I'm back with another Halloween read for you today. It is the second book in The Chronicles of Alice duology, Red Queen by Christina Henry.
Amazon affiliate links are used on this site.
I will mention if you haven't read Alice then there are some unavoidable spoilers that this review will have just by the nature of it being the second book. You have been warned.
 |
| July 2016; Ace; 978-0425266809 ebook, audio, print (291 pages); Fantasy, Adult, Horror, Retelling |
We return to the Old City where Alice and Hatcher have successfully confronted the Rabbit and both are now ready to go looking for Hatcher's daughter. Alice dreams of the green, rolling hill landscape beyond the Old City walls. As they exit the tunnel that leads away from the city, they see nothing but scorched landscape.
This book is much less hack and slash horror and much more psychological spooky and internal battle of Alice. Alice and Hatcher both encounter some strange things while they are traveling to try to find his daughter. At one point they are no longer together and Alice must travel on her own. She finds this village where all the children are being taken by an evil queen to her castle on the mountain.
It's a less of an action-packed book but it is a wonderfully written book, the new characters Alice meets are interesting and it certainly is an "adventure" of sorts. I will admit that when I read the title I was hoping for more of a Chess game with the mention of the red queen, a black king, and a white queen. My favorite film adaptation is the 1985 TV movie version. In that movie, there is a section about Alice making her way across the chessboard landscaping to make it to the eighth square to become a queen. I wished this book had done a bit more with this and added the more dark twist to it.
There is more relationship in this book between Alice and Hatcher as well. Now that she seems to be out of the danger of Old City her adult mind is wandering even more towards a relationship with Hatcher. I don't find it an awful part of the plot. It felt natural when I thought about all they had been through together.
Overall, I would still recommend this book to folks who enjoy good writing skills and to those who are obsessed with everything Alice as I am. I'll be back for a third look at Christina Henry's dark and twisted books so stay tuned for my favorite of the three books!
Buy Red Queen at Amazon
Elisabeth Scherer grew up in a very small town in Minnesota but now lives in the lovely Pacific Northwest where she spends most of her time raising her two young children. She and her husband have a large collection of books that takes a good space of their small condo. When she's not reading she has a variety of hobbies that include crocheting, drawing, baking, cooking, and movie watching. She is currently obsessed with making French Macarons and other baked deliciousness! You can also find her blogging at http://kitchenstoriesetc.blogspot.com
Get even more book news in your inbox, sign up today!. Girl Who Reads is an Amazon advertising affiliate; a small commission is earned when purchases are made at Amazon using any Amazon links on this site. Thank you for supporting Girl Who Reads.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment