Splintered

Author: A.G. Howard
Goodreads Rating: 4.19
Pages: 384
Format: ARC/E-Galley from Netgalley

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.

I never was a huge Alice fan, thats not to say that I didn't like Alice in Wonderland, I just wasn't crazy about her like I know some friends are. That being said, I did enjoy how Splintered connected to the original Alice story line and how I could se little things that reminded me of the story.

I really liked Alyssa and how selflessly she tried to go out and fight for her mother. Don't get me wrong, it was a little aggravating how she just kept throwing herself headlong into these stupid situations. She was naive as she chose to trust people she probably shouldn't have trusted. Especially when it came down to trusting Morpheous while in Wonderland. I do however, defend her decision to do that because she didn't have much of a choice to trust anyone else.

I wish that I had liked Jeb a little more, but I felt that his character was a little flat. We learn a lot about Jeb, but there was just something about him that felt like he wasn't all there. I could see some of the motivations for him doing what he could to help Alyssa, but at the same time I felt like he served no purpose other than to create this internal struggle for Alyssa and to show her what she was somewhat capable of even though Morpheous was the one that let her be who she was.

I was a little creeped out by the bugs at the beginning, but in the end I really enjoyed this book and all the different Alice connections. It was enjoyable, but not my favorite. I'm interested to see if a second book follows this one.

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