I really enjoyed the main plot and all the fairy tale (ish) in it. The story is a bit dark and I loved this bit in it. The thing is, until half of the book I was really enjoying, but around 80% of it I just wanted to be over. It got slow and all the details made me confused. This book is kind of a reteling of Alice in Wonderland, at least I think it is similar. Anyway, I really liked the book and I am looking forward to read her next book on the series. Plus, I really need "Tales from the Hinterland" book right now!

Alice and her mother Ella travel from place to place, never settling as they seem to feel that they have bad luck following them. One day on news of a death they decide they can finally stop runnng but unfortunately it's not long before they're soon caught in bad luck's web. I thought the premise of luck, fairytales and mysterious happenings was intriguing and I looked forwrd to reading the book, however, I found the story itself fell somewhat short of expectations. I found the first half frustrating as it was difficult to understand or even really care about the characters as information aorund the events were quite vague. The second half was much better, exploring the world of Hinterland and the creepy, strange, dark stories it held. I did enjoy the book and would recommend, as one thing's for sure, the fairytales told within these pages are unlike any I've heard before.

the hazel wood by Melissa Albert.
Seventeen-year-old Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice's life on the road, always a step ahead of the strange bad luck biting at their heels. But when Alice's grandmother, the reclusive author of a book of pitch-dark fairy tales, dies alone on her estate - the Hazel Wood - Alice learns how bad her luck can really get. Her mother is stolen away - by a figure who claims to come from the cruel supernatural world where her grandmother's stories are set. Alice's only lead is the message her mother left behind: STAY AWAY FROM THE HAZEL WOOD. To retrieve her mother, Alice must venture first to the Hazel Wood, then into the world where her grandmother's tales began . . .
This was an ok read. I found it slow in places. 3*.

I would usually only give something a one or two star rating is it’s problematic or I have a personal vendetta against it because it reminds me of exams, but I’m giving this one a low rating because it’s just so boring. I feel like it’s marketed as a fantasy, but I was two-thirds into the book when I finally reached the fantasy aspect, and at this point I had stopped caring about the story entirely. This book feels more like ‘Alice in Wonderland’ rewritten as a YA mystery, and mystery is a genre that I’m not a huge fan of reading, so that could be why the story didn’t work for me.

Some points (good and bad):
• The first half is extremely slow and too long
• The storyline relies heavily on fairytale logic
• So many thinks conveniently happen
• I’m still very confused by the ending
• Alice is rude and selfish and unlikable, but there’s no depth to make the traits interesting
• I don’t think she’s supposed to be unlikable
• She disregards how Finch was uncomfortable around the cops (he’s biracial and he’s explaining about racial profiling) and just says that he’s rich and privileged
• Ellery/Finch is an extreme hipster who also has no depth, but is slightly less unlikable
• The other named characters aren’t too memorable (as I can’t remember their names)
• It kind of romanticises/glorifies kidnapping??
• Alice was kidnapped when she was six and has so many fond memories of it that it concerns me
• It references Alice’s grandmother’s backstory a lot and I found that more interesting than the actual story
• It includes stories from the grandmother’s book that I actually loved

In summary, this was not the book for me or my tastes. But, just because I disliked this book, it doesn’t mean that you won’t pick it up and be engrossed and love it and devour it in a day.

Kind of a darker retelling of “Alice in Wonderland”, down to the character’s name, but more hinged on fairy tales (the ones with not so happy endings, that is). Alice Crewe has spent her whole life going from one place to the other with her mother Ella, never meeting her famous grandmother, Althea, an author whose book is also impossible to find. When Althea dies, Ella and Alice startto believe they can finally have a normal life, but of course this isn’t meant to be, as things keep changing for the worst.

I liked this book, although I didn’t love it, possibly because I had a hard time connecting with the characters. I had mixed feelings about the time devoted to them, to be honest: on the one hand, I wanted the Hinterland part of the story to start much sooner, on the other hand, I felt that I also needed more time to get to know Alice and Finch better. Mostly they were all ‘on the surface’, and apart from Alice’s pent-up anger, I didn’t feel like there was much personality underneath. (I did like them, just in a sort of… indifferent way?)

The fairy tales / nonsensical parts of the book appealed to me more, in spite of similes that made me go ‘huh?’ more than a few times. I do have a soft spot for that kind of whimsical atmosphere, I guess. And what we see of the Hinterland tales Althea wrote made me think that I’d like to read *that* book, and know how its tales actually end.

The plot had its good sides and its downsides. I liked how its Hinterland part dealt with the power of stories, their straps, and the sort of twisted logic that one can find in them; however, I felt like it was a little lacklustre, and dealt with too fast (compared to the part devoted to the ‘real world’). There were a few loose threads, too—for instance, the red-haired man showing up at the café, then disappearing again. (Why did he go away at that specific moment? It was never really explained.)

