The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert

Cover Art Courtesy of Goodreads

I got this book in an OwlCrate months ago and was just never drawn to it. I decided to try it out this month since I heard it had some spooky vibes, and I'm sure glad I did! The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert follows teenager Alice, who moves all over with her mom Ella trying to stay away from bad luck. Alice's grandmother is the author of the famous Tales from the Hinterland, a fantasy novel with a cult following, and when Alice and her mother receive the news of the grandmother's death, they believe that the bad luck is finally over. 

That is, until Alice's mother is taken by someone who claims to come from The Hinterland. Now Alice must come face to face with her grandmother's stories, stories which she has been shielded from her whole life, and head to her reclusive grandmother's estate, The Hazel Wood, in the hopes of saving her mother.

This story really was unlike anything I've ever read! It had magical realism, fantasy, thriller, mystery, and contemporary elements all wrapped up into one story. It had some of the Hinterland fairy tales themselves interspersed throughout, which I especially enjoyed. While I wasn't a huge fan of the main character, the plot and side characters were more than enough for me to fall in love with this book. It was fast-paced and exciting. It was twisted and creepy with all kinds of dark Alice in Wonderland vibes. And it definitely left me wanting more.

After doing some research, this appears to be the first in a duology, and we might even get a Tales from the Hinterland storybook as well! I need those fairy tales! I will definitely be keeping my eye out for those, as I'm not at all ready to give up this world yet.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars