Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Alice

Warning: this book mentions rape a LOT. Sometimes more descriptive/graphic than others, but parts of the act and her feelings (and flashbacks) about it are referenced WAY more than I would’ve liked, (it’s brought up within the first two chapters, and then many times after, including involving other characters), and I almost had to quit reading because of it. So keep that in mind.

I mostly enjoyed this book (obv minus when the above kept getting brought up). I don’t remember if I ever actually read the original book, and it’s been a long time since I’ve even seen the movies, so that may be a factor in why I enjoyed it more lol. I say “mostly” though, because I thought the end was rather anti-climactic, which was hella disappointing. I don’t know if the author ran out of steam and time before the deadline, but I was hoping for much more than there was.

However I really enjoyed how they showed Alice learning to find herself again after a deeply traumatic event. I’ve been through a lot of similar events that Alice went through, and found that the representation of being deeply scarred and the struggles of trying break out of that cocoon you placed yourself in to be rather accurate. I would’ve been annoyed if they instantly made her a girlboss™️ once she escaped the institution. I find it incredibly frustrating when stories (books/movies/anything) force toxic positivity down our throats like that actually solves all our problems, so this was a refreshing (albeit triggering) change.

Anyway, hopefully this makes sense. I not only have a migraine, but even rehashing this stuff is taxing mentally and emotionally. So keep your furry friends (or stuffed animals) nearby to help you through those portions if it’s triggering (and it’s totally okay to skip this book for now, or ever, if you don’t want to encounter those parts of the storyline), and check in with your body to see if you need a break. I’m now curious to read the original book(s) to compare different aspects of the storylines.

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slavic_bookworm's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.75

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indubidablyali's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

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lilos_bookcase's review against another edition

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adventurous dark fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

It was not a 'I liked that' 4 stars, but also not a 'meh' 3 stars, so I'm going with sth inbetween.
I like dark retellings of faire tales, and it was fun figuring out the fairy tale identities of the less-obvious characters.
However, the problems of the main characters got solved too easily and too fast. The book could have used more pages to maybe give at least one fight/confrontation more content.

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mollydorward's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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couldbestephen's review

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1.25

Alice in Wonderland works as a piece of surrealist fantasy because it has grounding “in the real world.” We have a point of reference to why things are strange because Alice comes from a world like ours, with no talking rabbits, no size changing potions, and no croquet with flamingos and hedgehogs. Wonderland is separate from Here. In this novel, Wonderland and Here are one. The characters such as The Cheshire, The Rabbit (of which there were two), and The Walrus are name only versions of their Wonderland counterparts, and most of them are human trafficking rapists. The world of Alice has Magicians (who are supposedly gone. There is a twist that will leave you very unsurprised), potions, mermaids, but they’re all normal, except their not, but they are… it’s a mess. The writing is occasionally fun, Henry occasionally uses language that sounds like it could belong in Lewis Carroll’s work, but then the moment passes and you’re left with an empty feeling.
I think this books is mostly supposed to be dark romance. But Alice and “Hatcher” are just so bland, you don’t care. Hatcher is a broody killer with a tender heart, and Alice is a grown woman who is still “childlike.” It’s a problem. All in all, not worth the read.

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rosytosey's review

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adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

This book is great at sweeping you in from the start. Adventurous horror that will leave you holding your breath for the next encounter. There were times where I felt deeply saddened by the content I was reading, but I suppose that’s what makes it such good writing. I loved the style of writing and the reduction at the end of the novel. However, I am not in a hurry to read the second novel.

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carissa230's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Well, this is a unique, dark take on Alice in Wonderland.

Alice is in a mental hospital and highly medicated after the events in Wonderland. Turns out things were bad down there, the worst thing imaginable for most women.

When Alice is able to get free from the hospital she returns to Wonderland with the help of her companion Hatcher. They are going to work together to make changes to Wonderland.

At this point, I am not sure if I will continue the series, but that was a wild ride.

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