Dark and delicious this gorgeously written story accomplished what few books have, it surprised me and did not go where I expected it was leading. Incredibly engaging and creative it is full of wonderful descriptions and homages to fairy/folk tales and other literary greats. It feels both exciting and new, yet familiar and comforting, like a blanket constructed from your old t-shirts.

Alice and her mother, Ella, have been moving around since she can remember. They stay in one place only so long and then Ella says it is time to move again. Alice feels this is a normal way to live. She is aware that she has a grandmother, Althea, who she has never met, but other than that she knows of no other family. When Alice was younger, she was "abducted" by the redhaired man who told her he was taking her to meet her grandmother, Althea. She was not with him for long and she often dreamed he might have been her real father taking her on an adventure. She lived to "live" inside her daydreams. One day, Ella receives a letter stating Althea has passed away. Ella tells Alice they are now free. Free from what she does not understand. Soon after, Alice sees the redhaired man in the coffee shop where she is employed. She tries to follow him, but loses him. Soon after Ella is abducted. With the help of her friends Ellery Finch, she begins her adventure to Hazel Wood to locate her mother. I am not going to say more about the story from this point as this is where it really gets good!! This book is about the darker side of fairy tales. While many fairy tale retellings are being published at this time, this is not a retelling. This is a new fairytale and a whole new take on the genre. I totally loved this story and give it a 4.5 rounded to 5 stars.

What a awesome book. The storyline was complex and still easy to follow. Usually I have YA fantasy storylines figured out half way through the book but congratulations you had me fooled. The characters were well thought out and relatable. Would recommend this book to persons that enjoy fantasy set in modern times.

Alice Prosperpine is the grand daughter of a famous novelist with a mysterious allure. She wrote a strange collection of fairy tales about the "Hinterland" and then lived as a recluse in her estate called the Hazel Wood. Alice and her mother have been on the run all of Alice's life going from city to city like gypsies until her grandmother's death. Alice is back on the run after her mother is taken and strange people are after Alice. Joining forces with a Hinterland groupie, Alice goes out in search of Hazel Wood and her mother. What she discovers is not what she expected. This Alice, like the other fairy tale, tumbles head first down a very dark rabbit hole into a spirit world she didn't know existed.
This is a fairy tale turned horror story - a dream sequence that is worse during the day than at night where reality is what you fear the most. Great young adult crossover this will appeal to anyone who likes their fairy tales dark and fearful. My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.

Certainly unlike anything I've ever read before, The Hazel Wood has suspense, romance, kidnapping, murder, and fairy tale-like characters. When Alice and her mother Ella run from town to town to get away from bad luck, the reader becomes impatient with Ella. But as Alice gets older, meets Finch, a fan of her author grandmother, we begin to see another side of both Ella and Alice. The Hazel Wood takes the reader on a wild ride, and at times it is difficult to know if we should root for Alice or not. I'm so thankful to the Flatiron Books and NetGalley for the opportunity to be an early reader in exchange for my fair and honest review. I've wanted to read this one for months and it did not disappoint. I hope to read more from Mimi Albert.

I had a really difficult time getting into this story due to the abusive nature of the narrator's relationship with her mother, but I know several patrons that would eat up the creepy atmosphere and dark fairy tale nature of the writing.

I enjoyed this book overall. It was well written and had a good pace. I loved the protagonist and some of the twists. However, I wish it had more of a magical element to it. Based on the cover, I was anticipating more fantastical parts and was left still wanting them.

5/5 Stars

It is rare when I find a book that completely captivates me. Miss Albert's story takes the genre of the fairy tales to its roots. The Hazel Wood is dark, creepy, cunning and most of all exciting.

The Hazel Wood is the story of Alice, who has such bad luck that her mom and her have to live on the move. When Alice's grandmother dies, they finally settle down to a life in New York City, thinking that their bad luck is over, only to find out the opposite. When Alice's mother is kidnapped, Alice must delve into the dark cult surrounding her grandmother and venture into the world of the fairy tales.

What I loved the most about this book is that it reminded me of the original fairy tales. Any English major knows what I am talking about, the dark fairy tales that make your skin crawl and your sense prick. The ones that I still remember to this day. It felt like a breath of fresh air to read about the fairy world that was not glittery, or hot, or romanticized. This is what a fairy tale story should be like.

My second favorite aspect of the book is the writing itself. The book is fast paced yet uncomplicated. It is beautifully written. No words are wasted needlessly and no descriptions are too long. I honestly couldn't put it down and I think finished it w/in hours.

I certainly hope that Miss Albert writes more, especially if she writes the actual tales which Alice's grandmother was suppose to have written because they sound deliciously dark and dangerous.

Not one of my favorite books, but I definitely loved the uniqueness of this story. Never before have I read a story that involved such a relationship between humans and the fair folk. Readers will be delighted and surprised by this change in style.

This book is dark, haunting and unsurprisngly, a page turner. I picked this up, already drawn in by the promise of dark fairy tales and couldn't put it down. There were twists and turns and before I knew it I was deep in the Hinterland wanting more.

