Splintered (Splintered, #1)

by A. G. Howard

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. Read all the books in the New York Times bestselling Splintered series: Splintered (Book 1), Unhinged (Book 2), Ensnared (Book 3), and Untamed (The Companion Novel). Get books 1 through 3 in the Splintered boxed set, available now!Praise for Splintered:STARRED REVIEW "Fans of dark fantasy, as well as of Carroll’s Alice in all her revisionings (especially Tim Burton’s), will find a lot to love in this compelling and imaginative novel." —Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books"Alyssa is one of the most unique protagonists I've come across in a while. Splintered is dark, twisted, entirely riveting, and a truly romantic tale." —USA Today "Brilliant, because it is ambitious, inventive, and often surprising — a contemporary reworking of Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,’’ with a deep bow toward Tim Burton’s 2010 film version." —The Boston Globe "It’s a deft, complex metamorphosis of this children’s fantasy made more enticing by competing romantic interests, a psychedelic setting, and more mad violence than its original." —Booklist " Protagonist Alyssa...is an original. Howard's visual imagination is superior. The story's creepiness is intriguing as horror, and its hypnotic tone and setting, at the intersection of madness and creativity, should sweep readers down the rabbit hole." —Publishers Weekly "While readers will delight in such recognizable scenes as Alyssa drinking from a bottle to shrink, the richly detailed scenes that stray from the original will entice the imagination. These adventures are indeed wonderful." —BookPage "Attention to costume and setting render this a visually rich read..." —Kirkus Reviews "Wonderland is filled with much that is not as wonderful as might be expected, and yet, it is in Wonderland that Alyssa accepts her true nature. The cover with its swirling tendrils and insects surrounding Alyssa will surely attract teen readers who will not disappointed with this magical, edgy tale." —Reading Today Online "Creepy, descriptive read with a generous dollop of romance." —School Library JournalAward: YALSA’s 2014 Teens’ Top Ten

• ISBN13: 9781419704284
• Publish Date: 1 January 2013
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 12 April 2023
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Abrams
• Imprint: Amulet Books
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 384
• Language: English

Reviews

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

Well!

This book was a nightmare.

I'm going to break away from my usual review format here to tell you a little bit about why this HUGELY popular book, which gets 3.96 stars on Goodreads, made me desperately want to tear my hair out. Let's start at the very beginning.

Alyssa is dreading a visit to her mother, an inpatient in the local asylum.  Local asylum... because we all have one!  We get a lot of back and forth and just in the beginning of the book we learn that Alyssa wears dreadlock hair extensions, is a senior in high school trusted to run a little thrift store boutique herself, steals money from a peer who comes in solely to tease her about her prom date, and sprains her ankle skateboarding.  Not in that order.  Alyssa spends her life being teased about Wonderland, but skates at a place called Underland, which was sort of named for her by her arch nemesis to further tease her about her mother's psychotic obsession with Alice in Wonderland.  For a girl who is so unpopular that her only friends are her next door neighbors, the town seems obsessed with her.

This is all before Wonderland.

Once we finally get to the asylum, we see Alyssa's mother dressed up like Alice in Wonderland.  Behind her is a cartoon nurse with a needle filled with sedative and a wicked grin.  By the end of this visit, mama dearest is being shot through with this stuff and stuffed in a straitjacket to be sent to a padded cell.  Because crazy mum freaked out and tried to kill herself after the nurse left her alone and completely unsupervised with her daughter.

I have so many issues with this asylum, y'all.

Lets start with straitjackets.  These horrible things aren't used for the good of the patients - in the 1800s and early 1900s, they were used for torture and punishment.  Medically speaking, extended use of a straitjacket causes pooling of blood in the elbows and hands... any responsible medical facility wouldn't use them period but even if they did... mommy dearest would not be still in one at the end of the week.  It's just unethical.  To be honest, these things are relics of a misguided past and the imaginings of the worst horror films... they're almost never used in modern mental hospitals.

This is just one complaint I have with this mental hospital.  The staff at this place are incredibly incompetent and reminds me strongly of a Victorian-era mental hospital.  Was that on purpose?  I don't know.  But jumping right to ECT without any sign of psychotherapy is just wrong.  The portrayal of Alyssa's mother as well... call her schizophrenic, but don't call her a 'psycho'.

There's a bit at the end where the hospital calls to say "Oops!  We think the meds may have been making her crazy - our bad!".  Seriously?

*sigh*

Moving on.

So Alyssa has no lost love for this woman.  She embarrasses her, makes her uncomfortable.  THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN Alyssa is her mother's champion going down to Wonderland to stop the curse because she misses her mom so much.

For real?  Ten minutes ago you didn't even want to visit the lady.

Once we get to Wonderland, so many people are so proud of Alyssa for accomplishing all her really difficult tasks!  Look at you, brave Wonderful girl!  You got away from the flowers by letting the other person get away from the flowers and rescue you!  You're so brave!  You soaked up a whole ocean by having a sponge in your pocket you forgot about.  You're so resourceful.