All in all, it was an enjoyable novel, for one who likes this specific brand of atmosphere. It jusn’t wasn’t exceptional for me.

I reviewed this book on my YouTube channel, link below. Thank you for the opportunity to read this amazing book.

17 year old Alice has been on the move with her mother as long as she can remember, outrunning the bad luck that always seems to follow them to a new home. Her life has been punctuated with wonderings about her grandmother, who she knows to be famous author Althea Proserpine – she once wrote a cult classic books called “Tales of the Hinterland” then disappeared into obscurity. The book begins with the news reaching them that Althea has died, and Alice’s mother suddenly disappears mysteriously, with the only clues leading Alice back to her grandmother’s stories.
This was a summary that really appealed to me – the merging of the real world and fairytale, and it didn’t disappoint. The tales spun by Althea were fairytales that have never been heard before, and some more gruesome, such as Twice Killed Katherine and Alice-Three-Times – I’d love to read all the tales themselves in full! The allusions to well known fairytales throughout were fun to spot, and the adventure aspect of the story was fun.
I have to admit it took me a little longer than I expected to get through the book as it felt more convoluted than it needed to be in places – a little too YA (which is an odd complaint from me as I love YA and am not afraid to admit it!). I think it was just aimed at a slightly younger audience than me. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it and am looking forward to the second installment. (Also, just look at that beautiful cover!)

Having seen a number of very average reviews, I went into this with no real expectations and have been pleasantly surprised.

The first 2/3 of this book are brilliant (and if it had continued that way it may have ended up a 5* read) but the last 1/3 just got a bit weird for my liking. I was loving the adventure road trip that Alice and Ellery were on and then it just abruptly ended and a whole new story came in, which didn't really make much sense for me.

The whole point of the book ended up sat on the backburner whilst totally random things were happening instead and I found the final 1/3 to be fairly disappointing if I'm honest.

Overall, still very enjoyable and I would recommend it.

Dark and mysterious and not a little scary in parts. I found myself being drawn into the depths of The Hazel Wood and wanting to be unnerved. I wasn’t disappointed! There was an element to the book that made me want to be drawn into the Hinterlands to live out and become part of the story. Maybe there’s a part of us, young or old that enjoys being scared by a good tale of good and evil. Loved it.

This book was a page turner. I totally was drawn into the world that the author created. It tells the story of Alice and her mom, who live quite a nomadic life. Then they get the news that her Grandmother,famous for a book of dark fairy tales, has passed away. Alice is then thrust more into the world where her grandmothers tales take place, as her mom disappears. As Alice does everything to find her mother, she learns more and more about the mysterious hazel wood. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and would definitely recommend it. Thrilling and a great read. It truly was a dark fairy tale and filled with adventure.

A real mixed book for me. I see a lot of people who review this and say it took too long to get to the 'fantasy' part but for me I really enjoyed the part of the book that came before that and it started losing me around 200 pages when we got to the fantasy.
I should say that is probably down to the fact that I really struggle with fantasy, I really should stop buying and requesting it. That will be a late New Years Resolution for me I think. 'Caroline, you do not understand fantasy - stop trying to force it!'
But for people who do like fantasy, give this book a go.

Fairy tales with a twist. We follow Alice on her journey to discover the truth about herself, her mother, her grandmother and the mysterious Hinterland. The book gives you little bites of information, leaving you curious for more as you follow Alice and Finch. Very intriguing, would recommend to friends

My thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Children’s Publishers, UK for a review copy of this book.

I’d been noticing this book all over and found the cover very intriguing (though I didn’t know much about the story except that it had to do with fairy tales) so when I found it listed on NetGalley I put in a request. This is the story of seventeen-year-old Alice who with her mother Ella has been living a roving life―since she was a child, every few months, sometimes longer, sometimes shorter, they must move, for bad luck finds them everywhere they go. But something changes and they make an attempt (albeit not a very good one) at setting down, but then Ella’s mother goes mysteriously missing. Realising that this has something to do with a book of rather dark fairy tales Tales from Hinterland, which her grandmother Althea Proserpine wrote many years ago, her only book which was somewhat successful but is not wrapped in mystery, Alice sets out to track her down. In the process she is helped by her classmate/friend(?) Ellery Finch who also happens to be a huge fan of the book, and practically knows it from cover to cover.

So to start off with, I must say I felt the tiniest bit of disappointment because somehow or other I was expecting this one to be in a historical/old-fashioned setting but it wasn’t but that wasn’t much of a bother once I actually started reading. I enjoyed the writing overall. The story is told from first person perspective, but to me Alice’s voice didn’t always come across as that of a seventeen-year-old, sometimes she seemed much older (though I wouldn’t say that about her actions/behaviour―that was very much a teen).

