Brilliant modern spin on the classic “Alice in Wonderland.” Creepy, scary and overwhelmingly terrifying, it kept me reading with the lights on and the covers pulled up to my chin.

I loved this book and already carry it in the store. I look forward to more from this author.

I am going to leave this unrated because I have only read a little more than half. The fault is not with the book, it is a book I should not have chosen. I have been trying to stretch myself in my reading, but at heart I am not a fantasy reader, which is the genre I believe it fits. Maybe fairy tales as well. There are so many wonderful reviews of this but as all readers know every book does not fit every person.

Okayyy I'm going to be honest, I didn't finish this. Based on the cover and the description, I was expecting something dark and creepy, maybe with a bit of a gothic or noir vibe to it. Instead, it was very similar to Alice in Wonderland... sans noir. It was just kind of cooky and strange. While I would absolutely recommend this to people who are seeking that out, it wasn't what I wanted or expected when I picked this book up.

When I first picked up The Hazel Wood I was really excited for a book that would use a modern time but throw fairytales into it. It seemed almost like a Once Upon a Time kind of a vibe based on the description. Sadly the book and my reading aesthetic just didn’t mesh as well as I wanted it to. I felt like I was wondering what was happening and what I was reading the whole book and I never quite jived with it. It also started really slow for me. It took a good 25% for me to feel like the story picked up and I also wasn’t a fan of some of the choices made in the last fourth of the book.

With that said, there was something that worked for me though. I actually really enjoyed the brief look we got at the Tales of the Hinterland. The writing in those fairytales was magical and enthralling. The story itself was not a creep fest like I had expected, but the fairytales found in Tales of the Hinterland were. They were dark and twisted and a little strange and oddly they were the part of the book I was excited about. The part of the book I wanted more of. Every time I got to read a little of one of the Hinterland fairytales I got excited for the book again, only to be a little let down.

What can I say about The Hazel Wood? It just wasn’t a book for me. Many of friends have loved it. Actually way more love it than had the same feelings I did. It just didn’t work for me. That being said, it may work for you. I will say that I’m really excited there will be a book released of the fairytales. That made me happy to hear. So while I won’t be running out to read this again or pick up the sequel, I will be picking up Tales from the Hinterland. Also the cover is a work of art!

I absolutely loved this book! The story is captivating and fun. This is a must-read for any fan of fairy tales and fairy tale retellings.

This is a spoiler free review of The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert, the first book in The Hazel Wood Duology.

I gave this book a 3/5 stars. The beginning of this story reads as a contemporary with an urban fantasy aspect introduced later in the story.

General Thoughts

"Look until the leaves turn red, Sew the worlds up with thread, If your journey's left undone, Fear the rising of the sun."

This novel follows Alice Proserpine as she and her classmate Finch work together in order to rescue Alice's mother after she was captured and taken to the Hinterland- A fairytale land in which Alice's grandmother, Althea's story is set.

I loved the idea of this novel, however, the story itself did not clash well with me. The writing was alright, but the plot felt a little all over the place. The pacing of the story was slow, and at some parts even dragged on to a point in which I found myself kind of bored.

The fantasy elements took a while to become introduced and at the start of the novel there were a few info dumps.

Characters

I really disliked the main character Alice. She was reckless, insensitive, and just plain rude. She is physically violent towards other characters without warrant and nearly killed a person who was helping her because she was feeling guilty about her own poor choices. The only person in the book she 'respects' is her mother, who she has also been violent towards.

When Alice is called out on her offensive nature by Finch she immediately deflects and starts an argument with him because she is unable to face the truth of her insensitivity.

Finch, the classmate who helps Alice along on this journey is someone I wanted to like. He was patient and caring, yet his character completely fell flat for me. He felt so one-dimensional that it was hard to feel any emotions towards his character. There were many moments throughout the story that I wanted to feel something towards Finch, but due to this disconnection I couldn't. 

