After Alice

After Alice is a 2015 fantasy novel by Gregory Maguire. It was published by William Morrow in October 2015. The novel is a retelling of Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

The novel follows Ada, Alice's friend, who arrives a moment too late to prevent Alice from going down the rabbit hole and ends up taking a trip to Wonderland herself. Ada traverses Wonderland to try and bring her friend home. Meanwhile, Ada's governess Miss and Alice's sister Lydia search for the missing girls.

While I wanted to enjoy this story, I feel like Maguire chose to put the wrong amount of emphasis on certain parts of this novel. I can't speak for anyone else, but when I read the blurb on the back of this book, I was expecting a story about a new character traveling through Wonderland and getting to experience it for the first time. Perhaps the reader would get to see new parts of Wonderland that weren't mention, or were barely touched upon, in Carroll's original story. Unfortunately, that isn't what happens in this novel. Over half of the novel focuses on events happening in Victorian England as opposed to Wonderland itself. Ada's governess Miss Armstrong searches for Ada while Lydia is more concerned with learning about the visitor, Mr. Winter, than her missing sister. There is also a section of Lydia's story where discussions about slavery and evolution occur. While slavery was still happening in America when Alice in Wonderland is set, and Charles Darwin is a character in this story, around the time he released The Origin of Species, these topics felt out of place with the rest of the story. The commentary on those topics were almost completely unnecessary and distracted from the story Maguire set out to tell. While some may have wondered what happened in England while Alice was in Wonderland, the chapters taking place in Victorian England really slowed the story down and distracted from the parts of the story I wanted to read most.

The chapters of the story that did not focus on life in Victorian London took place in Wonderland. Sadly, Ada's adventure through Wonderland was far less entertaining and exciting as Alice's. For the majority of Ada's adventure in Wonderland, she's simply trying to find Alice and has no adventures for herself. She often arrives just after an iconic scene from Alice in Wonderland has ended, missing all of the excitement and most of the wonder. For example, she arrives at the Mad Hatter's tea party after Alice has already left. Ada could've had her own adventure, but instead spends page after page chasing after Alice and not being able to truly experience Wonderland. Due to a combination of too much emphasis on Victorian England, and no excitement in the Wonderland chapters, I found After Alice to be rather boring.

I chose to read this book because I loved Maguire's more famous work, Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West. I was amazed by the character work and character development he created in that story.He turned a character who was seen as pure evil, the Wicked Witch, and gave her personality and complex motivations. I was expecting the same to happen in After Alice, but sadly we don't get that. While there are a plethora of characters, none are fully-fleshed out. Lydia is a stereotypical self-involved teenager and Ada's most notable character trait is a dislike for her governess and the fact that she's awkward. The characters aren't really characters, and thus there's no character growth or real character arcs that take place. It's difficult for me to read a novel where I don't connect, or even like, a single character, and that's what happened here.

While I wasn't a fan of this book overall, there were some things that I enjoyed. Maguire's writing style has always enraptured me. He excels at writing his descriptions and creating a clear, vivid picture of the world for the reader. In the case of After Alice, he took great pains to try and replicate Lewis Carroll's clever writing, and in places, he achieves that goal. He gets closer than most Alice-inspired works do at capturing Carroll's voice, and while I didn't enjoy the plot overall, his ability to imitate the original work kept me closing the book and giving up.

Overall, I have to say that After Alice simply wasn't the novel for me. The writing is amazing, but the plot and character-work left me feeling unfulfilled. My main issues with the novel stem from one factor: the story is incredibly boring. There's no wonder in Wonderland and while the blurb promises a new story, the promise goes unfulfilled.

Rating: 1.7 Stars

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The YA Series No One Talks About

Since I started this blog, I've been thinking a lot about books I've read over the years. Not only have I been remembering books that changed my life on a very deep level, but also some series I remember loving that I'd forgotten about. When I was making a list of young adult series that I love for another post, I was suddenly reminded of the Shadow Children series by Margaret Peterson Haddix. So, I decided to dedicate an entire post to that series by itself.

The Shadow Children series consists of seven novels (Among the Hidden, Among the Impostors, Among the Betrayed, Among the Barons, Among the Brave, Among the Enemy and Among the Free). It takes place in a dystopian country where the government has enforced strict population control laws in order to control overpopulation after environmental conditions have severely limited resources, particularly food. As a result, it is against the law for families to have more than two children; the law is strictly enforced by the Population Police, who are said to conduct raids specifically to find and punish families who have more than two children. Due to these circumstance, the third, and any subsequent, children are denied the right to exist and must spend their lives hidden to avoid imprisonment or death.

The first book in this series, Among the Hidden, was the book that sparked my interest in dystopian novels. While I'd read some dystopian fiction before it, I either didn't understand the dysptopian elements at the time, or I didn't find the story particularly interesting. Not with this series though. They were the perfect book to get me into dystopias. From this series, I found The Hunger Games and other, more widely-discussed dystopian series.