HIGH FIVES EVERYONE.

Now, since this book is circa 2013, a love triangle is still rather expected.  BUT THE LINES ARE SO CHEESY I WANT TO PUNCH THINGS.

For example:

“You’re the one who’s oblivious. Because there’s nothing brotherly about the way you make me feel.”

Obviously that one is a winner.

Then at one point, Jeb calls Morpheus a "son of a bug"... because hey!  Look!  A completely accurate and PG way to insult him!  It was so cheesy I stopped listening and wrote it down.  At least it's out of their system, right?

NOPE.

"Son of a bug" was used at least twice more that I caught.  WHY.

I just... I can't even, guys.  This was so painful, and SUCH a let down because the cover was so pretty, and it's an Alice in Wonderland Story.  Howard's world building is truly incredible - very Alice: Madness Returns.  But her characters are the ABSOLUTE WORST.

You just have to read all my comments while reading this on Goodreads to get the real gist.  I have so much disappointed hate for this book it is unreal.

I'm sorry.  I know everyone likes it.  Nope, nope. nope.

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[mrs_mander_reads]

I really loved this take on the Alice story. I thought it was incredibly creative, and it definitely kept me engaged the entire read. I would also recommend the audiobook, which is very well read/voiced.

[Jack]

Review to come! I don't remember the last time I got through a book this fast. It was amazing and entertaining and thrilling! Sure there were some discrepancies which other reviewers pointed out about the asylum bits. I agree with that. Jeb also got on my nerves most of the time, thinking Alyssa couldn't take care of herself. He might have grown on me towards the end of the book, but Morpheus is my all time favorite.

[layawaydragon]

Content Warning: Mental Illness, Abuse, Rape-y Moment,

The Good:
+Creepy Wonderland (McGee's Alice is still the best tho)
+Alyssa comes through in the end
+Wrapped up and concluded like a stand alone
+Like Morpheus despite his flaws. Felt authentic and perfect for Wonderland
+Cover LOVE!
+Liked the way the main plot is wrapped up
+Liked the writing
+Liked the twist with the Queens, esp. Red. Didn't see that one coming exactly.
+Understand Alyssa's attraction to Morpheus

The Bad & Other:
-Didn't care for Alyssa's wardrobe descriptions. IDC. And “dread like braids”? White girl, please!
-Jeb's an asshole. Alyssa and Taelor should've called him out on so much more.
-Taelor's depiction and being the Whore to Alyssa's Virgin. I felt so bad for her, she gets a bad wrap. She's not any worse than the others, but she's “the bitch”. And she got used and screwed over. And they should be thankful for her gift!
-Rape-y moment when Alyssa's on a mind-altering drug in Wonderland
-Alyssa and Jeb get away with and defend their good intentions when it hurts other people and are the “good guys” but don't give others the same treatment.
-Ugh, the “moment” between Alyssa and Taelor at the end.
-Convenient plot mechanics.
-Frustrating dense moments

I won a gorgeous hardcover of Splintered years ago, though now I can't find the record of from who. Seriously, not just the cover the but the chapter beginnings too and the little details like the page numbers. But I do have the email where I won a signed book plate of it from Cah Reviews.

I fell in love with Splintered's cover. Hearing it was a creepy, modern day re-telling of Alice in Wonderland sounded cool and a novel like American McGee's Alice sounded too good to be true. The love triangle made me go “noooooo” though.

I finally pulled it off the shelf last night and started reading. I was hooked in quick though Alyssa came off as trying to hard with her alternative, edgy clothes. I just went “eh, don't care” and moved on. It was hard picturing her in her main get-up and I quit trying. Of course, I don't give a fuck about fashion so YMMV.

Sadly, I stopped with less than 100 pages left and when I went back to read it the next day it lost a lot of its magic. I'd recommend reading it at a stretch if possible or just not thinking about it while reading. The more I thought about it, the more I didn't like it, which is why this review has a lot of negative but still a 3.5 stars. It was entertaining and it held me despite its flaws but it was held back from 4 stars because of those issues.

Characters:

Alyssa had me with hearing the bugs and plants. Her fashion sense came off as a defense mechanism rather than organic at first. Then I just didn't care. Several things happen because she's dense and stupid, which is frustrating. Otherwise, she's the perfect goth princess. Her relationship with her father and mother were heartbreaking and felt right.

Then there's Jeb, who really came off as an asshole. He tries dominating and controlling her from the jump and doesn't quit til way late. It's beyond looking out for her, it's condescending and a red flag. Determining her life with her father?!?! And the virginity remark! GRRRR. Fuck that purity nonsense. Not to mention his asshole behavior towards Taelor. (God, that's such a white suburban name/spelling.)

Taelor was the bitchy ice queen slut, at total odds with our precious Alyssa. She really got screwed by Jeb though Alyssa sticks up for him. Does he stick up for her with Taelor? No. Does he try to help Taelor? No, he just uses her and discards her after they planned their collage future together. But oh, poor Jeb!! Blech.

