Thursday 19 March 2015

Splintered by A.G Howard


Series: Splintered
Author: A.G Howard
Page Count: 371
Published: January 1st, 2013
Publisher: Amulet Books
  4 Stars ★★★★





Alyssa's mother is currently residing in a mental institution because she claims to talk to and hear bugs and plants. She was admitted after an incident where she cut Alyssa's hands in the garden, and Alyssa still has the scars to remind her.

Alyssa harbors a secret crush on Jeb, her enemy's boyfriend, and she can also hear the whispers of plants and bugs, just like her mother claims to hear. She dreads her future, fearing that it will be spent in an institution just like her Wonderland obsessed mother.

However, a shocking discovery and an encounter with a figure from her past leads her straight to the supposedly fictional Wonderland, but nothing is exactly as Lewis Carroll described in his works. With Jeb she ventures through perilous landscapes to the heart of Wonderland, hoping to fix all of her ancestor's, Alice's, mistakes. With the mysterious and infuriating Morpheus, they continue on, but something isn't right, and she will soon face a deep betrayal....

I was quite impressed with this book. I really appreciated how it deviated from the "average" YA novel by ditching the "insta-love". I have no problem with insta-love, when I'm in the right mood for it. But the romance in this book was not only meaningful but understandable, concrete, and at times heart-wrenching.

The author described the characters and landscape in great detail, especially the netherling creatures and the outfits sported by them, which really added to the reader's ability to truly visualize Wonderland and it's inhabitants.

There were times when I had to push myself a little to get to the next chapter, but the author made up for that in their descriptions, characters, and other mind-blowing events in the story.

I most definitely recommend this novel! Fans of YA, fantasy, romance, and paranormal stories will really appreciate this book. If you're looking for a unique story full of plot twists and emotion, this is for you!