I really thought the author was very imaginative with the whole atmosphere she created and the plot itself as well. She weaves in references/tributes to known fairy tales but the ones she creates are very much her own and while much much darker I think than our more common ones, I found them interesting to read. Even outside of the fairy tales, when Alice and Ellery are tracking down her mother Ella, the atmosphere is dark, creepy (very creepy), and I found when I put down the book for the day, I wasn’t left feeling the most comfortable, so that certainly was a job well done. The plot again I enjoyed, it had me interested enough to want to keep reading on to find out how things turn out―what really happened to Ella, and what Alice and Ella’s connection is with the world in Hinterland. Some reviewers seem to have found the initial part of the book a little slow, but I didn’t think so. In fact, I thought it did its job well building up the anticipation and the excitement towards what the magic world would be like, what its secrets were, or whether indeed there really was one. I did think it dragged a bit at a point or two because I remember thinking why they <i>still</i> hadn’t got there. As far as the second part was concerned, while I found it interesting reading, to see how things played out, I wasn’t entirely grabbed by it, though the end was satisfying. The ‘mystery’ element in the plot or rather what the actual connection was between Alice, her mother, grandmother and the Hinterland world, I didn’t guess at all.

Alice herself I felt very neutral towards except at some points where she rather annoyed me. For instance, her constant digs at Ellery about being rich and privileged do get a bit much when it is clear and she is aware that his life is no less complex than hers, and while may be privileged in one way, is far from it in others. But why I didn’t really ‘like’ her I did want to find out how things would turn out for her. Ellery, though he wasn’t perfect, was someone I felt more sympathetic towards.

So overall, a pretty good read―there were many things that I really enjoyed about the book, but it wasn’t a five-star read for me.

I notice from the goodreads page that there is a sequel planned plus the Tales from Hinterland themselves, the latter I know I want to read―the sequel―I’m curious about that as well.

I recieved this book to read for a review and ahare my thoughts with the world!
I was happy to be able to read this book, the synopsis sounded this this would be a great page turner, alas for me, this did not happen.
It started well, Alice and her mother seemed constantly on the move, moving from one place to another, always seemingly to have bad luck following them.
Alices mother dissappears leaving a message telling her to 'stay away from the hazel wood' but of course, she pays no attention to the message and enrolls a friend who has her own agenda for helping her and off they go to attempt a rescue.
Alices Grandmother wrote a cult classic book called the Hinterlands, creepy tales about the Hazel woods, all this and the dissappearance of Alices mother are all intertwined.
I just wanted to spend more time in the wood, I want a book full of creepyness and wanted to turn each page with fervour, but it just did not happen.
I am not saying that I did not like reading this, it was wasa little bit of a let down, I wanted to read it and get blinkered by the story and if there was a noise in the house, jump at it, becuse the story has sucked me in so much, I wanted to read it long into the night engrossed, but for me alas, my eyes dropped with tiredness and it was not enough to keep we awake.
I love Alice in Wonderland and was hoping for that type of feel, to be fair it did, so perhaps I am being too harsh?
I will re read this, becuaase you always grasp new nuences when you read/ watch something ofr the second time, and perhaps enjoy it more, especially when I have to read and savour.
Will I buy this ofr my book collection? I dont know yet, perhaps one day!

While the plot opens in a real world setting there is a palpable tension from the start, giving the sense that something other-worldly is going to happen. Alice's mother disappears under strange circumstances and as she sets out in search of her mother, there are some very tense and sometimes gory scenes. This is a very imaginative take on the world of fairy tales, the sort that the Grimm Brothers' wrote rather than the modern sanitized versions. Not everything is resolved by the end but that seems fitting in the circumstances. I did feel the plot dragged a little towards the end but a very thrilling read all the same.

I didn’t enjoy it as much as I expected. This is so sad considering the beautiful cover (the alternate edition) and the blurb gave so much hope to me 🙁 In fact, I realize it now, that I went into a reading slump last month because of this book only. It was too dragged. In simple words, this book was not for me.

This story is about Alice who grew up moving from one place to another with her mom Ella. They were always haunted by bad luck so they kept changing their places until one day they receive a letter that Alice’s grandmother, Althea, is dead. Althea was the author of famous fairytales books titled Tales of the Hinterland. Alice was never able to get her hands on the actual book but once her mother gets disappear she had no way except entering the dark and mysterious world of Hinterland and the Hazel Wood.

What I Liked
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1. Like everyone else, I loved the writing of Melissa Albert. There is no doubt that she wrote beautifully and at times it was captivating.
2. I loved the different fairy tales that the author wrote. In fact, reading those fairy tales were my favourite part of this book. All the stories were creepy and some of those even gave me goosebumps.
3. I loved the relationship of Alice and Ella here. Alice was so determined to find her mother that she was ready to do anything and go anywhere to find her.
4. Finch as a character was so adorable. I liked how he was so invested in Althea’s book.
5. I like all the description of the Hazel Wood and Hinterland to some point. Knowing all those little details about the estate was really interesting.