I really liked this. This is a very strange creature that I didn’t always understand, but I stuck with it and I’m glad I did. But, I will say, this book isn’t for everyone. I like strange, quirky books A LOT!!! And this is extremely strange & quirky....and there’s a lot going on!! I would definitely like to read it again!! It’s got a lot of layers, and I get the overall, but I’d like to peel back some of those layers!!

~I would like to thank Netgalley and the Flatiron Books for a copy of this book. My views are my own honest opinion.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for sending me a digital ARC of “The Hazel Wood” by Melissa Albert. This book is perfect for those who love fairy tales. It is twisty and dark and fantastic. The characters are magical! This book will definitely find a home in the high school library where I work.

The Hazel Wood is a fabulous read. Once I began reading, it was very hard to put the book down. I will definitely be recommending this book to others.

Maybe I hyped myself too much on this one, and I didn't realize it was going to be so much modern day. The thing is... I actually liked the stuff that took place in the modern day world better. I have seen review after review after review saying how creepy this is. I don't know if these people have ever seen a horror movie, but I will say I didn't find it creepy, but I did find the tales interesting. There was some creepy stuff that went on, and I was gearing myself up for the Hazel Wood, but it failed me. Alice sort of drove me nuts. She was cool at first, but slowly went down hill. I will say that Ellery was magnificent. I absolutely loved him. The writing was fantastic, but I wanted so much more from this world!

"The Hazel Wood" by Melissa Albert was quite a stimulating read. I found myself caring deeply for the characters, Finch and Alice. The first half of the novel seems like an angsty coming of age tale of two teenagers that are on the fringe of their social circles. Alice is the daughter of an ever-moving mother who has no real roots anywhere. Finch is the forgotten son of an extremely wealthy man who loses himself in video games and tales of lore. After Alice and her mother settle for a time in NYC, Alice meets Finch who seems fascinated with her as if he has known her for the longest time. Alice is the typical example of angry youth or so it seems. Then, the tale begins to shift., events lead Alice on a journey to find her mother. Finch is there to save the day and accompany her. All of this revolves around a book of fairy tales that her grandmother wrote called "Tales of the Hinterland". Then the story gets even more worked up. I don't want to reveal too much so no more spoilers. This is a fast paced novel with multiple plot twists. Is there a happily ever after for Alice? You will have to read it to find out.

This reminds me of The Bear and The Nightingale except instead of Russian fairy tales there are original fairy tales. Still mean tales though which makes the stories going after the main character an exciting read. The main character is broken which makes the twist make a lot of sense. Wasn't completely happy with the ending but wasn't unhappy with it. Maybe a reread is in order.

The book was a remarkably atmospheric read for me. From the beginning, the magical, forbidding, unsettling world the author created is a palpable and compelling part of this novel. I was completely drawn in by the mystery of the world building and captivated by the plot.

The action in The Hazel Wood takes off quickly, as Alice sees someone mysterious from her past, and then finds her Mom missing, and her step family unwilling to tell her anything. She goes on this journey where fairy tales may be real, and she can’t be sure of who to trust. The fairy tales that her grandmother wrote are woven into the plot, as knowing what happens in these stories becomes very important to Alice. I love the fairy tales that the author created for the Hinterland - they completely fit the fairy tale vibe while being darker and more disturbing than your usual tales. In the world of this novel, these tales are supposed to be weirdly compelling, and they absolutely lived up to that. I can see why people became “super fans” of the grandmother’s book.

I didn’t know much about this story when I picked it up, and I think it works better to not know what you are getting into when you read it. The story is dark, compelling and richly told - all worth the suspense and mystery as you quickly turn pages to find out what is going on. Reading this book was a wonderful experience!

This book was so weird and I loved everything about it. I fell in love with this cover and it definitely drew me deeper into the story. I read this book in less than a day on my phone and I loved every second of it. There was never a dull moment and every time I would put the book down, I would think about picking it right back up.

I found this book while looking on NetGalley and I wasn’t sure I’d be able to read it but I got the email yesterday (today is the 21st of September). I was so excited to start reading it that I jumped right into the twisty story about Alice and her family. I wasn’t entirely sure what I was getting into when I started reading this book but I think this was the best way to go about it.

I really liked how odd Alice was, especially after learning about her past and what exactly she’s been through. I never saw anything coming in relation to her but maybe that’s just because I never slowed down enough to give it much thought. I really enjoyed finding things out as they happened to Alice, there was never a time when I knew something that she didn’t and it just made things more interesting for me I guess.

I would highly recommend this book because it is so mystical and it’s just a book that sucks you in and doesn’t let you loose until you finish it. I think this is going to be an amazing book to read in physical form and I’m definatly going to be buying a copy once it comes out!

There are some spoilers in the next paragraph so feel free to skip those if you plan to read this book. Feel free to read them if you think you’ll forget about it by the time the book comes out.

The only thing I didn’t see coming at all was the fact that she doesn’t end up with Finch. This was something I haven’t seen a lot of books do, in the sense that the main character doesn’t get the love interest but I actually really liked the way this happened. I think they were good together but being in Hinterland was something that changed both of them in ways they can never fully understand.

If you like The Magicians then you will like The Hazel Wood. It has a very similar feel,but is still it's own story. Magic mixed with danger creates an interesting novel.