欧宝娱乐

I read this back in November and realized I never wrote a review. Wow, I really appreciated this book. It's hard to just say it's good, because I had such complex feelings reading the book. I love fairy tales in an unhealthy way. I love them not in spite of, but because of, the dark edge to them. Which is probably why I am often ambivalent towards the Disney remakes.

This book is for people like me. Who love the uncertainty, the unease, the sting in the tail, the potential of fairy tales. As one matures, you want to see them go past the overt plot points and delve into the characterization and what happens between scenes, intertextually and the greater world within those stories. Also there's that combination of wonder and fear to consider if the world of fairy tales collided with our real world, and how that would look.

Alice is a young teen whose life has been one of continual flux. She and her mother have moved on constantly from place to place as unexplained events force them from whatever temporary places they have established as home, what Alice calls her "bad luck". Her mother refuses to talk about her father or grandmother, a lauded author of a book of stories called "Tales from the Hinterland." The book is impossible to obtain copies, and bad events befall those who have copies. Her mother marries and they settle into the Upper West Side, Alice attending an elite school where she meets Finch, who idolizes her grandmother. When her mother disappears and the kidnappers are called "The Hinterland" as in "Tales from the Hinterland," Alice must follow the breadcrumbs back to her grandmother's secluded estate called The Hazel Wood, to find her, aware that what she thought was just fiction is frighteningly and unexplicably real.

This story has a very strong surreal element to it, especially after Alice starts the search for her mother. If it wasn't from the point of view of Alice and Finch, it would be easily to decide all of this is in their head. But it isn't. It's just the results of fairy merging with the real world, and that is not a good thing. The creatures of the Hinterland and ruthless, hungry and far from benign. There are some very dark themes here of mental illness, self-harm, and family trauma. The characters are pretty messed up, for good reason. Alice has a deep core of rage that her mom has worked tirelessly with her to teach her how to manage those feelings. What we see of her now is a socially awkward, misanthropic and sarcastic young woman with a short fuse. But what there is to Alice is so much more. It's worth it to read this book and discover her. Finch is also such an intriguing character.
I admit I was as fascinated by him as Alice. Like her, he had the Finch he allowed everyone to see, and the real Finch, which was considerably less affable and sanguine. I will say that the other characters definitely take a back seat to them and not as much time was spent on their development, sadly including her mother. But having said that, it didn't detract much from the story for me. While the novel includes excerpts from "Tales From the Hinterland," I am so glad I read it first, because I was able to refer to my memories of the stories as I read this book. And knowing how unsettling some of the stories are, those characters having a way into our world is much scarier. I feel that they had a lack of three dimensionality in the real world and felt more like goons or henchmen. Although that makes sense with some of the reveals that come along with further reading.

The Hazel Wood is an experience. I loved the metafictional aspect of it. It has a sinister and borderline horrific vibe that made it such a perfect spooky fall read. I also loved how freaking weird it was. The concept of the book being cursed so that bad things happened to followed people who owned it (even those associated with the film adaptation) was so interesting. I also appreciated how Alice and her mom were their own loving family unit, and this is so valid as non-traditional families have been around for a long time and should be celebrated. Alice would do anything for her mom and vice versa. The juxtaposition with Finch and his family life was an interesting commentary on how one can be an orphan in unlikely ways.

I have to get this 4.5 stars because the sum of it is even better than its parts although with a critical lens there are things that I can pick out that could detract from it from a rating perspective. This is a book I'll think about a lot, and I'm excited to read other books by Melissa Albert.