Plot

For all her life, bad luck seemed to follow Alice and her mother Ella.  When Alice's reclusive grandmother, Althea Proserpine the author of Tales From The Hinterland- A dark fairytale collection that has become near impossible to find- dies alone in her estate, The Hazel Wood, Ella believes their bad luck is behind them. That is until Ella is stolen away into the supernatural world of Hinterland leaving only a message to Alice behind. "Stay away from The Hazel Wood"

Now Alice, along with the help of her classmate Ellery Finch, embarks on a journey to rescue her mother from the Hinterland and to try to stop everything from going horribly wrong.

Final Verdict

I really wanted to like The Hazel Wood, I had heard so many great things about the story. Yet the whole time while reading it I felt disconnected from the characters and almost confused by the plot. There were parts of the book I did like, for instance the Hinterland fairytale chapters from Althea's book were really interesting but there were so few throughout the novel and I would have loved more. (I believe there were two) As well, I did like the ending of the story and am happy with how everything concluded.

I do not believe that this was a bad book, I personally just think it was not for me. I love the idea of dark fairytales and being swept away into that fantasy land and this book had that, but it fell flat for me.

If you plan read this book, I wish you better luck with it and hope you enjoy it more than I did. 

Disclosure: I received a download of this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

At the beginning i was very into this book. I liked the spookiness it had and the story behind the charters and their bad luck. More into the book i was still enjoying it but i king of got bored. The end didn't hold me to the story. The writing is good i just couldn't stay with the plot and ended up skimming the last few chapters of the book just to get to the end to see what happens.
I know people who loved this book and others who couldn't finish it. I recommend anyone to grab it and try to read it because they might love me. As for me it was just okay.

The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert is the story of Alice, her mother and her grandmother. Alice's grandmother wrote a book of dark fairytales that people fell in love with. These fairytales are more that just stories and they end up changing Alice's life forever.

Going into The Hazel Wood I was a bit weary because people very close to me either loved the book or felt completely let down. I was worried about where I would fall on that map but luckily for me, I really enjoyed the book. It ended up being different than what I was expecting, a lot darker and weirder but that only added to the greatness of the book. I would also like to add that this IS NOT an Alice in Wonderland retelling. The only similarities this book even has with that one is the characters name is Alice and she ends up in an alternate world. That is where it ends.

Alice has spent her life on the road with her mother. They go from friends spare bedroom to rented garage to whatever apartment they can manage to rent. Alice never stays in any one place long and that is because he mother thinks something or someone is following them and they are never safe. Then her mother receives a letter stating that her mother has died and all of a sudden their luck has changed. Alice's mother decides to settle down and she finally has a somewhat normal life. Until...

Everything in this book gets VERY interesting when Alice's mother goes missing and characters from her grandmothers book start randomly appearing to her. Problem is, the characters from her grandmothers book aren't good. They are murderous beings and Alice has to figure out how to get her mother back AND stop the characters from causing harm.

Alice enlists the help of fellow classmate and mega-fan of her grandmother, Ellery Finch, to help her find her mother. He is all too willing to help Alice but it turns out his motives might now be so pure of heart. I think the Ellery Finch part is the only part of the book that I wish would have ended differently.

The only way for Alice to save her mother is to find her grandmothers home, The Hazel Wood, and actually go INTO her grandmothers book and finish her own story, Alice Three Times. This is when the book REALLY picks up and I really love how the author handled this ending. It was very unique and dark and I really enjoyed it.

In the end, I felt this story had a lot of depth and the author had a very interesting talent when it came to weaving such a dark story. I thought this book was a standalone but when I went to look it up to get the cover for my review I saw that there will be at least 1 other book and 1 possible novella so I am very excited for both of those and The Hazel Wood has found a new home on my favorites bookshelf.

Overall, I gave the book 4.5/5 stars.

You have to really be into the book and cannot space out, because that is what I did for probably the first half. None the less I loved the world and it gave me a lot of Cassandra Clare vibes I feel like if I paid more attention then I would have given it a higher rating, but I still liked it.

