Jennifer Hillier is an amazing author that can do no wrong when it comes to thrillers however this story was very slow compared to her more recent work. I was excited to get into the story because I’ve never read a thriller about an amusement park however, I am afraid to say that I did DNF this story about 30 percent in. I was not a fan of an older woman sleeping with barely legal teen boys. It made me cringe and just wasn’t something I was interested in continuing.

Welcome to Wonderland. By day, it’s a magical amusement park boasting a certain retro charm. But before in the dark, an eerie feeling descends between the Creepy Clown Museum and the rumors of the underground tunnel. Vanessa Castro’s first day as deputy police chief of Seaside, Washington, is off to a bang when the unidentifiable dead man appears in Wonderland and a teenage employee goes missing on the same day. As the clues in cases gather, she suspects the rumors surrounding the amusement park’s dark history might just be true. She moved to Seaside to escape her own scandalous past, but has she brought her family to the center of an insidious killer’s twisted game.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book since I was let down from Jennifer Hillierother book I read, but I was sucked into this one from the start! I loved Vanessa and her two children (mainly her daughter, as she plays a bigger role in the story) and the dynamic workers at Wonderland, all of which have their own secrets. There were multiple twists in this book, none of which I saw coming until a page or two before they happened, or at the time the twist was explicitly put in front of me. I had some suspensions about what characters may or may not have done based on their personalities, but I did not see the last two surprises at the end of the book coming at all!

This was an audio book, and the narrator did a great job of telling this story and was clear while reading, which is great because I like to listen to my audio books at 1.5x the speed. The clearer the speaker, the easier it is to set a fast pace for the book!

I rated this book with 5 🌟!

I'd like to say a huge thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

QUICK BITS
•Amusement park
•Strong women
•Trigger happy

REVIEW
Wonderland was originally released as an ebook in 2015, now in 2023 for the first time ever the audio version has been released!

This book has everything going for it.

The characters are wacky, wild, and well written (you will have no clue who to trust).

The concept of murders in an amusement park never gets old and the creepy vibes are off the charts to boot.

I will warn sensitive readers to seek out the trigger warnings because I am pretty sure this one contains pretty much every trigger you could imagine (even clowns and rats eating faces).

So if you dare...read this and then come tell me what you think.

RATINGS
9 Characters
8 Atmosphere
9 Writing Style
9 Plot
7 Pace
9 Intrigue
8 Enjoyment
3 SOS Bonus
TOTAL= 59+3= 62/14= 4.42

3.00/5.00 SOS Rating
--Yall there is so much to unpack here. Twists and turns galore...and apparently one of these characters shows up in Little Secrets...I guess I know which JH book I'll be reading next.

4.5/5.00 Rounded Rating

I read Wonderland for the first time last year and was excited to revisit Seaside with the recently released audio version! (I selfishly hope this release is setting us up for a new trip around the Wonder Wheel in the future 🤞🏻) @jenniferhillierbooks is one of my auto buy authors and I couldn’t be more happy for her and the re-release of one of my personal faves! @eunicewongnarration did an awesome job narrating! Her unique voices for each character truly added to the creep factor!

I am a huge Jennifer Hiller fan and this one was no exception. The setting was one of my favorites, I mean you cannot go wrong with an amusement park riddled with secrets, lies, and missing teenage boys. It was a bit more predictable than others, but I guess this one was also written in 2015, just only available as E-book. Anyways, I love a good who-dun-it mystery and this one delivered. In the first half I was completely sucked in, then drug on a bit in the middle, but went out with a bang.

As far as the audio the narration was great, and easily sped up to 1.5-1.75 which is my preferred speed. Would definitely recommend it for fans of Jennifer Hiller and mystery novels!

I found this very entertaining so I give it 4 stars!This is an auto-buy author of mine so I will keep reading whatever she writes. You have a desperate town, the suspicious owner, a creepy theme park and all the missing young men are all ingredients to make a great thriller. A definite must read!

After reading and loving Things We Do In The Dark by Jennifer Hillier last year I immediately jumped at the chance to listen to an older but new to audio title of hers: Wonderland.
It was just the right kind of creepy intense thriller with a setting in a little northwestern town that basically exists around an amusement park that has had it’s scandals but since it basically employing people, supporting sports teams and bringing revenue into town nobody is looking too closely. But new in town deputy chief Vanessa Castro is not bound by such loyalties and when her first day starts with a body found in the park and a former park worker missing after posting a selfie from the top of the Ferris wheel, she is not just going to let things go and assume the occurrences have nothing to do with the park. But she needs to tread carefully … especially since her teen daughter just started a summer job selling Hot Dogs at the park !
This was a solid thriller, was it slightly implausible - sure but it definitely had a high entertainment value as what my friend @bookaddictpnw considers a popcorn thriller ! If being along for the summery right to an amusement park with sinister clowns is your things than this one is for you. Additionally this book provides a backstory for some of Hillier’s characters in other books and it was fun to discover connections !
The audio was so well done and so fun to listen to, I was captivated and had to keep inventing chores to keep listening till the end !

