I loved reading Ever Alice.

Well-written with wonderfully crafted characters. Funny and quirky, this is a book I will enjoy reading over and over again.

I had to include the synopsis:
Alice’s stories of Wonderland did more than raise a few eyebrows—it landed her in an asylum. Now at 15 years of age, she’s willing to do anything to leave, which includes agreeing to an experimental procedure. When Alice decides at the last minute not to go through with it, she escapes with the White Rabbit to Wonderland and trades one madhouse for another: the court of the Queen of Hearts. Only this time, she is under orders to take out the Queen. When love, scandal, and intrigue begin to muddle her mission, Alice finds herself on the wrong side of the chopping block.

I love a good retelling and found this book fairly fun! Kind of reminded me of the once upon a time in wonderland show where it showed what life was like for Alice after she came back and was told she was mad. I thought it was a fun twist on a classic!

I think I liked the idea more than the execution. That's not to say this isn't a great read and what seems a very logical take on the Alice story. It's well written and could make a great mini series

I really liked that the book was told from both Alice and the Queen of Hearts’ perspective. Having the queen’s point of view was very enlightening. It gave her character more complexity and dimension.

I found that the style and tone of the book was a good continuation of the original. Obviously no one can compare to Lewis Carroll, but the author did a wonderful job in keeping with the spirit of the original while offering her own unique twist.

DNF at 5%

Ever Alice made my head hurt. The language was confusing, and the content didn't always make sense. I know that Wonderland is a magical place, and not everything is supposed to be logical, but readers still need some backstory and context to understand what's going on. Rosalind (I believe that's the queen's name) is bananas, and I think she's supposed to be, but her perspective only made things more difficult to follow. The phrasing and wording were weird, which also made the story a challenge to read. “'Only the most unimportant news,' he said with his tongue sticking out of his mouth." After awhile I stopped reading, because I didn't want to force myself to stick with something I couldn't get into.

Originally posted at Do You Dog-ear? on July 31, 2019.

Thank you so so much to H.J. Ramsay and to Red Rogue Press for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I wish my honesty brought happier notes but I am sorry to say, I didn't care for this book. I was the very last thing I should be while reading a story about Wonderland: bored.
I couldn't connect with any of the characters and I couldn't really connect with the story. I didn't care for the way the classic characters were portrayed in this one and it all just sort of fell flat for me. Nothing really seemed wonderous or out of the ordinary as I hoped it would when first reading the synopsis.

H.J. Ramsay's Ever Alice almost feels like a sequel to Alice in Wonderland. She comes back from her first adventure and her parents are quite worried about her. Now what is next? Follow along with Alice in this unique turn of events.

Thank you to NetGalley, Red Rogue Press, and author H.J. Ramsay for this ARC!

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I usually really enjoy Alice in Wonderland retellings, but I had to DNF this book, SO, I cannot give it a proper rating. I didn't connect with the characters and the storyline wasn't gripping enough when I tried to pick it up. I will purchase a physical copy of the book and hopefully give this story another chance in the future when I'm in the mood for a retelling.

I am a HUGE alice in wonderland fan. I am also a huge sci-fi fan so I knew I had to check this book out. Sadly, I didn't love the story as much as I was hoping even thought the book was still decent, it wasn't what I was hoping for.

Thank you to NetGalley and Red Rogue Press for this E-copy.
What I liked about this book that we get perspective of both the villain and the heroine. I really love Alice in Wonderland so this was delightful.

This is not a genre that I would have typically grabbed and I'd love to be able to say that this changed my outlook, but it did not. Though I enjoy the story, it just wasn't something that hooked me.

This was such a fun read and I love retellings and this again proves that fact. The book itself brought me all the way back to my childhood and I felt I relived the adventures and laughs that the original gave me.

The protagonist was lacking on her own behalf. I did like the overall quirkiness of the book but did not enjoy some elements included within.

I adore a good Alice in wonderland retelling and I think most people would! I was very eager to read and I am so grateful.

We all love Alice. Her adventure into Wonderland, however, is not over yet. This perfect retelling and addition to Alice in Wonderland. There was so much drama in this book and I ate it up. We get duel perspective from Alice and The Queen of Hearts(Constance), and Alice is on a mission. This was such a great adventure. It was a good wholesome book that I will be sharing with my students for years to come.

Thank you so much to the publishers and Netgalley for giving me access to this book. Unfortunately my tastes have changed and I am no longer interested in this book but once again thank you so much for the opportunity!