"Life never turns out how you imagine it will when you’re young. Everything is smaller than you think, or too big. It all smells a little funny and fits like somebody else’s shirt.”


What I didn’t like
--------------------------------
1. The first half of the book seemed very slow and was dragged too much. I don’t think it was required to make it that long. Most of the first part contains the road trips of Alice and Ella which doesn’t add much to the main plot.
2. I was not able to relate to Alice as a character. I wanted to love and understand her. But with all the craziness and anger that was portrayed for her, I felt it really hard to connect with her. At times I was irritated by all the foolishness she was doing and the way she used Finch.
3. I wanted more story for Ella and Finch. I really wanted to know Ella. I felt that her part as a character in the story was too small. Also, a major portion of the book was set around the stories written by Alice’s grandmother Althea, yet we don’t see her side of the story as much as required.
4. The second part of the book was filled with so many random and bizarre characters. I had a hard time remembering the purpose of each of them in the story. Later part became Alice in Wonderland for me with all those creepy characters kept popping in.
5. There was too much information withhold with each character and sometimes I was irritated. You don’t need every character to hide some information so that you can introduce a new character. It just made the story more confusing for me.
6. I didn’t like the ending. I felt it was too rushed and complicated. I had a hard time understanding it and all the coincidences were just weird.

Final Thoughts
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As I said earlier, this book was definitely not for me. Though I appreciate the author’s writing style and her imagination, I am not impressed by the story itself and the characters. I felt that this book would have been more interesting if it was just a short stories collection of those creepy fairy tales instead of a whole novel. For most of the parts it was boring for me and I had to literally drag it till the end. This book is more suited for the readers who like creepy tales and heavy fantasy world.

After a rather slow start, this definitely picked up! However, I did rather like the slow build up - it really built up the main character, Alice. Alice and her mother, Ella, are pretty much ‘on the run’ from Ella’s mother, and some unseen ‘bad luck’. The bad luck is something that Alice could never imagine. I loved the parts in the Hazel Wood, and I’m intrigued to see how the second book in the series will potentially revisit The Hinterland.
I’m a sucker for grown up fairy tales (because I’m pretty sure all original fairy tales were at med at grown ups, and not children at all!) and this did it for me.

Alice is used to life on the road, never settling in one place and trying to outrun the bad luck that seems to follow her and her mother around. But when Alice's grandmother dies at her home in the Hazel Woods, forcing the pair to return to the estate, Aluce soon finds that her bad luck is about to get a whole lot worse.

This is incredibly slow paced, and I also found the story itself incredibly misleading. I thought this was going to be a YA fantasy but most of the first half of the book is actually more of a contemporary setting with hardly any fantasy elements. It's also rather dull, and I couldn't even tell you what actually happens up till Alice enters the Hazel Wood other than endless travelling. By the time the fantasy aspects come into play, about half way through, I found I just didn't care anymore.

The writing itself also seems to play on pretty over substance. Most of it doesn't make sense and it's overly descriptive in a way that benefits no one other than to further confuse the reader. I repeatedly wished that the writing would just say it how it was, instread of taking me on elaborate and flowery prose of endless rambling.

The characters are hard to connect with, especially Alice who seems particularly unlikeable. She's selfish and stand offish, and I couldn't warm to her at all. She's also really mean to Finch, her supposed friend and companion - constantly disregarding his opinions and feelings for her own gain while being incredibly critical of every character she meets. It left a bad taste, and I genuinely hoped at one point she'd get lost in the Hazel Wood and we could continue with just Finch. At least then he'd have gotten a chance to speak instead of being Alice's punchbag, and might have developed a proper personality. The other characters, the residents of the Hintermost are irritating and unlikeable. All appear 'mysterious' or deliberately obstructive just because they can be. Not helpful.

The only aspects I liked, unfortunately, were the few and far between fairy tales told by Althea, Alice's grandmother. They were interesting enough to keep me going, but barely.

Really enjoyed this Neil Gaimanesque story. Fabulous premise and great characters but somehow lost the fifth star along the way and I’m not sure how? Maybe needs stricter editing or a slightly edgier ending. If you are looking for young adult fantasy/thriller then it’s worth a read.

This is very clever. The first half is almost completely a contemporary mystery, before the fantasy builds into a wonderland like world. Clearly this is hard to write, the narrator’s slow acceptance isn’t entirely believable, but the ambition and originality more than make up. This isn’t a book about character, the secondaries are barely developed at all. This was in my first Fairyloot box and I was very pleased to receive it.