Danielle Paige – LaShaunda Loves

Waiting On Wednesday: Stealing Snow

“Waiting On” Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we’re eagerly anticipating.

This week’s anticipated future release is:

Title: Stealing Snow
Author: Danielle Paige
Expected Publication: September 16th, 2016
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Synopsis from Goodreads:

Seventeen-year-old Snow has spent the majority of her life within the walls of the Whittaker Institute, a high security mental hospital in upstate New York. Deep down, she knows she’s not crazy and doesn’t belong there. When she meets a mysterious, handsome new orderly and dreams about a strange twisted tree she realizes she must escape and figure out who she really is.

Using her trusting friend Bale as a distraction, Snow breaks free and races into the nearby woods. Suddenly, everything isn’t what it seems, the line between reality and fantasy begins to blur, and she finds herself in icy Algid–her true home–with witches, thieves, and a strangely alluring boy named Kai, none of whom she’s sure she can trust. As secret after secret is revealed, Snow discovers that she is on the run from a royal lineage she’s destined to inherit, a father more powerful and ruthless than she could have imagined, and choices of the heart that could change the fate of everything…including Snow’s return to the world she once knew.

This breathtaking first volume begins the story of how Snow becomes a villain, a queen, and ultimately a hero.

Book Review: Dorothy Must Die

February 12, 2016 No Comments

Original Title: Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige
Edition: Hardcover, 452 pages
Published: April 1, 2014 by HarperCollins
Characters: Amy Gumm, Nox, Gamora, Gert, Dorothy Gale
Rating: 3/5

Description: 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 bluebirds. 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 a yellow brick road – 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.

So, I was drawn to Dorothy Must Die solely because of the premise. I am a huge fan of retellings and I’m a fan of The Wizard of Oz, so this book was a definite must read. It did not disappoint!

Amy Gumm is the primary character in this story, and she wishes to escape from her poor, sad life in Kansas. When a tornado comes, her wish is granted and she’s transported to Oz, but it’s very different from the Oz we all know and love. As Amy explores this new and wicked Oz, she discovers all the horrors imposed by Dorothy, who returned to Oz and usurped the status quo. Soon Amy meets the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked, a group of once wicked witches who have banned together to fight Dorothy and restore the balance to Oz.

I admit that the first few chapters were not very engaging, but I did give Danielle Paige a pass because this is her debut novel and creative writing is very different from her background of screen writing. Sometimes the writing is a bit bland, but the actual story is entertaining and interesting enough to ignore some minor flaws. The story moves along at an acceptable pace and there’s plenty of action, suspense, and drama to satisfy. While there’s a twinge of romance, it’s not the primary focus and it definitely doesn’t define our heroine.

I’m looking forward to reading the sequel, The Wicked Will Rise. I would definitely recommend this series to anyone who enjoys a little twist on a classic.