Firstly, I begin this blog with a huge apology, as I failed
to upload last week. I had a CRAZY busy week, with London Film and Comic-Con
and Young Adult Literature Con, and I just didn’t get everything finished in
time. However, in order to make up for this, I have a real treat for you all
this week, as I got to jump down the rabbit hole, and, thanks to Abrams and
Chronicle, was lucky enough to read ‘Splintered’ by A.G. Howard.
To begin with, and I know this is little to do with the book itself, but the cover is beautiful, so much so that pretty much every one of my housemates have picked it up and began the first couple of pages (most of whom have now finished the whole book whilst I slept). It’s also very appropriate for a book that lures you in as ‘Splintered’ does. Set in modern day, Alyssa suffer from the fear of going mad as all the women in her family do, with fantastical notions of Wonderland, which, of course, all turn out to be all too real, as she discovers when she jumps down the rabbit hole. I am not a strong purist, and twists on classics are something I really enjoy, but even if you don’t, this book and Lewis Carroll’s are by no means mutually exclusive. The self-referential nature of this book means it cleverly builds on the original, rather than erases or alters it. I particularly enjoyed the physical re-imaginings of the Wonderland creatures, which, whilst being adorable as an eccentric hatter and white bunny, were fascinating as a man with no face and a skeletal creature with huge antlers respectively. Howard’s visual description is a true credit to her writing ability, and she brings Wonderland to life in a way that is capturing and still horrifying (Burton, take note!).
But the romance plot in this novel waivered a little for me in places. Alyssa’s suitor Jeb occasionally went from very wooden to sudden fiery, and although Morpheus seemed unreal, he at least had an excuse. Saying that (spoiler alert!), Morpheus being forgiven by Alyssa at the end of the novel made absolutely no sense to me after all he’d done, regardless of his unreal nature. I also worried that Howard allowed the romance to over-run the story a little too much in places. The action was plentiful in the book, and, as I said, the creation of Wonderland so brilliant, that its time as a highlight in the plot dragged a little in places. I know that it was necessary, and it did act as a good cohesive for the chaos plot twist, however, I really think Alyssa’s character didn’t need the amount of support that the men seemed to keep trying to give her. Then again, as her independence and agency is what she’s trying to establish all along, something she even manages to achieve romantically in the end, I think I can forgive Howard’s break from action for Alyssa’s love life.
I could go on forever about my love for the recreation of Wonderland in the novel, and the re-imagining of its inhabitants would take another eternity to follow that, however I think if I shorten it down a little, I would simply say that Howard has really achieved a detailed, intricate and charming fantasy world in this novel, which is by far something to be praised. Even better was getting a chance to say “Curiouser and curiouser” in real life, following the twisting plot of this delectable story.
Tune in next week, for a review of the sequel 'Unhinged'!
To begin with, and I know this is little to do with the book itself, but the cover is beautiful, so much so that pretty much every one of my housemates have picked it up and began the first couple of pages (most of whom have now finished the whole book whilst I slept). It’s also very appropriate for a book that lures you in as ‘Splintered’ does. Set in modern day, Alyssa suffer from the fear of going mad as all the women in her family do, with fantastical notions of Wonderland, which, of course, all turn out to be all too real, as she discovers when she jumps down the rabbit hole. I am not a strong purist, and twists on classics are something I really enjoy, but even if you don’t, this book and Lewis Carroll’s are by no means mutually exclusive. The self-referential nature of this book means it cleverly builds on the original, rather than erases or alters it. I particularly enjoyed the physical re-imaginings of the Wonderland creatures, which, whilst being adorable as an eccentric hatter and white bunny, were fascinating as a man with no face and a skeletal creature with huge antlers respectively. Howard’s visual description is a true credit to her writing ability, and she brings Wonderland to life in a way that is capturing and still horrifying (Burton, take note!).
But the romance plot in this novel waivered a little for me in places. Alyssa’s suitor Jeb occasionally went from very wooden to sudden fiery, and although Morpheus seemed unreal, he at least had an excuse. Saying that (spoiler alert!), Morpheus being forgiven by Alyssa at the end of the novel made absolutely no sense to me after all he’d done, regardless of his unreal nature. I also worried that Howard allowed the romance to over-run the story a little too much in places. The action was plentiful in the book, and, as I said, the creation of Wonderland so brilliant, that its time as a highlight in the plot dragged a little in places. I know that it was necessary, and it did act as a good cohesive for the chaos plot twist, however, I really think Alyssa’s character didn’t need the amount of support that the men seemed to keep trying to give her. Then again, as her independence and agency is what she’s trying to establish all along, something she even manages to achieve romantically in the end, I think I can forgive Howard’s break from action for Alyssa’s love life.
I could go on forever about my love for the recreation of Wonderland in the novel, and the re-imagining of its inhabitants would take another eternity to follow that, however I think if I shorten it down a little, I would simply say that Howard has really achieved a detailed, intricate and charming fantasy world in this novel, which is by far something to be praised. Even better was getting a chance to say “Curiouser and curiouser” in real life, following the twisting plot of this delectable story.
Tune in next week, for a review of the sequel 'Unhinged'!
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