Perhaps it is because I so recently read another book about the fae, but this book just didn't grab me as quickly as I had hoped. I needed the action to start sooner with the back story woven throughout, instead of feeling like I was getting an info-dump in the first chapters.

I have to admit something rather shameful... I didn't finish this book. It just wasn't for me. The idea behind the story was interesting, I loved the tie in to a once famous author and mysterious book, but the characters were off-putting and the first half of the novel dragged for me. I put this down and didn't pick it back up, the feelings of guilt linger but I think I'll live.

This was near the top of my TBR pile for the beginning of 2018 and I had such high hopes for it, but unfortunately I wanted more from this book than I got. That’s not to say that this was bad, but I found it to be a lot emptier and slower than I had anticipated.
It started off strong and I was flying through the pages. Things were set up pretty well and when I was sure things were about to get interesting, it just dragged. I think I was about 1/2 of the way through before I started skipping pages.
Pacing and timing aside, I honestly liked writing itself. The tone was eerie and somewhat dreamlike at times, and it worked for the story!
I actually liked Alice’s quirks and personality. Throughout the novel she learns her own strength and forges her own story. She’s sarcastic, sardonic, and prone to quips and snide remarks. And while sometimes I felt like her reactions could get a little tedious, I still liked her as a character. Though she’s not an overly likeable, it didn’t take long her me to warm up to Alice. I liked that she was a bit of a gritty, hot headed character.
I wish I could say the same for any of the other characters. There was no one else in the story that I connected with or was invested in. I was disappointed that the storybook characters, which were one of the more intriguing aspects of the book, weren’t more fleshed out.
Between the synopsis and the first few chapters I was geared up and ready to go, but I felt like this book didn’t take me very far.
TL;DR
This is unfortunately turned out to be one of those that I wanted to like more than I did. I enjoyed Hazel Wood and its imaginative world, but ultimately it left me wanting more. There was a lot of potential, but ultimately the book dragged and I wish some of the characters had been more fleshed out.

This wasn't the book for me. The writing is just not my cup of tea. I am an avid fan fairy tale retellings/dark/moody stories, but I couldn't get past the over abundance of wordiness and concentration on prose and world building over character development or plot...
A big thank you to the publishers for the ARC!!

Perhaps it’s because I’m watching Westworld now (for the first time), but The Hazel Wood reminded me a bit of the HBO show. There’s a fairy tale world (similar to the tv show’s western theme) and all is not right there (just like the tv show.) It might be a stretch, but both are excellent.

I loved the art and the fairy tale world that were created in The Hazel Wood. I enjoyed the sense of adventure and horror. The fact that romance wasn’t the focus helped make it all the more enjoyable. I can’t wait to read the next book!

The concept was interesting but it just didn’t come together for me.

The Hazel Wood is a story about fairy tales. Yet these are not the fairy tales we know. There are no happily ever afters here. Sounds awesome right?! And it is...mostly. Well maybe it's more accurate to say the fairy tales themselves are fantastic. Too bad this is not a book of Hinterland fairy tales and is instead a story of a girl encountering the Hinterlands and some of it's stories are plopped into the middle of her story.

The Hinterlands
The concept of an alternate 'dimension' that is a fairy tale land is very close to that of the TV show "Once Upon a Time". That didn't bother me in the least as Melissa Albert takes the idea and runs in a different direction. Instead of using fairy tales we all know and love, she created a world called the Hinterlands and made up new stories with no happy endings. I'm sure Disney could reign them in like they did The Little Mermaid but they would loose something. My absolute favourite part of The Hazel Wood is that the fairy tales are so dark and foreboding. The book containing all the Hinterland fairy tales described in The Hazel Wood is one I am desperate to own. Too bad The Hazel Wood isn't this book that is sought after in our main story.

Long, for no reason
The Hazel Wood is not a long book. At ~368 pages, I'd say it's on par with the average fantasy teen book. I was surprised at one point that I was only halfway through the story as it felt like I had to be near the end; and yet I knew lots more probably happened. For some reason this is the slowest read ever. It just drags on and on. I have a few theories on why this is; I don't think it's any one thing. But what I do know is that I kept waiting for it to suck me in and have me flipping pages quickly. Not once did that ever happen which was a huge disappointment.

