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Merissa (11950 KP) rated First Born: The Preevitt Chronicles in Books

Dec 17, 2018 (Updated Jun 7, 2023)  
First Born: The Preevitt Chronicles
First Born: The Preevitt Chronicles
Ross Butler | 2015 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
6
6.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
In this Urban Fantasy, we read the story from the perspective of a moody, disgruntled, and contrary fifteen-year-old. She was orphaned at an early age, and when the orphanages closed down, she lived with her elderly social worker. She is adopted by a family in New Jersey, far away from Michigan. She doesn't want to go but has no choice. Once she is there and meets her family, she settles down slightly. Starting a new school, she meets new friends and starts her new life.

With a very fast pace and a severe case of insta-love, this book tells the story of Preevits and Mugglers. Now Preevits may sound bad, but they have nothing on the Mugglers. And then, of course, you have bad Preevits thrown into the mix too.

Finishing on a high, with a possible link to a further book, this is a book for readers of the YOUNG adult genre, with a paranormal twist.

* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *

Merissa
Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
Apr 30, 2016
  
And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street
And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street
Dr. Seuss | 1937 | Children
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
That’s Quite an Imagination You’ve Got There
In this book, we meet Marco, a young boy whose father is always encouraging him to observe the world around him to see what he can see. However, his trip home from school on Mulberry Street is rather boring. All he sees is a horse pulling a broken-down wagon. But what if, instead, he said he saw a new cart…drawn by a zebra. No, that’s not special enough. Where will Marco’s wild story stop?

I didn’t read this book too much as a kid, but even as an adult, it is easy to fall into the classic Seuss rhythm and rhyme. It does get a little repetitive since he repeats Mulberry Street so often, but that’s the only real complaint. Marco’s imagination is so much fun, although I appreciated that he told the truth in the end. The illustrations are classic Seuss as well, and the caricatures of everyone are so much fun. Fans will also enjoy seeing that the elephant looks remarkably like Horton. If you can track this book down, you and your kids will enjoy it.
  
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Hazel (1853 KP) rated The Hazel Wood in Books

Nov 12, 2017  
The Hazel Wood
The Hazel Wood
Melissa Albert | 2017 | Mystery, Paranormal, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
7.4 (33 Ratings)
Book Rating
MARVEL-ous, apparently
I received this ARC for free from the Penguin Platform Team.

“Imagine Marvel did fairy tales …” Well, I cannot because I have never seen a Marvel film but I understand the sentiment. The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert is a book where fairy tales and reality collide. However, these are not stories full of glamour and grandeur, they are the sort originally told by the Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm during the 19th Century. What begins as a fairly realistic tale rapidly spirals into chaos when characters from a book start appearing in New York, something that should be impossible.

For seventeen years, Alice and her mother, Ella, have been travelling on the roads, barely stopping in places for more than a few months. It would be nice to have a home and settle down, however, they are always chased by bad luck, causing them to flee at any moment. Alice is not sure of the cause of their misfortune but suspects it may have something to do with her reclusive grandmother who lives alone on her estate titled the Hazel Wood. Alice’s grandmother wrote Tales From the Hinterland, a book of pitch-dark fairy tales, many years ago and it has become a rare piece of literature – a collector’s item; not even Alice has read it. But when her mother goes missing under suspicious circumstances, Alice wishes she had.

Homeless without her mother, Alice seeks help from a school acquaintance, Ellery Finch, whom she knows is a fan of her grandmother’s work. Yet, before they can formulate a plan to locate her mother, the cause of her bad luck reveals itself in the form of impossible, murderous fairy-tale characters. As Alice learns more about the Hinterland, she discovers that she has been receiving glimpses of the characters all her life.

Alice is in danger, as is Ellery, but she will stop at nothing to retrieve her mother, even venturing into the Hazel Wood – a place she has been forbidden to enter. With Ellery using his father’s wealth and connections, the two make a long journey to the place they believe her mother is being held, but what Alice finds there is more dangerous and shocking than she could ever imagine.

Retellings of fairy tales have become a popular genre in recent years, particularly amongst young adult literature. The Hazel Wood, however, is only loosely based upon ideas featuring in ancient folktales; the stories themselves have been thought up by Melissa Albert with unique characters such as Twice-Killed-Catherine and Three-Times-Alice. Although it is often fun to analyse the comparisons and differences between old tales and new, it is refreshing to come across brand new fairy tales.

