Author: A.G Howard
Published: January 1st 2013 by Amulet Books
Format: paperback
Website: Author's Website
Source: Publisher
Synopsis:
This stunning debut captures the grotesque madness of a mystical under-land, as well as a girl’s pangs of first love and independence. Alyssa Gardner hears the whispers of bugs and flowers—precisely the affliction that landed her mother in a mental hospital years before. This family curse stretches back to her ancestor Alice Liddell, the real-life inspiration for Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Alyssa might be crazy, but she manages to keep it together. For now. When her mother’s mental health takes a turn for the worse, Alyssa learns that what she thought was fiction is based in terrifying reality. The real Wonderland is a place far darker and more twisted than Lewis Carroll ever let on. There, Alyssa must pass a series of tests, including draining an ocean of Alice’s tears, waking the slumbering tea party, and subduing a vicious bandersnatch, to fix Alice’s mistakes and save her family. She must also decide whom to trust: Jeb, her gorgeous best friend and secret crush, or the sexy but suspicious Morpheus, her guide through Wonderland, who may have dark motives of his own.
My Thoughts
When I was a kid, I have seen some Alice in Wonderland shows
on TV and I was always fascinated with them because of the beauty of the
concept. But I have never read the original story by Lewis Carroll. And I never
really had any idea of who the characters were and what their roles were about.
Alyssa Gardner is a brave, young girl. Even though her mom
was put in an asylum and she was always bullied and teased about all things
Wonderland, she didn’t care about what others thought of her. She’s also very
unique – in a mad, twisted way and I liked it. Of course at first, I thought
that it was so odd of her to collect bugs and kill them in order to do mosaics,
but hey, she had her reasons.
The retelling of this story through Alyssa’s eyes was so.. captivating.
I know that the shows I watched on TV about Alice were always portrayed as this
very beautiful other world with friendly and pleasing creatures, but in Splintered, we will see another version
– the twisted one, but in a good kind of way. I was on the edge of my seat
while I was reading this because it was full of action, suspense and twists and
turns!