The Lead Gal
We are clearly supposed to feel sympathy at every turn for our leading gal and her sad life story. Except instead of inspiring sympathy in me she was just annoying. Yes, she's had a hard life. Yes, she's up against bad odds. Yes, she's been screwed over at every turn; but none of that makes her automatically endearing. A lot more thought and actual characterization is needed here in order for me to be on board with this girls thoughts and feelings. I felt the entire time like she was the vessel that was taking me on this story but not the reason why I was reading the story. She should have been the reason I cared (especially by the end) and so this changed how I felt about a lot of things that happen. With little empathy to give over to our cardboard cut-out of a lead gal I didn't really care what happened in the end and so it's impact was lost.

The Love Interest
Carrying on with poor characters, let's talk about the male love interest.
Here's what NOT to do in teenage fantasy story; don't introduce the lead guy as simply being unattractive. What does that even mean?! We all have different standards of attractive. So give me some details about him and maybe say something about our lead gal finding him average or boring; but to say unattractive is just insulting (to the fictional character and to the reader frankly).
To add insult to injury here the only other describer we get about this boy is that he is black. Um... okay; but that doesn't mean I have a picture in my head of what this guy looks like! It's like Albert thinks saying he's black means I will automatically have an image of what his guy must look like. It concerns me greatly that some minor characters got more description than our main guy. A skin colour is, of course, a descriptive element to a character, but it's far from being enough. And it concerns me that Albert thought skin colour might be enough of a description...

It's especially frustrating as this boy is the saving grace of The Hazel Wood! Without him near the beginning I may have given up. He gives the story some optimism and hope. And his way of loving the Hinterlands and being a 'fan boy' is just adorable. I loved every minute he was on the page. Too bad he's in maybe 30% of the book total. More of him might have actually saved us from the dreary main gal killing the pace. It couldn't have saved the book entirely but it would have maybe gotten it to the four star mark.

Convenience
I must rant about this every second book I read. Or so it seems. Let me be blunt; if your character didn't have to work for it at all then it's probably too easy. Few things in life are easy, one random happenstance I'll accept (as one day my husband found a $100 bill in a parking lot, so it does happen) but having things just show up when needed is obnoxious and lazy writing. I would much prefer our lead gal having to work for the 'items' needed. Also then I might have been able to remember: a) what the items were, b) what their significant might be, c) cared about how they fit into the story. Instead Alberta has some guy leaving them behind for our lead gal. This lacks creativity and left me with no impression of what these items are or could become. It makes their use later in the story feel convenient. In this case convenience begets convenience.

Plot
Here is one place where Albert does a great job. The actual plot of The Hazel Wood is brilliant. I love everything about what happens in the story overall and if provided with a broad plot summary would have been crazy excited about this book. Even after reading the story, I still think the plot is amazing and really creative. The plot is the primary reason why this is a 3 star review and not a 2. It's hard to have a unique or creative idea in fantasy books these days and here is Albert with a (mostly) original idea. Too bad she butchers the characters, flow and feel of the story. It's a damn tragedy.

Overall
I wanted to love this book so much. I was so enamoured by the tales of the Hinterlands and their twisted, unexpected outcomes. So here's what would make this book amazing. Let Melissa Albert write the fairy tales (as those that were told in full were quite good) and then give the main story and have someone else write it. In the hands of Bardugo, Sanderson, Meyer, etc. this could be a top-notch world and story.
It really is sad that Albert isn't at the level of many other writers in the teen fantasy genre. I'm hopeful however, as this is a debut novel, that she can improve. I'll happily revisit the Hinterlands again in the future with the hope that it's less convenient, characters are fleshed out more and that the writing moves along at a better pace. I don't want to give up on the Hinterlands yet, as I feel there are more dark, creepy stories to enjoy. So I'll hold out hope that Melissa Albert is just too new on the scene to have found the right voice for her brilliant ideas.

The Hazelwood was so much more than I ever expected when I started the book and completely and continually blew my mind with each event that happened within the book!

As a person who spent their early years captivated by fairy tales - both the light of Disney and the dark of Grimm's - this book felt designed for me. It was eerie, magical, occasionally terrifying, and it brought new things to a world of work already so populated with stories. It was exceptional.

Alice, as a main character, is deeply unlikable. We should get that on the record, probably. She's quick to anger, resents listening to other's perspectives, and there is a certain kind of wall between her and the rest of the world. While this can obviously be a turn-off for some readers, I have always been fascinated by the darkness within a character and what that unlikability says about how they relate to the world. I mean, as a person who once planned to write their senior thesis on unlikable characters, Alice's rage is just another thing that made this book work for me incredibly well. While some YA books with unlikable MCs often end up coming off as unbelievable or eye-roll worthy, Alice is authentically awful at times in a way that pulls you into the darkness of the rest of the story.

