[Book Review] No Place Like Oz by Danielle Paige

No Place Like Oz (Dorothy Must Die #0.5) by Danielle Paige

Publication Date: November 12, 2013

Publisher: HarperCollins

Genre: Young Adult Fantasy

Source: Library

Summary

After returning to Kansas, Dorothy Gale has realized that the dreary fields of Kansas don’t compare to the vibrant landscapes of Oz. And although she’s happy to be reunited with Aunt Em, she misses her friends from the yellow brick road. But most of all, Dorothy misses the fame and the adventure. In Kansas she’s just another prairie girl, but in Oz she was a hero. So Dorothy is willing to do anything to get back, because there really is no place like Oz. But returning to the land she left comes at a price, and after Dorothy is through with it, Oz will never be the same.

Perfect for fans of Alex Flinn, Marissa Meyer, and Gregory Maguire, No Place Like Oz is a dark reimagining of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. Building off of its rich mythology, Danielle Paige creates an edgy, thrilling story for teens that chronicles the rise and fall of one of the literature’s most beloved characters. This digital original novella is a prequel that sets the stage for the forthcoming novel Dorothy Must Die.

(Courtesy of Goodreads)

My Review

I had trouble getting into Dorothy Must Die the first time around, but after reading No Place Like Oz I am very excited to pick it up again. This e-novella gives the reader a glimpse into the time between the end of the original tale by L. Frank Baum and where Danielle Paige picks up in her own retelling. Of course the writing style and voice sound different from the original but as some one who has read the original story I could still feel the spirit of each character. After reading this short story I can't wait to pick up Dorothy Must Die again.

Trees of Reverie Read-A-Thon

Starting today at 10 AM EST Sarah from treesofreverie on Tumblr is hosting a read-a-thon that lasts for exactly one week. I signed up as an official participant so I guess that means I've got a lot of reading to do in the coming week, which I'm super excited for! Since I'm still in school and it's a busy time for me, I'm not going to be overly ambitious in my reading list.

Without further ado here are the books I'm planning to read:

I'll be doing most of my updates on Tumblr but I will be updating this post with my daily progress in terms of pages/books read and linking back to the more detailed updates on Tumblr. You can also find me on Twitter and Goodreads where I will probably also be updating my reading progress. I can't wait to get started with Grave Mercy by Robyn LaFavers.

Updates

Day 1

• Pages Read Today: 230
• Total Pages Read: 230
• Books Read: Grave Mercy (in progress)

Day 2

• Pages Read Today: 160
• Total Pages Read: 390
• Books Read: Grave Mercy, Bright Before Sunrise (in progress)

Are any of you participating in the read-a-thon? Let me know in the comments!

New Release Tuesday...The Ones I'm Psyched For [11]

Love Letters to the Dead by Ava Dellaira

Summary

It begins as an assignment for English class: Write a letter to a dead person. Laurel chooses Kurt Cobain because her sister, May, loved him. And he died young, just like May did. Soon, Laurel has a notebook full of letters to people like Janis Joplin, Amy Winehouse, Amelia Earhart, Heath Ledger, and more; though she never gives a single one of them to her teacher. She writes about starting high school, navigating new friendships, falling in love for the first time, learning to live with her splintering family. And, finally, about the abuse she suffered while May was supposed to be looking out for her. Only then, once Laurel has written down the truth about what happened to herself, can she truly begin to accept what happened to May. And only when Laurel has begun to see her sister as the person she was; lovely and amazing and deeply flawed; can she begin to discover her own path.

Of the many new releases today, Love Letters to the Dead seems to be the grittiest of them all, which is to be expected when it deals with a theme like death. I've recently read a lot of powerful contemporary books that deal with tough subjects and I can't wait to see what Ava Dellaira brings to the table.

Check it out on Goodreads.
Check out author Ava Dellaira's website.

Sekret by Lindsay Smith

Summary

An empty mind is a safe mind.

Yulia's father always taught her to hide her thoughts and control her emotions to survive the harsh realities of Soviet Russia. But when she's captured by the KGB and forced to work as a psychic spy with a mission to undermine the U.S. space program, she's thrust into a world of suspicion, deceit, and horrifying power. Yulia quickly realizes she can trust no one--not her KGB superiors or the other operatives vying for her attention--and must rely on her own wits and skills to survive in this world where no SEKRET can stay hidden for long.

There's not enough books about Soviet Russia so when I heard about Sekret I got really excited. Then I saw there was a supernatural element and I was sold! If only my spring break was a week later, I might have had the chance to meet Lindsay Smith in person during her launch event, but I guess I will just have to settle for reading what promises to be a fantastic book.

Check it out on Goodreads.
Check out author Lindsay Smith's website.

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Page

Summary

I didn't ask for any of this. I didn't ask to be some kind of hero. But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado—taking you with it—you have no choice but to go along, you know?

Sure, I've read the books. I've seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little blue birds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can't be trusted, Wicked Witches may just be the good guys, and winged monkeys can be executed for acts of rebellion. There's still the yellow brick road, though—but even that's crumbling.

What happened?
Dorothy. They say she found a way to come back to Oz. They say she seized power and the power went to her head. And now no one is safe.

My name is Amy Gumm—and I'm the other girl from Kansas.
I've been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked.
I've been trained to fight.
And I have a mission:
Remove the Tin Woodman's heart.
Steal the Scarecrow's brain.
Take the Lion's courage.
Then and only then—Dorothy must die!

I read a short excerpt that's available online and I was hooked! I am so glad that this amazing book is finally released so I can read the whole thing, I'm sure I will devour it. I've always been a fan of The Wizard of Oz movie and I finally read the original last summer. I'm excited to see what Danielle Paige brings to the wonderful world of Oz.

Check it out on Goodreads.
Check out author Danielle Paige on Twitter.

Other notable new releases

• Dear Killer by Katherine Ewell

"Waiting on" Wednesday [7]

Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

Publication Date: April 1, 2014

Publisher: HarperTeen

Synopsis 

I didn't ask for any of this. I didn't ask to be some kind of hero.
But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado—taking you with it—you have no choice but to go along, you know?

Sure, I've read the books. I've seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little blue birds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can't be trusted, Wicked Witches may just be the good guys, and winged monkeys can be executed for acts of rebellion. There's still the yellow brick road, though—but even that's crumbling.

What happened?
Dorothy. They say she found a way to come back to Oz. They say she seized power and the power went to her head. And now no one is safe.

My name is Amy Gumm—and I'm the other girl from Kansas.
I've been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked.
I've been trained to fight.
And I have a mission:
Remove the Tin Woodman's heart.
Steal the Scarecrow's brain.
Take the Lion's courage.
Then and only then—Dorothy must die!

Who isn't excited for a retelling of the Wizard of Oz? The last one we had was Wicked by Gregory Maguire and this one seems very different in both tone and plot. In Dorothy Must Die, the first book in a trilogy, Danielle Paige is re-imagining and recreating the Dorothy character and instead of being the heroine, she's the new villain. I can't wait to see what's in store with! 

Check it out on Goodreads!