Review: Splintered by A.G. Howard

Title: Splintered

Series: Splintered #1

Author: A.G. Howard

Genre: YA, fantasy, retelling

Publication date: January 1st, 2013

Published by: Amulet Books

Source: the publishers via Netgalley (Thanks!)

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Buy it: Amazon | Book Depository

Synopsis:

This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence.

Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now.

When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.

My rating: ★★★★★
So, I never read the original "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," so all I had to go on was the old Disney cartoon and Tim Burton's movie (which I love!) And what did I think about this book?? Well, I thought it was awesome! It was a very interesting and cool take on the original with a very dark twist. It was almost like a the horror movie version Alice in Wonderland playing in my head! That's how dark and creepy it was! But guess what...I LOVE horror so I loved that about the book! I wouldn't dub this book horror, per se, though, because it wasn't. It's just the scenes and the creatures that played in my head that were uber creepy.

Talking about twists...there was a twist at the end of the book that I did not see coming! It was pretty...wow. And I love surprises!

As for the main character herself, Alyssa was a very strong, if not a little curious ;) But all humans are curious by nature, right? She was a bit stubborn too, but I really liked her. I thought she was a great character, and quite relatable, too. And then there's Jeb...gods, he was HOT-MAZING! I adored him and how sweet and protective he was! Morpheus though, he frustrated me sometimes. Don't you just hate it when a guy makes you swoon and then 3 seconds later you just feel like punching him in the throat? Yep, that was my problem with him. And if you must know, I am officially on Team Jeb ;)

Last words: It was a fantastic read and I recommend to those who are fans of Alice in Wonderland (like I am) or just plainly love retellings. One things for sure though: You will never see Alice in Wonderland the same way again.

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think about it? If not, what do you think? Does it sound like something you might want to read? Leave me a comment! :)