I found this book to be fun and quirky. While I enjoyed reading parts of it the book as a whole was OK. I probably would recommend it but then again I may not. It's one of those books that I almost didn't finish but at the same time felt compelled that I had to see it through,

I did not finish this book. I was confused and uninterested so can not give it a fair review. I do have the book downloaded and may return to it in the future.

4.5 STARS

As soon as I started this book, I was completely hooked and I couldn’t believe how unique it was, despite the fact that so many characters and events were also in the original story. I think the author did an amazing job of giving this world a great twist and her own flair while leaving the crazy, whimsical and enchanting side that we all love.

I was actually quite surprised by the first part of the book which took part in an asylum and it made me so angry that Alice’s parents had locked her up in an institution when she came back from Wonderland. I think if anything, this book really makes you think about what happened after Alice left Wonderland, but also, more importantly, about what goes on behind closed doors in these kinds of hospitals.

What I loved the most about this book is that you don’t only get Alice’s POV. You also get Rosamund’s POV, she is the Queen of Hearts and it was so interesting having her side of the story. She is clearly mentally ill and thinks that the whole Queendom is plotting against her, and I have to say that it was clever the way the author put Alice in the institution and Rosamund in her Queendom kind of in a parallel because it really makes you think about mental health.

The writing style was so fluid and I just flew through this book. This book was constructed in such a clever manner that it’s impossible to guess all the plot twists, you never see anything coming and I just let myself be swept away by the story, it was fascinating. The ending really gets you thinking, so if you want to read a book that flips everything on its head, is completely bonkers and makes you think “what?” multiple times while reading it, and makes you think about mental health, institutions and the worlds we create to escape, then this is the book for you.

I gave this book 4.5 stars. I recommend this book to people who like mind-boggling plots, ridiculous worlds with clever and whimsical elements, eccentric characters we already know and some we don’t, retellings and a bit of a darker take on stories. However, I must press the importance of checking the trigger warnings first because this book is a lot darker than the original tale and might not be suited to some readers.

Trigger Warnings: vivid depictions of hospitals/institutions, beheadings, violence, cruelty, murder, attempted murder, poison.

If I’m being completely honest, I enjoyed Alice in Wonderland, but I am not enamoured by it. However, when I was given Ever Alice as a panellist for the BBNYA, I was really excited by the premise. I loved the though of delving more into the psychological aspect of Alice’s adventures and also her return to Wonderland for a new adventure.
Alice is now 15 and is living in a mental institute suffering from ‘delusions’ due to her ramblings and obsession with Wonderland. Desperately wanting to be free and return home for her sister’s wedding, Alice agrees to a new treatment in Switzerland, but a last-minute change of heart sees her heading back into Wonderland and coming face to face with The Queen of Hearts once more.
I loved the first part of the novel showing Alice in the asylum. She’s vulnerable and lonely but still clinging onto her belief that Wonderland and her adventures were real that day. The treatments used and the way Alice is cared for was quite chilling but fascinating and for the time period – well researched and described. For me there was a haunting vibe of The Bell Jar which is why I was so unsettled but morbidly drawn to it.
When Alice returns to Wonderland it’s as zany and wonderfully weird as it ever was. I feel in ever Alice we see more of it and learn more about the people and places there. At times I stopped reading and thought “that’s absurd,” but then remembered where I was and realised all was fine.
Some familiar characters make a return however many now have names which did confuse me in the beginning, but I soon got used to it. The White Rabbit, Mad Hatter, Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee, The Cheshire Cat etc are all there. Some new faces make an appearance too; the Prince of Hearts, Sabrina and Bess and Marco Polo.
Something that sets ever Alice apart from its prequel is the use of dual narrative and the voice of the Queen of Hearts. Despite being a central character, she was never given a lot of page time or character development in Alice in Wonderland and I really enjoyed reading the novel from her perspective. It was a clever device in the beginning to tell of the two worlds in a parallel sense and then to give the reader insight into a different perspective of Wonderland. Giving her a name made her more human in my eyes and I began to see her as a person rather than just a malevolent figure. I also thought The Queen was absolutely bonkers and I quite liked her.
It’s been a while since I read Alice however for me, this sequel is much darker. Despite driving myself crazy over my thoughts of the ending, I think the end is darker and very cleverly done. Having chatted with the lovely @AVoraciousReadr I came to realise that there are several interpretations of the ending which I think really adds to the fin of this novel. It’s one of those books that the more you ponder over it, the more questions you churn out. Great fun!