Scan barcode
ols_dove's review against another edition
3.0
Not as unique as the first book,
But still worth giving a look,
Was nice to pass time with before bed,
So it's three feathers for Seeing Redd.
But still worth giving a look,
Was nice to pass time with before bed,
So it's three feathers for Seeing Redd.
andiemags53's review against another edition
3.0
This was a good one. Not as good as the first. Plus I didnt realize until I was almost finished, that the 3rd and final book just barely came out. I don't want to buy it, and it may be awhile before its at the library. So now I'm a little bummed I can't finish it. I may just have to suck it up and buy the dang thing! I hate having to wait!!!
kberry513's review against another edition
4.0
This was a very enjoyable read, although I found it a little predictable at times. Specifically, the Molly/Hatter connection and Weaver's back-from-the-dead appearance were pretty predictable. That being said, the world-building in this series is incredible. Sometimes I find there are a few too many characters to keep track of, what with the various "bad guys" running about, but overall I find it to be a well thought out and imaginative reinventing of Alice in Wonderland.
stephxsu's review against another edition
4.0
The evil Redd Heart has disappeared into the Heart Crystal, and Alyss is now the rightful queen of Wonderland. But there is lots yet to be done: buildings to repair, morale to strengthen, relationships to mend… And Alyss is so busy with politics and using her White Imagination to make sure the queendom is running smoothly that she barely has any time to spend with Dodge, her best-friend-turned-true-love guardsman.
But people are not going to make her life as queen easy. King Arch of the neighboring kingdom Boarderland has some sinister plans up his sleeve. First he kidnaps Homburg Molly, Alyss’ teenage bodyguard; then he messes with the emotions of the best Milliner in all of history, Hatter Madigan, who is suddenly forced to decide between family and duty as he has never had to do before. All the while, Arch is planning the unleashing of a formidable weapon, one that, if properly completed, can wipe out the entire country of Wonderland and all surrounding countries.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, Redd is back, more dangerous and vengeful than ever. She is determined to complete her Looking Glass Maze, achieve the full potential of her imaginative powers, and reclaim Wonderland, destroying Alyss in the process. The giant army that converges upon Wonderland at the command of Redd and Arch seem on the path to the obliteration of Alyss’ world as she knows it. Is there anything to be done that can put off the seemingly inevitable end?
SEEING REDD has more sit-and-wait political discourses and emotional chapters than the first book in the trilogy. However, Redd’s villainy will be sure to keep fans attracted to this series. All the characters are wonderfully created, the world flawlessly imagined and detailed. This is a tale of high fantasy that you won’t want to miss.
But people are not going to make her life as queen easy. King Arch of the neighboring kingdom Boarderland has some sinister plans up his sleeve. First he kidnaps Homburg Molly, Alyss’ teenage bodyguard; then he messes with the emotions of the best Milliner in all of history, Hatter Madigan, who is suddenly forced to decide between family and duty as he has never had to do before. All the while, Arch is planning the unleashing of a formidable weapon, one that, if properly completed, can wipe out the entire country of Wonderland and all surrounding countries.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, Redd is back, more dangerous and vengeful than ever. She is determined to complete her Looking Glass Maze, achieve the full potential of her imaginative powers, and reclaim Wonderland, destroying Alyss in the process. The giant army that converges upon Wonderland at the command of Redd and Arch seem on the path to the obliteration of Alyss’ world as she knows it. Is there anything to be done that can put off the seemingly inevitable end?
SEEING REDD has more sit-and-wait political discourses and emotional chapters than the first book in the trilogy. However, Redd’s villainy will be sure to keep fans attracted to this series. All the characters are wonderfully created, the world flawlessly imagined and detailed. This is a tale of high fantasy that you won’t want to miss.
kitsuneheart's review against another edition
3.0
This book straddles the definition of sequel and prequel, and is very much mostly about setting up the conflict of the final book in the series. We get to know a bit more about the backstory of several characters, here: Hatter Madigan, Homburg Molly, Redd Heart, and even Bibwit Harte. We also see a bit more of the other nearby Kingdoms, and I have to admit, it's been several years since I read book 1, so I was kind of confused, not having recalled there even being other Kingdoms. And, to be honest, they feel like they're only there so Redd can have a place to gather an army without Alyss just running into a section of her own territory and taking her down. Damn foreign relations....
Our main characters aren't all that interesting, either. Redd is pure evil, Alyss is pure good. Alyss, being good royalty, is of course attracted to a morally upright but lineage unsuited soldier, and of course they'll get together, in the end. The other main villain we added is a total misogynist in a world run by women, and while I am very much a feminist, coding someone as evil is such a simple way feels cheap. A little more subtlety by the author would have been nice.... About the only interesting conflict we get here relates to Homburg Molly, and that's resolved so fast it's annoying.
Overall, which the author did do a lot to try and take the Carroll books and flesh them out into a more compelling storyline, it's just not a very interesting world. I am certainly going to finish the series, and do hope book 3 is a bit more compelling, but the "plot twists" in this book were pretty well expected, so there was no part of the book that really had me pausing in my audiobook listening and going "oh!" It was more like "yeah, okay." I dearly hope the conclusion gives me a few moments of at least an eyebrow raise.
Our main characters aren't all that interesting, either. Redd is pure evil, Alyss is pure good. Alyss, being good royalty, is of course attracted to a morally upright but lineage unsuited soldier, and of course they'll get together, in the end. The other main villain we added is a total misogynist in a world run by women, and while I am very much a feminist, coding someone as evil is such a simple way feels cheap. A little more subtlety by the author would have been nice.... About the only interesting conflict we get here relates to Homburg Molly, and that's resolved so fast it's annoying.
Overall, which the author did do a lot to try and take the Carroll books and flesh them out into a more compelling storyline, it's just not a very interesting world. I am certainly going to finish the series, and do hope book 3 is a bit more compelling, but the "plot twists" in this book were pretty well expected, so there was no part of the book that really had me pausing in my audiobook listening and going "oh!" It was more like "yeah, okay." I dearly hope the conclusion gives me a few moments of at least an eyebrow raise.
kelskekay's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
littleroseygirl's review against another edition
3.0
This one wasn't quite as engaging as the previous one, full review to come
lattelibrarian's review against another edition
4.0
Normally I’m more of a book person than audiobook person, but after a move and placing a hold at the library, this CD fell into my hands. But, that wasn’t going to stop me. Let me begin this review by saying that if I’m putting effort into finding my old library card so that I can finish a book I had only half-finished before moving back home after college, it’s a good book. Don’t let the rating fool you–this series is great. But, middle books will be middle books.
This book was a ride. Now that Alyss is being re-introduced to her kingdom, we are also being normal-introduced to the kingdom–and its neighbors. We discover characters who are thought to be dead, characters who are immoral, and characters unsure if what they’re doing is right. Now that this segment is done, I can’t wait to read what happens next!
(And, on another note–the CD was great! The reader was super funny and amicable.)
This book was a ride. Now that Alyss is being re-introduced to her kingdom, we are also being normal-introduced to the kingdom–and its neighbors. We discover characters who are thought to be dead, characters who are immoral, and characters unsure if what they’re doing is right. Now that this segment is done, I can’t wait to read what happens next!
(And, on another note–the CD was great! The reader was super funny and amicable.)
villianess's review against another edition
Redd Heart is working to retake the kingdom of Wonderland. Redd is an emeny to all, but not all think she can't be controlled. Redd returns to London to recruit an army to help her take back wonderland from Alice. Alice has problems of her own, a missing personal guard in Molly, an attack from an unknown enemy on wonderland, a murder attempt from the Heats and a surprise from Hatter.
tacochelle's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I've started so many series in my life, maybe read up to the second book if they're lucky, then get anxious about how it'll end and give it a break. This year, I want to finish as many series as possible, starting with The Looking Glass Wars book 2.
I read the first book back in high school, and I vaguely remember lagging in the middle when Alyss was stuck in London, before finally finishing the book when I was home sick. I really liked it then and gave it 5 stars, but I'm not sure I'd rate it the same now. Not gonna reread it, so many books so little time. This one has a plus that Hatter and Homburg Molly get a bigger focus, but the rest of the characters are rather flat. Their story is so much more interesting to me than the main one, and I feel like their characters show more growth than say Alyss and Dodge. The villains are very cartoonishly evil, which I can accept to a certain extent because the original villains of Alice in Wonderland were cartoony in the first place, it was intentionally absurd. But at times it was hard to take seriously, especially when this is supposed to be a darker, edgier version of the original story. King Arch's raging misogyny kinda stood out in this regard, if only because he's the only character that acts like that, to that extreme.
I read the first book back in high school, and I vaguely remember lagging in the middle when Alyss was stuck in London, before finally finishing the book when I was home sick. I really liked it then and gave it 5 stars, but I'm not sure I'd rate it the same now. Not gonna reread it, so many books so little time. This one has a plus that Hatter and Homburg Molly get a bigger focus, but the rest of the characters are rather flat. Their story is so much more interesting to me than the main one, and I feel like their characters show more growth than say Alyss and Dodge. The villains are very cartoonishly evil, which I can accept to a certain extent because the original villains of Alice in Wonderland were cartoony in the first place, it was intentionally absurd. But at times it was hard to take seriously, especially when this is supposed to be a darker, edgier version of the original story. King Arch's raging misogyny kinda stood out in this regard, if only because he's the only character that acts like that, to that extreme.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny, Kidnapping, Gore, Murder, War, Violence, Death of parent, and Sexism