(She does still have a couple eye-roll moments, but truly who among us can't look back on our teenage years and roll our own eyes at something we once said or did? If you feel you truly did nothing embarrassing as a teen.... I just... don't believe you.)

Beyond Alice, the other character we see the most of is Finch. His character is where one of my problems with this book comes in. Finch is biracial, and Alice really resists ever seeing things from his point of view. There is a particular scene in which the two of them are pulled over and Alice is her usual combative self with the police officer. When Finch tries to tell her afterwards how deeply uncomfortable he feels around police, especially when people are not being agreeable, Alice blows him off because he's rich and therefore privileged. I don't feel Finch's character was at all well-handled in this instance. If the scene had later been dealt with, and Alice could have grown enough to recognize that her growing up poor does not mean that anyone with money has unlimited privilege, that would have been one thing. But as it was, it was just something that was handled in a clunky manor, without as much care to the situation as I think was necessary.

Finch, though, was brilliantly complex and I loved him. He's easily fascinated, eager, intelligent, and so passionate. He also comes from a home where he goes unappreciated. Basically, he's the kind of character I adore in all things and I want to give him one million hugs.

There are a couple of quick side characters who I won't get into with much detail because a lot about them is full of spoilery stuff, but I will say that there is a sweet, older f/f couple that Alice encounters and I love them with all my heart.

Besides characters, I think <i>The Hazel Wood </i> also has a really solid plot, which I know is not the most popular of opinions. The book is slow. It does not spend a lot of time in a fantasy world, which I know upset many readers. However, I think it works for me more as a mystery than as a fantasy book. Finding clues, the winding journey of desperately trying to figure out what the hell is happening at a given time? I was drawn to it as a lover of the chase, a lover of mysteries. The fact that there was a fantasy element to this mystery only made it more interesting to me.

I also feel that this book held true to the darkness it promised. While I spent a lot of the book terrified that at the last minute it would hold back on me in the end, I think the even-handed ending was completely worthy of the scare factor and the darkness of the rest of the book. It was an ending well-earned, and I appreciated it capping off the journey the way it did.

Which is why I feel deeply unsure about a sequel, but we'll just leave those feelings aside for now.... except to say that books, especially fantasy books, should be ALLOWED to be stand alones. This worked brilliantly as its own story, and I am incredibly cautious moving forward into further installments.

<i>The Hazel Wood</i> was creepy, weird, and fantastic. It had excellent surprise elements and twists, a solid collection of side characters, and a winding mystery that kept me invested. All around, I can't believe I enjoyed this as much as I did, but I am so glad I got the chance to read it.

I heard so much buzz about this book that I was really excited to start it. I began the audiobook as soon as it came out and then...I was just bored. So much of the first chunk of the book is exposition of Alice talking about how interesting she and her family are after 3 hours of audio I found myself wondering when the story would ever start. I might go back an give this another shot but even once her mother disappeared I couldn't seem to care much about what was happening. I expected way more magic than what was happening and I don't want to wait until halfway through the book for it to show.

The Hazel Wood Comes to Life at Night
I had ironically just finished updating my TBR queue based on a list of hotly anticipated books for 2018, when our Queen Bee offered me the chance to read the one I was most excited about early. The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert had been near the top of several lists I had perused online, and the synopsis alone was chill-inducing, oozing with dark promise. And it delivered ten fold, this is by far the Image result for dark enchanted book gifcreepiest, most captivating fairy tale-esque book I have ever read; it is a book that will make my fellow readers view the idea of the land of make-believe in a far more sinister light.

“So, why not five stars?” you may be asking yourself. My only criticism of this book lies in its last 15%, with an ending that seems both anticlimactic, and empty. There is a great deal of buildup to the point when Alice learns the secrets of the Hazel Wood and the Hinterland, only to offer a quick resolution to the situation, that seemed far too easy. Additionally, I’m a proud member of the happily-ever-after crowd, and that is not what you get with this book. I found myself aching more for Alice at the end of the book than I had throughout her entire period of tribulation detailed in the rest of the story. However, things seemed to be left open-ended enough to allow for a future second installment to Alice’s tale…in which case I may end up having to eat these words!