I received this as an audio galley to listen to for free in exchange for my honest review. Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for giving me access.

All I can say is this should be a movie.

Ok, that's a lie, I can say more...but I should still be a movie. I wish there was a hardcover edition with the audiobook cover on it.

From the moment I started listening, I was hooked! I can't put my finger on it, but Hillier just drew me in. I found myself not wanting to pause it, afraid I might lose something in that break. There isn't much more I can say without spilling all the beans on what happens. I just know, I will forever be wary of small town amusement parks.

If you love amusement parks, missing people, and a whole lot of twists...you have found your book.

An Atmospheric Thriller

SUMMARY
It is Vanessa Castro's first day as Deputy Chief of Police in Seaside Washington The day has only just begun when she is dispatched to oversee a potential murder investigation at the Wonderland amusement park. Wonderland and it’s visitors are the lifeblood of the small town of Seaside Not only has a homeless man been found dead next to the Wonderwheel, but a selfie of a teenage employee who had free climbed the Wonderwheel had gone viral that morning. Now the teenage employee seems to be missing.

As Vanessa investigates the dead body and searches for the missing teenager. She soon realizes that several other blond-hair teenage boys are also gone and the police have done nothing to find them. As rumors grow about Wonderland, Vanessa and her family who just recently moved to the area, are caught up in a nightmare.

REVIEW
An amusement park, complete with a clown museum and House of Horrors, is an intriguing setting for this atmospheric thriller. Author Jennifer Hillier’s writing and misdirection is both clever and captivating.

Wonderland characters are numerous and colorful. Vanessa left Seattle after her husband’s recent death and she, like all the other characters in the book, has a secret or two up her sleeve. We also have a sex-crazed female CEO, a creepy night janitor, a missing security guard, and a good looking VP of Operations that is protective of his CEO, but wants to get to know Vanessa better.

Hillier has written seven novels and she just keeps getting better. Other books she has written include Things We Do in the Dark, (2022) Little Secrets (2020), and Jar of Hearts (2018). All great books!

Wonderland was actually published as an ebook eight years ago. Now it’s being released as a audiobook and is delightfully narrated by Eunice Wong. Her voice and style is perfect for tension and multitude of characters in this story.

Thanks to Netgalley and Macmillian Audio for an advance reading copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Publisher Macmillian Audio
Published April 11, 2023
Narrated Eunice Wong
Review www.bluestockingreviews.com

Wonderland by Jennifer Hillier was a previously released book that was just rereleased in audio version. Eunice Wong did a great job narrating, and Wonderland was a fun and spooky thrill ride! It wasn't Hillier's best, but that's not saying much at all, since some of her other novels are outstanding. The beginning was a little confusing and hard to get into, but after that it flew by!

I really enjoyed this book as an audiobook. It reeled me in from the start. I mean who doesn't love a creepy story about an amusement park? This book was full of secrets and twists. It kept me guessing the entire time, and, every time a new secret was revealed, it just got more twisted and sinister. Set in a small, idyllic, seaside town, the corruption and darkness that lies beneath make this such a fun read/listen! The narrator did a great job with the voices

3.75 stars ·· Thank you to Netgalley & Macmillan Audio for approving this request for an audiobook review copy!
This was actually better than I thought it would be! I really enjoyed the tone of the book and the writing style, for the most part. It reminded me of a lot of the detective thrillers I used to read a while back and it was a comfortable feeling to have.

I do think a lot of the plot was over the top, which is not a bad thing but it's not my preference. I would have really liked it a lot more if this was actually a series and a few of these different things used throughout the book had been all split into different books. There was a lot going on and it felt like TOO much. Some of the things incorporated were barely even used... kind of including the big, shocking finale. It wasn't super shocking when I didn't really have time to consider it being a possibility. A lot of things just felt like they weren't used enough so when everything was revealed in the end, it fell a little flat.

Bianca was just straight up ridiculous and I hated her whole story arc. I really liked Vanessa and would have liked to spend more time with her (see previous comment about spreading this out into a series) and her detective work. The other side characters were a little blah except for Vanessa's PI friend who came to join her, who was apparently in another book that I didn't read/didn't finish, and apparently Vanessa makes an appearance in LITTLE SECRETS, but I read that one first and years ago so I wouldn't have known.

The amusement park was also kind of fun, but I still felt like it wasn't quite used to its full potential. Lots of things just fell a little short, and the book was a little long, so I end up with a bit of a mixed review.

I've been a fan of Jennifer Hillier for quite some time now and was excited to get an audio copy of Wonderland. This made a great audiobook and I loved the storyline... small town amusement park with a possible serial killer? A creepy clown museum? What's not to like?

There were a few twists in here that I did not see coming at all, and a few that I did. Overall I very much enjoyed the book and I found myself doing more chores so I could listen to it more. Sometimes I find for me an audiobook becomes background noise and this one definitely kept and held my attention. Would most definitely recommend this story in any format!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an audio copy in exchange for an honest review!

Wonderland is a book I liked, but a start to a series I can see myself loving. Sometimes that characters felt a little like caricatures, especially the 14 year old, but the plot moved exceptionally well. While I am unable to find the sequel that the author alluded to at the end of the book, I am hopeful that it will come. There are a lot a plot lines that I'm interested to follow.

Thank you Jennifer Hiller , Macmillan Audio, and Net Galley for my advanced review copy.

Plot - 5
Writing and Editing - 3
Character Development - 3
Narration - 4
Personal Bias - 3
Final Score - 3.6

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the ALC for this recent reissue (previously only released as an ebook) in exchange for my honest opinion.
Wonderland is the name of an amusement park in Seaside, a rural town outside of Seattle. The story involves multiple people who have worked at Wonderland over the course of many years, along with the disappearance of a number of teenage boys who’ve disappeared in the same time frame. One of the newest workers at the park is Ava, the daughter of the new deputy chief of Seaside Police, Vanessa, who had also worked there when she was young. Vanessa is now working on finding the missing boys, as one more worker disappeared on her first night in town.
Are you a fan of creepy thrillers? If so, this could be a great audiobook for you.
Last summer I enjoyed reading Things We Do In the Dark, the author’s most recent release, and I was excited to check out one of her previous books. I enjoy psychological thrillers, but this one had more horror and an increased “creep” factor (there is a clown museum at Wonderland!) which left me feeling icky! The narration was great, increasing the tension and creepiness. I believe the same narrator recorded Things We Do In the Dark! It also sounds like the author’s book Little Secrets includes some of the same key characters as this one, so I’ll be checking that one out in the near future, too!

What do you get when you combine one of my favorite thriller authors (Jennifer Hillier) with one of my favorite audiobook narrators (Eunice Wong)? An absolute masterpiece!

I loved this book so much. The pacing, the plot, the characters, and the setting were all perfect in my very humble opinion. Another dark and twisty winner from Ms Hillier that I'll be recommending to anyone who will listen!

I normally don't like fiction audiobooks but I've loved everything Jennifer Hillier has written and this was no exception.

A creepy amusement park? Check. A sexy one-night stand between strangers in a small town? Check. A body showing up in the amusement park? Check. Missing teens. More spicy, sexy scenes. More creepy amusement park. Oh, my!

Really, though, Hillier does a great job balancing the sexy scenes and the mystery of a dead body and other missing teens. I couldn't stop listening to it! The narrator used so many tones to depict all the characters, I didn't get bored on a long drive, and it kept my interest. I was rooting for the new Deputy Chief to solve the case at Wonderland and fall for Oz, even though he was damaged and still seduced by Wonderland's CEO. But why would Deputy Chief Vanessa ever let her daughter work at Wonderland if she knew all that's going on there?? Really? But overall, still a fast read/listen and very enjoyable mystery for fans of creepy carnivals.

As someone from Washington, I enjoyed that this book was set in a fictional town in Washington. I loved the plot of this book, and was on edge the entire time to figure out the mystery at the amusement park and how the town was involved.
This was my first book by Jennifer Hillier, and I’ll definitely be picking up her other ones.

When I picked this up to read, I was excited because I've enjoyed a few others by this author in the past, but I did not realize this was along the liens of a detective/investigative thriller, which is one of my least favorite types of thrillers. This wasn't fully into the genre, but definitely had a lot of investigative scenes & a crime background. I did enjoy the storytelling in this though and it moved along at a good pace. I thought the narration was excellent as well. I wasn't overly shocked by the twist at the end as there was a lot of foreshadowing leading up to it. Overall, this wasn't my favorite by Hillier and but it was enjoyable. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is being rereleased via mass paperback and I’ve been wanting to have a chance to experience this book for years. WONDERLAND is slower-paced and more straightforward than the author’s newer works, but still a pretty solid audiobook listen. I love that I had a chance to read her earlier works because it’s shown me her professional growth within the genre of mystery/thriller storytelling.