Oz, and I’m happy to report this book was a fantastic find.
Incredible twist on what happened to Oz after Dorothy left.. and then went back. Shocking ending that left in an unexpected cliffhanger too. But thankful the next book was immediately available for me to borrow.
Incredible twist on what happened to Oz after Dorothy left.. and then went back. Shocking ending that left in an unexpected cliffhanger too. But thankful the next book was immediately available for me to borrow.
overall a good story- but tough. I wanted to stop partway thru as it is hard when characters choose to do the wrong thing. considering the character it made sense.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Great read
A fun spin on the well known story. I really enjoyed every twist and turn that happened. I can’t wait to read the next one!
A fun spin on the well known story. I really enjoyed every twist and turn that happened. I can’t wait to read the next one!
If you like Wizard of Oz, you will absolutely love the twist of this book!
Clever, but way too long and I'm over Wizard of Oz adaptations
I've always loved Oz and its various retellings (Wicked is a favorite), so I was excited to jump into this one. It's pretty great! Amy is a fairly believable heroine, although it seems everyone has forgotten by about the midpoint that she's only a teenager. The twists and turns do a good job of moving you through the story, but at the end, I'm still not sure who to believe, which got a bit tiring. I'm looking forward to reading the next one, though!