Now that I have the negatives out of the way, let mImage result for creepy dark woods gif
e take some time to rave about this book! The writing is flawless, with descriptions that paint vivid pictures in the mind’s eye, and evoke stirring emotions…I could almost feel Alice’s uncontrollable rage and urge to be cruel, along with her crushing sense of loneliness and separateness. The breadcrumb trail of clues to Alice’s true identity allows readers to figure it out just ahead of the major revelation, but adeptly hides some of the more sinister plot twists, resulting in a thrill ride of epic proportions. The Hazel Wood will be available tomorrow, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves fairy tales, or anyone who has ever wondered what would happen if fairy tales came to life and broke out of their story lines. Yes, even my fellow lovers of the happily-ever-after story, because this is a book that truly should not to be missed!

Hazel Wood is a creepy YA fantasy that was dark and mysterious while also managing to be fun. I can't wait to see what this author does next!

It took me forever to get through this book for a few reasons: I didn't want to read it at night because it's kind of scary and I scare very easily, and the middle of the book drags for a while. If I hadn't gotten a push of energy at the end, I don't know how long it would've taken me to read it. However, I still really liked to story. It's intricate and interesting and takes you places you might not expect (though it's certainly not a crazy mystery that you can't see coming) and the Hinterland is this beautifully drawn world that comes alive so vividly. I'm sure that the next book in this series will resolve some of the character issues, especially the unsatisfying place that both Alice and Finch are in, but I almost would've preferred that those resolutions could have happened in this book. The story feels unfinished, though I recognize that this is probably intentional.

A sharp, dangerous debut with a delightfully academic bent. Albert creates brand new fairytales for her novel with the deftness of a master, haunting and eerie and just whimsical enough to be bitingly memorable.

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This should have been a winner for me, Hazel wood sounding like a re-imagined Brothers Grimm fairy tale. The idea itself could have made for enchanting and dangerous tale, but for me it fell short. . This story had so much more to give! Instead the progress was snail slow, the characters were flat, and any real action didn't happen until towards the end of the books. The exchanges between characters were odd and unrealistic. Alice, the MC, was selfish and generally unlikable and Finch, while I appreciated he stayed true to his character in the end, he just wasn't that interesting. There were a few glimpses in the beginning of the Hinterland characters that were interesting and creepy, but overall, I didn't find this story scary or dark. Once the story line took place in the Hazel Wood, I wish the author would have explored the stories and characters of Hinterland, as that was the best part of this story for me.

This book was an engaging and unexpected adventure. If you are looking for a satisfying and alternative fairy tale look no farther!

I ended up reading MOST of this book, and I do plan on continuing as this book frustrated me greatly - but in a good way.

What I expected from this book was a simple fairytale, but instead what I got was a Brother’s Grimm level kind of fairytale and I was pleasantly surprised.

It’s brutal, dark, mysterious with beautiful and brilliant descriptions of everything.
I loved the characters, the tone of the story. Everything about this book is what you want in a dark fairytale.
I was very much engaged from the start of this book, to where I stopped between 60-70%. At that marker something had happened that made me need to stop reading and process, and then I never picked it back up again because I literally was so worried about what was going to happen.

I will be returning to this story once I get the chance but as of right now I highly recommend and love this story!

THE HAZEL WOOD by Melissa Albert is a dark fantasy suspense for young adults.

Alice and her mother are unlucky in life and move frequently. When her mother disappears, Alice must immerse herself in the dark world of her recently dead grandmother’s supernatural world. Filled with strong and sometimes abrasive female characters and lots of twists, Alice along with her acquaintance Ellery must visit the creepy Hazel Wood estate in search of answers.

Librarians will find a following for this book among teens who enjoy fairy tale fantasy, contemporary mysteries, and dark thrillers. Fans of Alice in Wonderful and teens who enjoy literature will enjoy discussing the many literary connections.

Published by Flatiron, an imprint of Macmillan on January 30, 2018. ARC courtesy of the publisher.

LOVED this title! It was weird and strange and absolutely amazing. The twists kept me guessing all the way through.

The Hazel Wood by Melissa Albert is amazing. This story hooked me right away. I heard a lot of mixed early reviews and wasn't sure what to think, so I needed to check it out myself and I am so glad that I did. I found myself wanting to know more about the mystery that is going on.

Alice is a bit different. She doesn't come across as your typical main character. Sometimes I liked her but most of the time I didn't like her. Mainly because she wasn't friendly. She kept people at arm's length which kept other characters at bay. It would be a lot nicer to get to know more characters but this didn't stop me from loving this book.

Albert's writing is beautiful and quite enjoyable. I found myself wanting to know more about the Hinterland and what is going on. I know this story was compared to a lot of different fairy tales but I didn't see anything that jumped out at me right away. I feel like this book is pretty unique. I really enjoyed the ending and I am looking forward to seeing what Albert has in store for us next.