A review by lonaargh
The Complete Fifty Shades of Alice: A Fairy Tale for Adults by Melinda DuChamp

funny lighthearted fast-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? No

3.5

 

After finishing Fifty Shades of Alice in Wonderland by Melinda DuChamp, I wanted more. Barely five minutes after turning the last page of that tantalizing first book in the series, I had acquired The Complete Fifty Shades of Alice: A Fairy Tale for Adults, which is a bundle consisting of the Fifty Shades of Alice in Wonderland, Fifty Shades of Alice Through the Looking Glass and Fifty Shades of Alice at the HellFire Club.

With high expectations, I dived into the second and third books. 

And, as with the first book, it was filled with humor, familiar characters, pun, bad poetry and sex. There were a few typos, but not so many that it was a distraction. I loved the entire journey through all three books, from the ‘problem’ that Alice is presented with in the beginning and how she works it through (hah) to the end where she’s provided with a solution. The stories were imaginative and creative, making sure I wasn’t ever bored with the plot.

In book 2 Alice has broken up with Lewis because she caught him wearing her underwear and she concluded he must be gay. She magically travels back to Wonderland where the diverse cast of Carroll’s stories make their appearance once again and they all try to show Alice that she needs to be more open minded.

In book 3 Alice and Lewis are married and their marriage is in a slump. Lewis is back to his old 30 seconds of love making and Alice feels incredibly unsatisfied. In an attempt to spice up their marriage, Alice has arranged for them to be kidnapped to the Hellfire Club, where Lewis will be taught to last longer than 30 seconds and Alice will be taught to come quicker.

This trilogy has quickly climbed up to be one of my favourites. I do think, however, that the first book is the best of the three. The second and the third book are anything but subtle about the message they’re trying to convey. Granted, they weren’t even trying to be subtle, but after a few times it does become a little bit boring to read over and over again about how Alice should be more open minded in the second book. I’m a big fan of books that show us the message without explicitly telling it, and the Fifty Shades of Alice series has a tendency of both showing and telling, which is just a bit too much of a good thing. 

Still, I was not disappointed and my only major gripe with these three books is that they were too short altogether. Well done, I’ll put my grubby little hands on book #4 and #5 soon!