While books such as The Hunger Games certainly deserve the attention they get, I feel like this series is being forgotten by people. I read these books in middle school, and while several other students read them, I don't think that was the case for everyone. I think they've been largely overlooked, as many people I've asked haven't heard of them. Or maybe I've been asking the wrong people. It's a good series for the middle grade and young adult audience, being on the right reading level and age-appropriate for readers at the younger end of the YA age range. It's being overlooked, and it doesn't deserve to.

In conclusion, if you enjoy dystopia fiction and you haven't read this series, I think you should check it out. If you have read this series, what did you think of it? Are there any novels or series you think aren't getting the attention they deserve?


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April Book Haul

With everything going on, I've been doing a lot of reading. As a result, I've inevitably gone on more than one book-buying binge recently. Strangely, all of the books I purchased arrived on the same day, so I've decided to make a book haul post to show off my purchases.

(Please note, all book blurbs are copied from Goodreads.com)

And I Darken by Kiersten White || Genre: Fantasy

Blurb: No one expects a princess to be brutal. And Lada Dragwlya likes it that way. Ever since she and her gentle younger brother, Radu, were wrenched from their homeland of Wallachia and abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman courts, Lada has known that being ruthless is the key to survival. She and Radu are doomed to act as pawns in a vicious game, an unseen sword hovering over their every move. For the lineage that makes them special also makes them targets. 

Lada despises the Ottomans and bides her time, planning her vengeance for the day when she can return to Wallachia and claim her birthright. Radu longs only for a place where he feels safe. And when they meet Mehmed, the defiant and lonely son of the sultan, Radu feels that he’s made a true friend—and Lada wonders if she’s finally found someone worthy of her passion. 

But Mehmed is heir to the very empire that Lada has sworn to fight against—and that Radu now considers home. Together, Lada, Radu, and Mehmed form a toxic triangle that strains the bonds of love and loyalty to the breaking point.

God Emperor of Dune by Frank Herbet || Genre: Science Fiction

Blurb: More than three thousand years have passed since the first events recorded in DUNE. Only one link survives with those tumultuous times: the grotesque figure of Leto Atreides, son of the prophet Paul Muad'Dib, and now the virtually immortal God Emperor of Dune. He alone understands the future, and he knows with a terrible certainty that the evolution of his race is at an end unless he can breed new qualities into his species. But to achieve his final victory, Leto Atreides must also bring about his own downfall.

Prelude to Extinction by Andreas Karpf || Genre: Science Fiction

Blurb: When Jack Harrison climbed down the short ladder from the airlock and stepped onto the debris covered soil, the ground crackled with the sound of dried leaves and twigs. Warm sunlight shined through his helmet, making him almost forget the decade he just spent captaining Earth’s first ship to another star system. The serene tropical surroundings, though, stood in stark contrast to the long abandoned structures that lay nearby.

Evidence points to a massacre – the systematic extermination of an alien colony hundreds of millennia ahead of humanity. Time, however, has erased any trace of the attackers. Jack and his crew barely start probing the ruins before their curiosity betrays them as an abandoned alien device cuts them off from their main ship. Lost and short on supplies, survival soon becomes their only goal. Even their short-lived rescue by an alien race, who themselves are under siege, offers little hope. As they struggle to find a way home, signs begin pointing to a danger darker than any they could have foreseen. Jack knows that playing it safe may no longer be an option – but his only other choice is to confront a threat that they don’t even begin to understand.

Batman Volume 1: The Court of Owls by Scott Snyder || Genre: Comics

Blurb: After a series of brutal murders rocks Gotham City, Batman begins to realize that perhaps these crimes go far deeper than appearances suggest. As the Caped Crusader begins to unravel this deadly mystery, he discovers a conspiracy going back to his youth and beyond to the origins of the city he's sworn to protect. Could the Court of Owls, once thought to be nothing more than an urban legend, be behind the crime and corruption? Or is Bruce Wayne losing his grip on sanity and falling prey to the pressures of his war on crime?

Superman, Volume 1: Son of Superman by Peter J. Tomasi || Genre: Comics

Blurb: After the stunning events of DC Universe: Rebirth, the world is left without Superman! Luckily, there is another Man of Steel to fill his shoes: the pre-Flashpoint Kal-El! However, can this new Superman protect the world while raising a super-son with his wife, Lois Lane? And should they help their boy use his new and rapidly increasing abilities, or hide them from the world?

Those are the books I bought during my book-buying sprees. I know it's not a huge haul, but it's more books than I've bought in a while, and I felt like sharing them.

Have you bought any new books recently? Any books you'd recommend?

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Ubiety

Ubiety is a 2019 adult fiction novel by Grzegorz Kunowski. The novel has elements of mystery and magical realism as well as some aspects of psychological thriller. I was provided with a free copy of the novel, by the author, in exchange for an honest review.

The description of the novel is as follows: If you were to find yourself at the edge of a dying world with a lingering sense of reality, would you simply fade into the nothingness or would you fight for everything you hold dear? This assertive question is at the heart of the thought-provoking book Ubiety, for this book was designed to help people emerge into reality and find the truth whilst questioning both what could and should be. Join Adam’s journey through the gruelling world of the unforgiving future, diving into the many mysteries which will uncover bittersweet secrets to see if he can save the fate of his daughter along with that of the world, using nothing but his boldness of character, the brilliance of one’s mind and a hint of madness.

