I read Wicked a few years ago, so I was excited to know more about Elphie's childhood. Sadly, this book didn't quite do it for me. The beginning was intriguing, and I was hooked for a while. However, as the story progressed, other characters began to take center stage, and Elphie's story felt sidelined, which made it less interesting for me. I got really, really bored.

Some chapters are quite dark and sad, while others feel slow and uneventful. If you haven't started the series yet, I wouldn't suggest beginning with this one. You might find it hard to stay engaged. It’s better to read the other books first and then come back to this one if you're interested. Stick to the publication order.

Thanks to William Morrow for the ARC!

William Morrow provided an early galley for review.

I read Maguire's earliest books back in 2012, including Wicked which became a huge Broadway hit that has been adapted into two movies. Given all that popularity of the franchise, it is no surprise the author went back to the well for this prequel novel.

It did not take me too long to remember how Maguire's style of writing on these books is an acquired taste. It is very unique and might give some casual readers some pause. I found myself very much falling into that category after the first half dozen chapters, but I wanted to soldier on and give the work the benefit of the doubt.

This one is definitely for the fans (both of Maguire's books and the Wicked franchise in particular).

First off thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to get this ARC.

As a fan of the original series I was looking forward to reading this. Definitely not everyone's cup of tea but it was mine. It was what I needed to jump start my reading since I was in a slump.

Glad to see Gregory still has his magic.

Did not finish @ 17%. It felt a bit clunky of a prequel that, honestly, was a bit unnecessary in regards to the larger plot of the story. The narration is witty as always with Maguire, but for this to be Elphie's story, it felt a lot of jumping around between the characters rather than a focus on her in what I read. I wasn't hooked enough by 17% in to commit to the remaining bit of the novel. This is certainly the type of story for someone, but I realize I wasn't the right audience for this at this time. I would, however, give it a second try in the future.

With the excitement of the “Wicked” film, it’s not a surprise that people have gravitated toward Maguire’s original novel, wanting to know more about Elphaba Thropp. Now, 30 years after the publication of the first novel, we finally get to see what little Elphie was like in her childhood.

This novel takes place during four periods of Elphaba’s life, each focusing on an event that would help shape the woman she was destined to become. It was interesting getting to see exactly what occurred during her childhood, but unfortunately, didn’t shed much light on just how influential these events would be. Each section had interesting aspects, but it seemed that a majority of this novel was dedicated to the other people in Elphaba’s life, offering a better look at those who surrounded her during her childhood.

Maguire does a good job at keeping the story going, using his lyrical prose to push the story along. I know that his writing style has been a bit of a controversy with people, but I honestly didn’t mind it, especially with how surprisingly short this novel was. It flows well, which made for an easy reading experience, even with the odd cadence within Maguire’s sentences.

In all honesty, I wanted a lot more out of this. I was hoping to get a good glimpse at the family dynamic, which certainly is present, but offers only a little more information about her relationships with her family. I wasn’t blown away by this novel like I was really wanting to be, but I was rather left wanting much more than we recieved. As nice as it is to end where “Wicked” begins, I don’t see this being a necessary read to understand who this character is.

I’m not entirely sure why this was written, other than trying to catch the cultural wave that the film adaptation of “Wicked” has created. At the end of the day, this is a fine read, but unfortunately is nothing to write home about.

Thank you for the opportunity to preview this book. As someone who has been a fan of the Wicked universe since the first book was released in the 90s I was really looking forward to diving into more of Elphie's back story. The Wicked series has never been what I would describe as an easy read, and this installment falls right in line with the others in that regard. While I found the overall story interesting, I did at times have to force myself to continue on. If it was any other series/author it likely would have been a DNF for me. The fact that I have been an Elphaba superfan for 20 years is what ultimately compelled me to keep reading. I would advise anyone who wants to step foot into the Wicked book universe for the first time to start with the original and leave this one for last (if they make it that far).

I loved Wicked and the rest of the books in the series, however Elphie fell flat for me. I really tried to enjoy it but it never felt the same as the previous books.

Gregory Maguire has done it again! Giving us the childhood of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, and an even deeper look into what is the nature of evil. We know what happened during Elphie's childhood, but this is a deep dive into the relationships between her and her parents, her siblings, and the rest of the people around her. I knew we hadn't heard the last of her, and this book does not disappoint.

