Review & Giveaway: Unhinged by A.G Howard

Unhinged by A.G. Howard
Publisher: Amulet
Release Date: January 7, 2014
Purchase: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

Alyssa Gardner has been down the rabbit hole and faced the bandersnatch. She saved the life of Jeb, the guy she loves, and escaped the machinations of the disturbingly seductive Morpheus and the vindictive Queen Red. Now all she has to do is graduate high school and make it through prom so she can attend the prestigious art school in London she's always dreamed of.

That would be easier without her mother, freshly released from an asylum, acting overly protective and suspicious. And it would be much simpler if the mysterious Morpheus didn’t show up for school one day to tempt her with another dangerous quest in the dark, challenging Wonderland—where she (partly) belongs.

As prom and graduation creep closer, Alyssa juggles Morpheus’s unsettling presence in her real world with trying to tell Jeb the truth about a past he’s forgotten. Glimpses of Wonderland start to bleed through her art and into her world in very disturbing ways, and Morpheus warns that Queen Red won’t be far behind.

If Alyssa stays in the human realm, she could endanger Jeb, her parents, and everyone she loves. But if she steps through the rabbit hole again, she'll face a deadly battle that could cost more than just her head.

My thoughts:
Thank you thank you thank you!!  After I finished Splintered I wanted a sequel more than anything.  I didn't want to leave the fantastic world that Ms. Howard had created and I am so thankful that my begging and pleading was heard.  Unhinged is an amazing sequel that takes the reader back to Alyssa and her Wonderland.

A.G Howards Wonderland is like nothing I have ever seen.  It is dark, creepy, amazingly beautiful, and beyond whimsical.  This second book in the Splintered series takes us back to Alyssa and her fight to stick with the life she chose.  It hasn't been easy keeping her netherling side closed off, but she has managed to put most of Wonderland behind her and focus on her art and boyfriend Jeb.  Wonderland isn't quite finished with her though and through her mosaics Alyssa realizes that her court might be in danger.  Should she stay away and live her life with Jeb or fall down the rabbit hole again and try to save her netherling home??

I wasn't sure what Alyssa would do and the story never slowed down to let her really think about what she wanted.  She had to act fast and with her choices of course came devastation, but she also learned a whole bunch of stuff that I promise if you loved the first book you will want to learn it all as well.  I am in shock over so much that was revealed and again I have to say THANK YOU to the publishing gods and Ms. Howard for delivering this sequel.  It is everything I could have hoped for and so much more.  If you thought the twists in the first one were good you haven't seen anything yet my friend!

And I have to address the elephant in the room...Team Jeb or Team Morpheus???  I think if I remember correctly I declared myself Team Morpheus from the get go and after reading Unhinged  I am still proudly waving my Team M flag.  Don't get me wrong Jeb is a great character and well that last scene with him and Alyssa was pure awesomesauce but Morpheus holds my card of hearts.  Yes he is infuriating and yes he is deceitful, but there is just something about this moth boy that pulls at my heartstrings!  He knows Alyssa can hold her own and he doesn't ever let up on her.  Normally his shenanigans would have ticked me off, but what can I say I just lurve the man!

I am really curious how this series will end.  After that ending I am on pins and needles to see what Alyssa does and honestly after I finished this book I just wanted to laugh manically like the Mad Hatter!  The ending really couldn't have been more perfect though, it really shows where Alyssa is headed and completely brings the series full circle.  And even though we don't get to see Wonderland in this installment the whimsical creatures are still there and the beautiful Wonderland still paints an amazing backdrop that you can feel throughout the story.

This is another Blizzard read for me. 5 Snowflakes just won't do at all.

Oh and I really and I mean REALLY hope Alyssa keeps her vow to Morpheus!  That chapter has to make it in the third book! PLEASE!!!

 And because I love this series so much I want to offer one lucky reader their very own set!  This giveaway will include copies of both books ordered from TBD.  

Just a reminder Unhinged isn't out yet so that one will be preorderd and normally they ship everything together so both books should arrive after Jan. 7, 2014.

Good luck!

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Review: Splintered by A.G. Howard

Splintered by A.G. Howard
Publisher: Amulet Books
Release Date: January 1, 2013
Pre order: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

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:
If you take Alice in Wonderland, Tim Burton, and The Labyrinth this is what you would have.  A fantastical adventure with whimsical characters (that are a bit creepy) and a very inventive story that will leave you wanting more.  Ms.Howard you are amazing.

Okay so take everything you thought you knew about Alice in Wonderland and put it aside.  Splintered takes everything about this classic tale and turns it upside down.  The story starts off with Alyssa, a girl who has a very interesting tie to Alice, she just so happens to be her ancestor.  Alyssa knows that the women in her family are cursed and that it all started with her ancestor Alice Liddell. When she starts hearing bugs and flowers talk like her mother she realizes that the curse has been passed down to her as well.  With her mother locked up in an asylum, Alyssa fears what will happen to them both if she doesn't find a cure.  To save her family Alyssa knows she must travel down the rabbit hole, but what she finds there is nothing like the story and what unravels is pure brilliance.

I have to give major props to the author for this amazing tale.  I can tell that a lot of research went into this and I absolutely loved how she wove the original story into her own.  Everything was there from the Queen of Hearts to the White Rabbit though they were in very different forms.  I am just in awe at Ms.Howard's creativity.  The whole spin she put in it really brought a new level to the classic and I thought the twists with the curse and a few of the characters was so much fun!  I never saw them coming!

Alyssa was a wonderful character that I fell in love with from the start.  Her journey was not an easy one and she totally held up her own.  I loved Jeb as well, but I can't cast Morpheus aside.  He is a very strong contender even if he is a bit shady, but for some reason I forgive him for his wrong doings.  He is a very unique character that stands out to me among so many others I have read as of lately.  All around the characters were amazing and the moments between Alyssa and Jeb made my heart melt while the ones between her and Morpheus made my heart pound.  I am very curious how all that will play out.

This story is beyond amazing and I am hoping with every piece of me that there will be a sequel.  I love this colorful world and I am not ready to leave it just yet.

"Off with her HEAD!"  *hehe* I have always wanted to say that =D

5 Snowflakes

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This book was provided by the publisher and Netgalley