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blairfrank's review against another edition
3.0
This rating was particular difficult. I wanted to like this book so much more than I did. I hated the main character. She is weak, boring, and is consistently looking for a pity party from any interactions. I love Wizard of Oz. I love the idea of this, but not the follow through.
cutenanya's review against another edition
4.0
Seems like readers on Goodreads have split opinions on this book, with some (including myself) liking it, and others finding it disappointing. I personally like this book because I am a huge fan of the Wizard of Oz and I really liked Dorothy, her companions, and the song Over the Rainbow. In this book, Paige returned the kingdom of Oz to its dystopian state by introducing an evil version of Dorothy and her companions.
Some scenes in this book are gruesome bordering grotesque but I like it. Since this is the beginning of a series, I feel there is not enough world building and characterization. Amy's relationship with the Order, Knox and the Wizard is barely touched on and the romance ... sorry, don't buy it as I don't even know where the heck have they got the time to even have feelings for each other. Luckily, the poor romantic plot only has a very small space in this novel and the rest is enjoyable. I am looking forward to the next installment and hopefully we'll get answers to some of the questions as some authors tend to put forward too many questions in the beginning and fail to address all of them in the later novels.
Spoiler
The once sweet country girl is now a murderous princess who is addicted to the drug called "magic", the scare crow is freaking the brains out of the people with his gruesome experiments, the tin man falls victim to a twisted and unrequited love, and the once cowardice lion is now sucking the fear out of all the creatures in Oz.Some scenes in this book are gruesome bordering grotesque but I like it. Since this is the beginning of a series, I feel there is not enough world building and characterization. Amy's relationship with the Order, Knox and the Wizard is barely touched on and the romance ... sorry, don't buy it as I don't even know where the heck have they got the time to even have feelings for each other. Luckily, the poor romantic plot only has a very small space in this novel and the rest is enjoyable. I am looking forward to the next installment and hopefully we'll get answers to some of the questions as some authors tend to put forward too many questions in the beginning and fail to address all of them in the later novels.
amandalang03's review against another edition
dark
tense
fast-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
4.25
harleyrae's review against another edition
3.0
This book was certainly interesting, while its not my favorite retelling type book I've ever read, I'm certainly interested in seeing what will happen later on. Hopefully I'll be able to get to the next books soon!
linzthebookworm's review against another edition
4.0
I'm a sucker for anything that has to do with the Wizard of Oz, and I felt like Dorothy Must Die was not only a great homage to the Wizard of Oz but also an entertaining retelling of it. I think like anything there are pros and cons to this book. The cons for me were that Amy's background story was a little cliche and I wasn't blown away by the writing. The pros, however, way overshadowed the cons though. I was incredibly entertained by Danielle Paige's version of the Wizard of Oz where good and wicked aren't what they seem. I couldn't put it down. If you are looking for a fun spin on a classic, then check this out. I'll definitely be reading more of the series!
Check out my full review: https://linzthebookworm.blogspot.com/2019/01/book-review-of-dorothy-must-die-by-danielle-paige.html
Check out my full review: https://linzthebookworm.blogspot.com/2019/01/book-review-of-dorothy-must-die-by-danielle-paige.html
dilchh's review against another edition
4.0
I made the mistake of reading through the comments once I finished the book. I was not aware of any of the 'drama' that surrounds this book (be it the Full Fathom Five or the Kathleen Hale incident or the whatnots). I have to admit that at first it did cloud my judgement about this book, but then regardless of it all I have to be able to be objective of this book, and I have to say I did enjoy this book a lot. I also have to be honest, I never knew the complete story of The Wizard of Oz, for I have never grew up with that story but I know enough to actually keep up with the dark retellings of the story.
I love how it chose to give a darker shade of what was a cheerful and colourful children's story and although I couldn't even imagine Dorothy being the bitch that she supposedly was, as the story progress Dorothy sort of fits the bitch personality that she is. Amy Gumm as the main protagonist might not be likable instantly, but she grew on you. The fact that she was not your typical heroine makes it more likable, at least for me. And although there was definitely a possible love line between Amy and Nox, I like the fact that it never grew instantly into love and more like exploring Amy's own curiosity over Nox (such as whether or not that she likes him or that she looks up to him in this so called mission to kill Dorothy).