Initially, the book comes across as a thriller and mystery set in the real world, however, fantasy elements quickly creep in. Two-thirds of the way into the story, the setting and genre change direction, introducing a fictional world where rules of nature have gone out of the window. At this point, it becomes slightly confusing to fully visualize the situation, and the storyline begins to get darker and darker.

Children’s fairy tales always have a happy-ever-after, however, the traditional ones rarely did, therefore, it is impossible to guess how The Hazel Wood will end. This, along with humour and enchanting action, hooks the reader and, according to other reviewers, has resulted in many hours slipping away without notice.

The Hazel Wood is a unique story on the cusp of young adult and adult fiction. It is not only a good work of fiction; it is clever and well thought out, too. Melissa Albert is certainly an author to look out for, especially if you like dark mysteries and thrillers.
  
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Hazel (1853 KP) rated The Hazel Wood in Books

Dec 7, 2018  
The Hazel Wood
The Hazel Wood
Melissa Albert | 2017 | Mystery, Paranormal, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
7.4 (33 Ratings)
Book Rating
<i>I received this ARC for free from the Penguin Platform Team.</i>

“Imagine <i>Marvel</i> did fairy tales …” Well, I cannot because I have never seen a <i>Marvel</i> film but I understand the sentiment. <i>The Hazel Wood</i> by Melissa Albert is a book where fairy tales and reality collide. However, these are not stories full of glamour and grandeur, they are the sort originally told by the Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm during the 19th Century. What begins as a fairly realistic tale rapidly spirals into chaos when characters from a book start appearing in New York, something that should be impossible.

For seventeen years, Alice and her mother, Ella, have been travelling on the roads, barely stopping in places for more than a few months. It would be nice to have a home and settle down, however, they are always chased by bad luck, causing them to flee at any moment. Alice is not sure of the cause of their misfortune but suspects it may have something to do with her reclusive grandmother who lives alone on her estate titled the Hazel Wood. Alice’s grandmother wrote <i>Tales From the Hinterland</i>, a book of pitch-dark fairy tales, many years ago and it has become a rare piece of literature – a collector’s item; not even Alice has read it. But when her mother goes missing under suspicious circumstances, Alice wishes she had.

Homeless without her mother, Alice seeks help from a school acquaintance, Ellery Finch, whom she knows is a fan of her grandmother’s work. Yet, before they can formulate a plan to locate her mother, the cause of her bad luck reveals itself in the form of impossible, murderous fairy-tale characters. As Alice learns more about the <i>Hinterland</i>, she discovers that she has been receiving glimpses of the characters all her life.

Alice is in danger, as is Ellery, but she will stop at nothing to retrieve her mother, even venturing into the Hazel Wood – a place she has been forbidden to enter. With Ellery using his father’s wealth and connections, the two make a long journey to the place they believe her mother is being held, but what Alice finds there is more dangerous and shocking than she could ever imagine.

Retellings of fairy tales have become a popular genre in recent years, particularly amongst young adult literature. <i>The Hazel Wood</i>, however, is only loosely based upon ideas featuring in ancient folktales; the stories themselves have been thought up by Melissa Albert with unique characters such as Twice-Killed-Catherine and Three-Times-Alice. Although it is often fun to analyse the comparisons and differences between old tales and new, it is refreshing to come across brand new fairy tales.

Initially, the book comes across as a thriller and mystery set in the real world, however, fantasy elements quickly creep in. Two-thirds of the way into the story, the setting and genre change direction, introducing a fictional world where rules of nature have gone out of the window. At this point, it becomes slightly confusing to fully visualize the situation, and the storyline begins to get darker and darker.

Children’s fairy tales always have a happy-ever-after, however, the traditional ones rarely did, therefore, it is impossible to guess how The Hazel Wood will end. This, along with humour and enchanting action, hooks the reader and, according to other reviewers, has resulted in many hours slipping away without notice.

<i>The Hazel Wood</i> is a unique story on the cusp of young adult and adult fiction. It is not only a good work of fiction; it is clever and well thought out, too. Melissa Albert is certainly an author to look out for, especially if you like dark mysteries and thrillers.