I have lots of mixed emotions when it comes to THE HAZEL WOOD. There are so many things to appreciate and gush over because make no mistake - the world of Hinterland that Melissa Albert creates is equally as lush and mesmerizing as it is creepy and haunting. I absolutely fell face first into this story and I am sorry to myself for taking so long to get to this gem because it is a wonderfully done book. I want so much success to come for both this story and its writer because I know Melissa Albert to be such an endearing and lovely person and she has so much support from the book community (if you don’t know, she’s the founding editor for BNTeens), so it’s really gratifying to see how far she’s come and I could tell how much thought and devotion went into creating the world that many people have championed for after reading it.


This book sucked me in with that very first excerpt from Vanity Fair about Althea. I don’t know what it was about it - but it was just impossible not to turn the page. I was fascinated by how modern the story was - since it took place in New York, there are very familiar things to me as a native New Yorker that I loved Melissa alluding to! I don’t live in the city, so there were some other nuances that I wasn’t privvy to which I liked as well! But her portrayal of NYC is not shiny things and pretty lights, it’s grit and dirt and everything actually true about the urban jungle.

And then she delves into other parts of New York because the main character, has to travel upstate to find Hinterland. So long story short - Alice and her mother have always moved because bad luck follows them no matter what and her mother thinks it’s because of her mother (Alice’s grandmother), Althea. Althea lives in seclusion in the Hazel Wood while the world lives on with cultish fanatics who just really seem to be obsessed with her collection of stories, The Tales from the Hinterland. Althea passes away and then Alice’s mother is taken. Alice has no choice but to turn to Ellery Finch, a boy she goes to school with and who so happens to be incredibly familiar with her grandmother’s work. So they venture on a creepy and perilous journey in order to find her mother once more, but what awaits them in the Hazel Wood and Hinterland is beyond imagination!

So back to the gushing - in terms of the folklore behind Hinterland and the Hazel Wood, I was absolutely blown away by the originality the storytelling. I’m so excited for Melissa to write the actual anthology of stories because I just need this for my own collection. Make no mistake, it is seriously haunting and very Brother Grimss-esque when it comes to the tone and the overall storytelling. I love the original fairytales as they were - all grim and dark and twisted with no signs of happiness and fairydust. That’s the way that fairytales were written and I love that she follows that sort of formula.

As a protagonist, I did not necessarily like Alice at first and I think it’s nice that this sort of thing happens. She struck me as one of those characters who would just grow on me and she did. As THE HAZEL WOOD went on, I started really appreciating her character and the struggles, both emotionally and physically that she had to go through to find her mother. I mean, she was thrown into an impossible situation and really, can anyone relate to what she goes through because I know I can’t. At least on a literal level, ;). She certainly goes through a lot and I promise you that her story is really and seriously unpredictable.
Which brings me to my next point that this story is original. I certainly fell in love with all of it because there was no way I could ever predict what was going to happen next. And I think that’s because Melissa Albert is a fantastic story spinner ( ;) ) and like I said because, she put so much thought into it. I was shocked, in awe, and wanting more and I am so very happy that there is going to be another book because there are definitely some unanswered questions.

That all being said, I did not enjoy the last fourth of the books as much as I wanted to - maybe it was because I rushed through it to finish it in time for her launch or maybe I just got so lost in the details of the story that I didn’t take the time to really understand what was going on, but regardless - it was somewhat of a miss for me and I understand that when authors are picked up for a standalone and optioned for a series that writing the ending of the first books can be really tricky if no one knows there will be traction for the story.
Regardless, I am mad about this book and its characters. I am also deliriously in love with the cover art and the design of the overall look to THE HAZEL WOOD and I want a gorgeous second book to make a set. I really can’t wait to see what’s in store for Alice.

http://hungryforgoodbooks.blogspot.com/2018/01/the-hazel-wood-by-melissa-albert.html Teens love fantasy. Teens love magic with a touch of the creepy. Readers love story. Readers love books about books. Debut author Melissa Albert’s The Hazel Wood is all of these so I believe it will be one of the biggest Young Adult hits of 2018. The Hazel Wood feels timeless so one almost expects it to begin with the words “Long ago in a faraway land,” but it’s a contemporary novel so it begins with the thoughts of seventeen-year-old Alice, “My mother was raised on fairy tales, but I was raised on highways.” Alice and her mother Ella “lived like vagrants, staying with friends till our welcome wore through at the elbows, perching in precarious places, then moving on. We didn’t have a chance to stand still. Until the year I turned seventeen, and Althea died in the Hazel Wood. . .