I do agree that the plot grew slower as the story progress, and I was a bit disappointed that Gert dies the first time around while I was sorta hoping that she would held a more important role seeing that she used to be the Good Witch from the North, but hopefully there will be a better filler in the next book. I was also very disappointed that it took as little effort as Amy could come up with to actually kill the Tin Man; I do admit that she had already gone through so much to actually finally killing one of Dorothy's henchmen, but come on, it has to be more than that, right? Not to mention, I was kinda hoping that the Tin Man would not be the first one to be killed considering that he had a love interest for Dorothy, maybe he could have hold a more important role for Dorothy? But then again, seeing that the Lion killed Gert and the Scarecrow abused Maude and turned Jellia into a living corpse, maybe there's a reason they are not the first ones to be killed, probably the author was waiting for an epic battle between Amy and the two of them.
Though the writings were a bit messy at times for my liking, I can brush it aside seeing that it pays it back with a very nice twist and story, hopefully the second book will be better.
I love how it chose to give a darker shade of what was a cheerful and colourful children's story and although I couldn't even imagine Dorothy being the bitch that she supposedly was, as the story progress Dorothy sort of fits the bitch personality that she is. Amy Gumm as the main protagonist might not be likable instantly, but she grew on you. The fact that she was not your typical heroine makes it more likable, at least for me. And although there was definitely a possible love line between Amy and Nox, I like the fact that it never grew instantly into love and more like exploring Amy's own curiosity over Nox (such as whether or not that she likes him or that she looks up to him in this so called mission to kill Dorothy).
I do agree that the plot grew slower as the story progress, and I was a bit disappointed that Gert dies the first time around while I was sorta hoping that she would held a more important role seeing that she used to be the Good Witch from the North, but hopefully there will be a better filler in the next book. I was also very disappointed that it took as little effort as Amy could come up with to actually kill the Tin Man; I do admit that she had already gone through so much to actually finally killing one of Dorothy's henchmen, but come on, it has to be more than that, right? Not to mention, I was kinda hoping that the Tin Man would not be the first one to be killed considering that he had a love interest for Dorothy, maybe he could have hold a more important role for Dorothy? But then again, seeing that the Lion killed Gert and the Scarecrow abused Maude and turned Jellia into a living corpse, maybe there's a reason they are not the first ones to be killed, probably the author was waiting for an epic battle between Amy and the two of them.
Though the writings were a bit messy at times for my liking, I can brush it aside seeing that it pays it back with a very nice twist and story, hopefully the second book will be better.
midici's review against another edition
2.0
There's a girl from Kansas with a small animal companion, who gets stuck in a twister and wakes up in a magical land. Her name is not Dorothy. And it becomes immediately apparent that there is something very wrong with Oz.
I think I like the idea of this plot a lot more than the execution. Dorothy finds life back home very boring, and discovers a way back to Oz. She soon takes control, turning the land into some sort of tyrannical nightmare. A heroine has to fight a Dorothy the dark witch, her Tin Man, Lion, and Scarecrow - it's a good tag line. But Amy is not a very coherent character. I wasn't super impressed with any of the characters really. And the gore seemed to be a bit over the top. I won't be reading the other two books in this trilogy.
I think I like the idea of this plot a lot more than the execution. Dorothy finds life back home very boring, and discovers a way back to Oz. She soon takes control, turning the land into some sort of tyrannical nightmare. A heroine has to fight a Dorothy the dark witch, her Tin Man, Lion, and Scarecrow - it's a good tag line. But Amy is not a very coherent character. I wasn't super impressed with any of the characters really. And the gore seemed to be a bit over the top. I won't be reading the other two books in this trilogy.
allibug26's review against another edition
5.0
It's wild reading about some of the most wholesome characters ever, who I used to imagine as my friends, being the most evil monsters wreaking havoc on Oz. The story is so engaging and is one I think about when I'm not reading it. Some things I wish the author had done more explaining or world-building for, instead of "somehow..." things happening so often. Still, this is one of my fave YA series. The characters are interesting and it's so captivating seeing another take on OZ.