DNF-- Elphie by Gregory Maguire was a huge disappointment for me. I wanted to love it, especially since I enjoyed Wicked years ago, but I just couldn’t finish. The writing style was overly complicated and difficult to follow, filled with words that didn’t add much substance. While it was meant to explore Elphie’s childhood, the story never really felt like it was about her. Unfortunately, this one completely missed the mark for me.

Thank you yo NetGalley and William Morrow for the eArc.

“Elphie” is the impeccably timed prequel to the Wicked Years books by Gregory Maguire, no doubt planned to coincide with the release of the films. I loved the prose, each chapter almost reading like a hybrid of a poem and a short story, chronicling the early life of Elphaba growing up in the Thropp household. As a character study it’s lovely, but beyond that, very little actually happens, and I can’t help but wonder if this prequel was truly necessary given the wealth of information about Elphaba’s past provided in the rest of the novels.

I found the writing very dense and heavy. I continued to lose focus while reading this book. I did enjoy learning more of Elphaba’s background and get a deeper look into her as a character.

I love wicked so reading more from the author and the world was a joy. I love how we see even more of the characters and continue to learn about each of their complex layers

Coming on the heals of the 'Wicked" movie, readers will likely purchase this title thinking "Oh great, a back story to read on Elphaba until the second movie comes out." Honestly, depending on whether or not they have read a Gregory Mcguire title or like his style of writing will have a lot to do with if they enjoy this novel or not. This is a book that is likely "review proof".

As a huge wicked fan I wanted to like this but it just wasn’t it. It felt unnecessary to the original story. I think a lot of wicked the movie fans will flock to this without knowing this book series is a far jump from the musical

While the concept of delving deeper into Elphaba's childhood is fascinating, the result was a tad underwhelming. While Gregory Maguire's style of writing prose can be long and flowery, I always appreciate the attention to detail that he's able to convey or the abstract concepts that he's attempting to put into concrete descriptions. Elphie was a pleasant read, but to me I came out of it having gained no extra knowledge of Elphaba's childhood. Overall, it was a nice way to enjoy more of Maguire's Oz.

I loved the previous books in this series and was eagerly looking forward to this one. Maybe my expectations were too high, or I wasn't in the right mood, but this latest addition to the Wicked series let me down. Whatever the reason, I had a difficult time staying engaged with it.

Readers of this series are familiar with Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, but how did she become the person we are familiar with? This book focuses on Elphaba's childhood, her relationships with her siblings and parents, and the situations she encountered early in life. Maguire explains Elphie's backstory, which should have been enlightening, but I struggled with it. At times, the writing was disjointed and hard to follow. I put the book down several times, hoping it would get better; it didn't. 2/5 stars.

Thank you, NetGalley and William Morrow, for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own. The publication date is March 25, 2025.

Thanks to NetGalley and William Morrow for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

This book was barely readable. The writing style didn’t flow well, and nothing seemed to happen. The story didn’t make sense and didn’t feel like a compelling prequel.

Ebook received for free through NetGalley

I’ve read the quartet over ten years ago and recently watched the movie based on the broadway. As such I jumped on this book when I saw it. Similar to the others it was a good read and great to get a prequel to the stories.

Another dark and twisty installment from Oz!

While the story is largely about the childhood of Elphaba, the stage is also set for the political climate that we see in Wicked: othering and mistreatment of groups, distrust, panic, etc.

This was a good prequel for a story that has reached people for decades now, and it added depth to the history of the Wicked Witch of the West. As they say: “are people born wicked, or do they have wickedness thrust upon them?”

DISCLAIMER
Maguire’s stories of Oz are NOT the same as Wicked the broadway musical or movie. It is the *inspiration for* not *script of*, and I would encourage you to check content warnings and especially parents to review content of these books before approving their child to read it. I will also say that I read Wicked at 15 or 16, and my parents most definitely did not know what I was reading. It was a little much for me at the time, but an interesting read nonetheless.

I really had high hopes for this but I couldn’t get through it. I gave it 2 stars. I was hoping that it would’ve been like the original but it fell flat for me.