Until Althea Prosperine (born Anna Parks) died all alone on the grand estate she’d named the Hazel Wood, my mother and I had spent our lives as bad luck guests. We moved at least twice a year and sometimes more, but the bad luck always found us.”

Alice had spent much of her childhood trying to learn more about her grandmother Althea, the reclusive author of a famous, yet almost impossible to find book of eerie fairy tales. The book, Tales from the Hinterland, and the movie that earned it its fame made Althea wealthy and paid for the Hazel Wood estate that so intrigued Alice. When Ella disappears after leaving a message for Alice to “stay the hell away from the Hazel Wood,” Alice begins a terrifying trek to find the estate and her mother. Helped by Finch, a wealthy, biracial friend from school, whose fanatic devotion to the book means that he may know how to locate the mysterious Hazel Wood, Alice enters the foreboding world of the Hinterland where story is paramount, but it still may not save you.

Unlike most books for teens, this one is short on romance and absent the sex that seems to pepper so many popular novels for older YA readers. Instead, it features disturbingly realistic, yet fantastic scenes of the gritty, fearless Alice’s encounters with bloody and sometimes gruesome scenes. Much of the book is laced with references to children’s literature that geeky young readers will adore as much as I did.

Until Alice set off for the Hazel Wood, I was mesmerized, then I found myself wanting to skim some of the more sinister scenes to get to the climax. I stuck with it, read every word, and was rewarded by a less than happily-ever-after ending that fit the book perfectly. I don’t think fantasy-loving teens will find the menacing atmosphere as off-putting as I did and I predict that they, like all the major critics, will give this one five stars. The writing is so atmospheric and haunting that even though the carnage was more than I wanted, I admire it immensely.

Summing it Up: Buy The Hazel Wood for fantasy-loving teens and young adults fourteen and older. Read it for a chilling glimpse into a fantasy world where story matters. Savor it for its exquisite evocation of mood and place. Illustrator Jim Tierney’s evocative cover deserves accolades for its beauty and its introduction to the novel.

Take your favorite young adult to Anderson’s Bookshop in Naperville, IL this Saturday, February 3 at 2 p.m. where the author will be in conversation with YA author Joelle Charbonneau. It’s a free event.

Rating: 4 stars
Category: Diet Coke and Gummi Bears, Fiction, Book Club
Publication date: January 30. 2018
Read an Excerpt: https://us.macmillan.com/thehazelwood/melissaalbert/9781250147912/
What Others are Saying:
Kirkus Reviews: https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/melissa-albert/the-hazel-wood/
Publishers Weekly: https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-250-14790-5
School Library Journal: http://www.slj.com/2017/10/reviews/books/hazel-wood-melissa-albert-slj-review/
Shelf Awareness: http://www.shelf-awareness.com/readers-issue.html?issue=683#m12003

I feel like this was almost two separate books joined together in the middle. It really confused me with a sudden change in tone and atmosphere. I thought the book was generally enjoyable, though, but I think it had some major problems.

This book was probably the one I was most excited to receive from NetGalley, yet I have to admit it kind of let me down: it had such a tangible grasp on world-building and atmosphere at the beginning of the story, but it started to lose focus around 60% when the Hazel Wood was actually introduced, and it ended on a pretty abrupt note for me.

However, I did greatly enjoy the dynamic between Alice and Finch. They have a trusting yet highly tempestuous relationship as they're both looking for people to rely on, and this book does a great job showing how these initial notions of "love" might've been hastily conceived. Not to mention, this book is more about family love (something I always appreciate), so I thought these dynamics were ultimately well-fleshed out.

The writing was very crisp as well. The author shows a knack for flowery yet raw and straightforward prose, particularly in the chapters where Finch was chronicling certain fairy tales from Alice's grandmother's book: these excerpts evoked a deliciously creepy, dangerous, and unhinged vibe that really demonstrated the author's writing prowess, and it was by far the most intriguing and well-developed aspect of the book.