One of the strengths of this story comes from how well-written and descriptive the setting is. As Adam moves from one scene to another, one section of the book to another, the author goes to considerable length to make sure the reader isn’t only able to envision a given location, but feel as if they are really there. Some may feel the writing is too vivid at times, but it makes the novel very immersive. There was also a great deal of creativity used in forming the dream sequences that occur in each part of the story. The dream sequences are used to pose philosophical questions about life, the world, the nature of free will and death itself. Make no mistake, Ubiety is a book meant to make the reader think.

There’s not very much I can say about characters, as the only named character in the book is Adam himself. Given that he’s an unreliable narrator, and it’s never made sure how much of what occurs is real and how much isn’t, he doesn’t have a character arc and there’s not a lot that can be said about his personality. He’s a man in a very dark place. Additionally, I can’t say anything about the plot of this book, since there isn’t one. Each section has it’s own plot, in one way or another, but the story lacks a central conflict and resolution, instead being a series of vignettes that are loosely connected.

When I was first contacted by the author, he described the book as being similar to James Joyce’s Ulysses, which I feel is a fair description. Ubiety is written in a way that is intentionally confusing, including run-on sentences that last most of a page and making sure many details of what’s going on aren’t clear. This isn’t an easy, quick read, despite the fact that it’s less than 125 pages. I found myself having to read at a very slow pace to be able to follow what was happening and needing to reread in parts. I do feel like the author went a little overboard with what some call “10 cent words”. Using complex language and words is not something I take issue with, but the amount used here makes this work very frustrating to read. It’s difficult to like a story and become immersed in it if the reader needs a thesaurus to understand every single page. Having said all of that, this book is a success in the sense that the author seems to have achieved what he meant to with his writing style. I didn’t like the writing style, though.

Overall, I can’t really say that I enjoyed Ubiety. It was a struggle to get through, and since its story is all over the place and has no real resolution, I was a bit annoyed when I reached the end. I will commend the author for writing this work at the age of 16 and I feel like, given some time and with some editorial feedback, he could have a very successful career as an author. Fans of dark and intense literature might enjoy this book, as well as anyone who wants to ponder over the meaning of life for a few days. This book simply wasn’t for me.

Rating: 2.3 Stars  

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The TBR Book Tag

I was tagged by Krista over on The Bookish Hedgemom to do this tag. So, let's dig into my seemingly endless TBR pile.

HOW DO YOU KEEP TRACK OF YOUR TBR?

I have a spreadsheet which shows all the books I've bought, ARCs I've received and books I own but haven't read. Whenever a new book is purchased, it's added to the list. When a book is read, I move it to a separate column. I also use Goodreads, but I'm not as diligent about keeping the to-read shelf up to date, because it feels overwhelming.

IS YOUR TBR MOSTLY PRINT OR EBOOK?

Honestly, it's about 75/25. Most of my TBR are physical books, but I have quite a few eBooks on the list as well. 

HOW DO YOU DECIDE WHAT TO READ NEXT?

Every few weeks, I break out my calendar and plan for the next month. Obviously, adjustments are made if I'm not in the right mood to read a certain book, but for the most part, that's how I decided what's next.

A BOOK THAT'S BEEN ON YOUR TBR THE LONGEST?

The Witcher series. I have most of the books, and I've had them since before the Netflix series, but I just haven't gotten around to reading them yet.

A BOOK THAT YOU RECENTLY ADDED TO YOUR TBR

And I Darken by Kiersten White. In fact, it's so recent that I don't even have the book itself yet.

A BOOK THAT'S ON YOUR TBR BECAUSE OF THE BEAUTIFUL COVER

The Hollowed Gods by A.J. Vrana. The cover just looks so gorgeous to me.

A BOOK ON YOUR TBR THAT YOU NEVER ACTUALLY PLAN ON READING

While I want to say that I plan to read everything on my TBR, I'm pretty sure that I probably won't ever actually end up reading The Once and Future King

AN UNPUBLISHED BOOK ON YOUR TBR THAT YOU'RE EXCITED FOR



The Orphanage of Gods by Helena Coggan. This cover is gorgeous and the description makes me wish it was already June.

A BOOK ON YOUR TBR THAT EVERYONE HAD READ EXCEPT YOU

Blood Heir by Amelie Wen Zhao. I keep seeing it in everyone's tweets and bookstagram posts

A BOOK ON YOUR TBR THAT EVERYONE RECOMMENDS TO YOU.

This is a tie between Red, White and Royal Blue and the Six of Crows duology.

A BOOK ON YOUR TBR THAT YOU ARE DYING TO READ

Children of Virtue and Vengeance by Tomi Adeyemi. I loved Children of Blood and Bone and I can't wait to see where the story goes from there.

THE NUMBER OF BOOKS ON YOUR GOODREADS SHELF

16, but as I said on the first question, most of my TBR list isn't on Goodreads, because seeing too many things on the TBR shelf stresses me out. The actual number is around 40.


And that's the tag. I'm not good at tagging people in these things, because I never know who has/hasn't done the tag before. If this looks interesting to you, consider yourself tagged!