The Real Wonderland

Title: ArchEnemy ~ book 3 of the Looking Glass Wars
Author: Frank Beddor
Genre: Young Adult, fantasy, speculative fiction, fairy-tale retelling
Source: I own it! And I'm desperately waiting to meet Frank again to get the book stamped and signed.

The Looking Glass Wars is the story of Wonderland that could be. What if the Wonderland story we all know was actually a second account? What if Lewis Carroll didn't dream up this story, but instead he heard it from the displaced princess of a war torn Wonderland, Alyss?

Frank Beddor creates a world where those theories are possible and more. With Imagination as the key, guide, and source of all possible things we are led into the heart of Wonderland where good is battling evil, right and wrong aren't always crystal clear, and those darn Caterpillar Oracles are meddling in everything. 

ArchEnemy summary from website:

The war for Wonderland has become a war for Imagination!

King Arch has declared himself King of Wonderland as Alyss searches wildly for the solution to the metaphysical disaster that has engulfed her Queendom. The power of Imagination has been lost!

Alyss's search for answers takes her to London where Arch's assassins threaten Alice Liddell and her family. But after coming to her adopted family's assistance, Alyss discovers herself trapped in a conundrum of evaporating puddles. The shimmering portals that exist to transport her home through the Pool of Tears are disappearing! What is happening in Wonderland? Deep within the Valley of Mushrooms the Caterpillar Oracles issue this prophecy: "Action shall be taken to ensure the safety of the Heart Crystal. For Everqueen." But who is Everqueen?

As the metamorphosis of Wonderland unfolds, enemies become allies, bitter rivals face-off, and Queen Alyss and Redd Heart must confront their pasts in this thrilling, no-holds-barred conclusion.

Overall: I adore this series! Beddor's version of Wonderland has had me in its imagination fueled grip for several years now. I got lost in book one.  I couldn't wait for book two to be released. The graphic novels made me squee in delight (in front of the author no less). This book earned my husband thousands of kisses when he made it appear on my bookshelf.  This Wonderland is new and exciting, but is still recognizable and comfortable for those of us who grew up with Charles Dodgson's verison.

**This novel fulfills a reading requirement for the speculative fiction challenge and the TBR challenge.**

The Host

Title: The Host
Author: Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Sci-fi, dystopia, speculative fiction
Source: E-book, owned


Finally! I finally reached the end of this book. I don't mean that in the negative way that it sounds...but just in that surprisingly this novel took me ALL of February to complete. That being said, I did wholly enjoy this novel and am glad I finally gave it a chance.

Before I go into likes and dislikes I need to tackle the subject of author vs. known writing style. I am guilty of doing something I'm not particularly proud of in my identification as a reader....I judged a book by the author's other books. You see, I read and sort of enjoyed Twilight. It was a light fluffy read that if I ignored everything I knew about vampires (which is a lot) and just enjoyed the jr. high crush feeling it fostered, I could enjoy it. I am not however a Twilight fan. Overall, it was ok. I've read significantly more interesting young adult novels and am not completely sure why these novels have received the popularity they have. But this is not about Twilight. This is about The Host. Honestly, if I'd been given this book without a cover, I would have never guessed that it was by Ms. Meyer. For this novel, her writing style changed and grew. The world was well-fleshed out, the characters were fully developed and capable of great changes (no limp rag Bellas here), and the story had a consistent arc and plot development. There was never a moment where I thought it went too long or should have ended sooner. I pre-judged this novel, and for that I'm sorry.

What I liked:

1. I found it interesting that our main character was actually a combination of two characters. Wanderer/Wanda is a kind being who is enjoying her species ability to join with and explore the lives the are taking over. Melanie is a human rebel. She has the strength, training, and of all things...the nerve to stay alive and unjoined. These two women have to learn to live together, work together, and love together...when they shouldn't have to.  Notice that neither of these women is a push-over or easily manipulated. It's awesome to have a 2-1 strong female lead.

2. The little details of the world building blew my mind. On the human side, there were things like people who were pre-prepared being considered crazy. Now they are the leaders. From the Soul side, there are details such as being trusting to the extreme or the easy to read labels.

3. Parts reminded me of other sci-fi entities that I enjoy. For example: The way the Souls bond to humans is initially explained to be very similar to how the Goa'uld join with their hosts.

What I disliked:

1. Length. This was not the novel to read on an iPhone e-reader. Holy will-it-ever-end-I'm-reading-on-quarter-length-pages Batman! I know this is silly and personal, but it may have been an easier read, for me, if I had this one as an actual paper book.

2. Some of the world building was so complete that some details weren't well explained or were assumed to be known. This primarily happened in descriptions and talk about the various planets that the Souls have come in contact with.  Some had great explanations and others were glossed over. It sometimes made it hard to keep everything straight in my mind.

Overall: I enjoyed this novel and am glad I finally gave it a chance.

 

**This novel was originally intended to be reviewed for Blogs with Bite, but I missed the due date. 

***This novel qualifies for the speculative fiction challenge ***