Unfortunately, this writing prowess did not translate into the Hazel Wood portion of the book. This titular setting feels tantalizingly blurry at its edges, but because Alice's observations and visceral reactions to it felt less-than-tangible, it made it difficult for me to gauge the full depth of this world. Not to mention, the plot started to accelerate around this point, so the atmosphere didn't have much time to be done justice either.

Oh, and the ending felt strangely abrupt. I won't say I was too bummed by this book simply because it ends on such a poignant note, but I was rather conflicted by what it was trying to say: Alice's adventures in the Hazel Wood were rushed, brief, and murky, so the message of this book being about Alice seemingly having gone through a life-changing experience felt disconnected from the story I'd actually read.

Bottom line, all the elements for a terrific finale were there (characters, setup, intrigue), but because the author never fully committed to a bold twist or moral at the climax, it felt like the book had skipped over a really important event, and it thus left me feeling rather thirsty and unfulfilled in the end.

This book was probably the one I was most excited to receive from NetGalley, yet I have to admit it kind of let me down: it had such a tangible grasp on world-building and atmosphere at the beginning of the story, but it started to lose focus around 60% when the Hazel Wood was actually introduced, and it ended on a pretty abrupt note for me.

However, I did greatly enjoy the dynamic between Alice and Finch. They have a trusting yet highly tempestuous relationship as they're both looking for people to rely on, and this book does a great job showing how these initial notions of "love" might've been hastily conceived. Not to mention, this book is more about family love (something I always appreciate), so I thought these dynamics were ultimately well-fleshed out.

As for the writing, it was very crisp. The author shows a knack for flowery yet raw and straightforward prose, particularly in the chapters where Finch was chronicling certain fairy tales from Alice's grandmother's book: these excerpts are deliciously creepy and by far the best aspect of the book as it evoked a raw, unhinged vibe that really demonstrated the author's writing prowess, and it hooked me right from the start.

Unfortunately, this writing prowess did not translate into the Hazel Wood portion of the book. This titular setting feels tantalizingly blurry at its edges, but because Alice's observations and visceral reactions to it felt less-than-tangible, it made it difficult for me to gauge the full depth of this world. Not to mention, the plot started to accelerate around this point, so the atmosphere didn't have much time to be done justice either.

Oh, and the ending felt strangely abrupt. I won't say I was too bummed out by this book simply because it ends on such a poignant note, but I was rather conflicted by what it was trying to say: Alice's adventures in the Hazel Wood were rushed, brief, and murky, so the message of this book being about Alice seemingly having gone through a life-changing experience felt rather disconnected from the story I'd actually read.

Bottom line, all the elements for a terrific finale were there (characters, setup, intrigue), but because the author never fully commits to a bold twist or moral at the climax, it ultimately felt like the book had skipped over really something important, and it left me feeling thirsty and unfulfilled in the end.

I had a very interesting experience with The Hazel Wood. I had a very specific vision for how I thought that the book would go and feel like, before I read the first page. I’m not sure what created this impression for me, except for maybe the synopsis, and my previous experiences with other books? And the writing style just encouraged my assumption about the book … at first. But as I continued reading, I realized that the story would go and feel different (which is not a bad thing!)

I can say, with certainty, that this was one of the most unique stories I have ever read. The writing was lyrical, and raw all at once, and just overall satisfying for me to read. It felt very fresh for me, because I have not come across a style quite like it in any of the other books that I’ve read (and much less in YA.) The Hazel Wood was dark, and ominous, and magical. The characters were great, and very well-developed. And I could even appreciate the characters who we were supposed to dislike in the story! I also really liked the main character and narrator of The Hazel Wood, Alice, despite her being very angry, cold, abrupt, and mean. I understood her frustration, and really rooted for her, and hoped that things would turn out well for her in the end.

