Splintered by A.G. Howard

Title: Splintered
Series: Splintered, #1
Author: A.G. Howard
Publisher: Amulet Books
Date Published: January 1, 2013
Narrator: Rebecca Gibel
4 Stars

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.

My Thoughts (more like rambles?) :

I'm not going to lie. The main thing that kept tempting me to start this series were the gorgeous, intriguing covers. My book friends have given a variety of mixed reviews on this series, so I wasn't sure if I should start it or not. However, it seemed like every time I would go to Barnes & Noble I would stop and  pick up a copy of either Splintered, Unhinged, or Ensnared, gaze upon the cover and then leaf through the pages. They kept calling to me and I felt like I was missing something important. Then there was the fact that the Splintered series is an Alice in Wonderland retelling, and that is one of my favorite stories of all time. Finally, I  decided to just go for it! And I am sooo glad that I did!

So, after all that talk about pretty covers, I decided to listen to the audiobook. I know, I don't make sense, right? But then, it's kind of fitting since this is an Alice in Wonderland retelling, and we all know one of the major components is...madness. Kind of fitting, right? (And I will be buying the paperbacks at a later time).  But seriously, the narrator, Rebecca Gibel, did an excellent job of capturing the voice of Alyssa. I think I would have viewed Alyssa differently (slightly negative) had I not listened to Gimel's voice. It worked for me. 

There were so many different thoughts that popped into my head as the story progressed. One, is that Howard has a creative imagination. I really liked how she twisted the original components that we all know from the original story and spun a new light on them. I also thought the characters had a unique style of dress that went a long with an artistic, gothic them. Her descriptions were very imaginitive. I do have to admit, some of the images and scenarios were lost on me. Sometimes I would have to hit stop and rewind, and really think about what the author was trying to portray.

Then there are the characters. Each character was a fascinating. They weren't all nice.  Yep, there is a love triange (or square?). Usually those bug the heck out of me, but strangely, it did not this time. I actually liked all of the characters, and I could understand the connections. I was rooting for Jeb and Morpheus, and I am NOT known to do something like that. However, there was just something interesting and alluring about both of them. I also could not help but like Alyssa, as well. She had been through so much with her mom, and yet she remained postive and upbeat. I loved her style and her artistic flair. And she was a skateboarder. How cool is that?

If there was one thing that bugged me, it was the repeated mention of his labret. I didn't count how many times Alyssa referred to it, but it was enough for me to shriek, "OK! I get it- he has a labret!" 

I really liked how the story left off, but I already have Unhinged ready to go. I cannot wait to get back into this world and (hopefully) get reaquainted with the characters...and possibly meet some new ones!