As for the story, it was very interesting and unpredictable. I also think it’s funny that most of this book did not go or feel as I had initially expected, but that once I got used to its feel and style, everything changed, and it did turn out feeling more like I had expected. I’m sorry if that sounds very cryptic! This is what happens when I try to explain things while also trying to avoid writing spoilers, haha. What I can say, though, is that I absolutely loved the fairytales in this book, because they were unique, while also reminding me of the dark Romanian / Eastern European fairytales that I grew up on. The stories in The Hazel Wood are dark, chilling, and nothing like the fairytales that I came into contact with once we moved out of Eastern Europe.

This book was quite enjoyable to read, as Alice took me with her on quite the adventure. I love Albert’s imagination, and that she shared this story with us, and I greatly look forward to the next book to come in the series (2019), as well as the companion novel or novella that has also been listed on Goodreads (2020). I highly recommend this book to readers who enjoy urban fantasy, as well as dark fairytales!

I'm not sure what I was expecting with this novel but whatever it was, was meh.

While I enjoyed this book, it was hard to get through, the pacing was slow until near the end but by the time I got there I was pretty much over it.

The story starts with the main character who is difficult to relate to, living with her family while reminiscing about how she used to move around with her mom a lot because they were constantly followed by "bad luck". Turns out (Spoiler alert) the bad luck are actually characters from a world built on stories come to life following them around.

The characters, weren't fully flushed out, and the story line felt out of step. Too much focus on the first 2/3 of the novel setting everything up and trying to build this intensive mystery feel. While the last third of the book was quickly rushed and thrown together.

I think fans of YA horror may enjoy this, but it really wasn't for me. Also this review isn't really my best but I just struggle to write anything other than "meh" over and over again.

I could not get into this book and it was a DNF for me. I found the mother-daughter relationship toxic and abusive. It only got worse when her mother married because it was insinuated that the step-father was abusive as well. The book was not interesting enough for me to overlook these toxic relationships.

The Hazel Wood to most would seem a typical hidden away house in a forest. For others though, those that really know what it is, the house is something else. The Hazel Wood is a bargaining chip, a gateway, a broken whisper of a story once told and held in reverie on one tongue, a forgotten sigh on another.

 

Mostly though the Hazel Wood is the story of Alice and how the Hazel Wood comes to be far more present in her life after her mother is notified of her grandmother’s death. Alice and her mother Ella are constantly on the move thanks to the fact that Ella’s mother is Althea Prosperpine, a writer that is as much as a recluse as she is a mystery. Upon hearing of Althea’s death, Ella is relieved and proclaims that they are finally free. Free from the bad luck and the Tales of Hinterland that seem to plague the pair considering it’s near cult like devotees. However, they aren’t as quite as free as they anticipated from Hinterland when Hinterland comes to find them. Ella is captured and upon her mother’s kidnapping, Alice discovers that her life is about to be turned upside down.

 

Alice along with her classmate Finch began the arduous trek to find the Hazel Wood and during their journey they find more then they anticipated. It isn’t just the Hazel Wood that Alice finds, but Hinterland itself for Hinterland and  the fairytale creatures are very much alive and very much real and they all are seeking Alice. It probably doesn’t help that her somewhat friend and classmate Finch is a devoted superfan of Hinterland seeking his own escape. Upon their discovery of Hinterland, Alice begins to realize that maybe her own story wasn’t written exactly as she thought and another story begins… a story of self-discovery and truth.

 

For fans of fairytales the Hazel Wood is a win. Albert writes with the dark beauty of a true Grimm’s fairytale world. There is no fluff or pretty happy endings in the world of Hinterland. Instead there is rage, there is Death, there is beauty, and there is revenge. Albert plays true to the captivating darkness of fairytales. This is not your book of Disney children’s tales but instead a book with crowns, barbs, blood, and thorns. Hinterland is savage, raw, beautiful and undeniably real. Anyone that ever speaks of true adoration for fairytales would be in sound mind to add this dark beauty to their collection. It deserves to grace your other fairytales with its haunting presence, why not add a little darkness to the happy ever after light. Until next time, enjoy the shadows and crimson of a fairytale world that is far more savage then it is sweet.