I felt so bad for Taelor. Her dad's an ass and she has issues so she lashes out in understandably wrong ways. But no worries, Alyssa saves the day and gets through to her! Bleh. She's jealous and insecure for a fucking reason and was right about it all. Then has precious princess rub it in like it's all her fault.

Um, no even if Taelor was perfect, it'd end the same way. She's not the fucking problem. Jeb is and he just made her issues worse. She deserves better and I hope she get is in the next books, if she appears.

But the dichotomy between Taelor and Alyssa is crystal clear and disturbing in a bad way. Of course she's “bad”, she has to be for the drama and for it to be justified with Alyssa getting her way. Alyssa doesn't need to be fucking perfect. It'd be fucking better if this whole mess was different but at least have some common sense and decency!

I'm surprised I liked Morpheus so much. He's creepy and manipulative but there's never any doubt of that. At least, not for people with a brain. Alyssa takes awhile. He has a plan and executes it brilliantly. He's fucked up and lied A LOT but he felt authentic. He's how Wonderland's supposed to be.

I mean there's royalty, high courts, free beasts, and it's playing out on a chess board. He's morally gray and doesn't apologize for it. He defends his actions though he's sorry it hurt Alyssa, he'd do it all over again. It was refreshing with Alyssa, the confused and naive special snowflake and Jeb, was defended for being an ass and so “wounded” all the time.

His remark on curing Alyssa's affliction was creepy and rape-y. She was under the influence of a drug. At this point, Jeb acted right but for the wrong, creepy, “purity” reasons. Yet even with crossing the line, I still like him. I suppose I prefer the devil I know over than a fake ass douche. (Jeb gets slightly better later.)

Setting:

I liked the creepy, twisted Wonderland. It definitely wasn't up to par with McGee's Alice but I appreciate what's here and how it intertwined with the original tale. If you haven't played that game or it's sequel, Madness Returns, it's HIGHLY recommended. It does come with a trigger warning for abuse though.





Plot:

Alyssa (and Jeb) missed things that were just frustrating. Like the sponge. And the chessboard references. And her randomly running off like an idiot for no reason?!?!

Alyssa's memory lapses played very well for Morpheus, even though it's supposedly her mother's doing that caused it. The whole thing would've blown up in his face without this. Did he have a back up plan? They also conveniently show up when needed. Meh. The dense moments were far worse for me.

Morpheus really was orchestrating the whole thing with Alyssa falling through it. Until the end, that really worked for her. So it payed off in the end. I do LOVE how it's wrapped up. It felt like a stand alone and it's concluded enough. I was actually a bit miffed to find out it's a trilogy when I went update my Goodreads. Thank fuck no cliffhanger. Now I can pick up the next when I feel in the mood for this kind of story again. That works much better for books with me IMO.

Mental Illness Treatment In The Hospital:

I cannot say if it's realistic or not to have the padded room and straight jacket still. From Googling, it looks like it's still somewhat in practice in the USA, but that's hardly conclusive. I don't know if the depiction is right in Alison's case. It was heartbreaking. Given her mom's actions, I'm not sure how to feel about the treatment. I've never gone that far, neither has anyone I know. It hurts reading it but I can't say if it's right or not.


Have a kitten!

I really hate asshole nurses. That's so cliché and only serves to justify what Alyssa did to her in the end. It wasn't necessary and since Alyssa's got the “doing anything for my mom” thing going on, it'd really prove how far if the nurse didn't “deserve a taste of her own medicine.” Stop giving her a justification for being shitty and just embrace it.


And another

[Sam@WLABB]

I love Howard's twist on Alice's story, but this is not a re-telling. This is a continuation of Alice's story, and gives us a fantastic explanation of what came after Alice. It was a great adventure with Alyssa, Jeb, and Morpheus, and I look forward to more of this series.

[Silvara]

Check out my other reviews, discussions and link ups at Fantasy of the Silver Dragon.

The synopsis sounded so good! And parts of the book lived up to it. Unfortunately it just didn't grab me as a whole the way I was expecting it to.

There is the dreaded love triangle in the book. Made worse by the fact that one of the boys Alyssa is crushing on is dating another girl. I loved the fact that while she didn't like the girlfriend, she also wasn't going to try to steal the boy out from under the other girl, or try to date him at the same time or anything. And then once in Wonderland those principles bent. I also didn't really like the way Jeb would decide that Alyssa wasn't going to do something without discussing it with her first. He'd just cross his arms and say "no." Or pick her up and carry her off while refusing to allow her to do something.

The other love interest was too much of a bad guy for me to really want to root for. He had reasons for it, and I understood them once they were revealed. But I just couldn't like him after some of the things he did and said to Alyssa. Even while other things were incredibly sweet at times.

I'm also not sure what time period the book was set in. For a lot of things, it sounded more modern. Alyssa rides a skateboard and is trying to learn stunts on it. But her mother is in a mental hospital that has practices that sound like they're from a much earlier time. Straight jackets and electroshock treatments to try to make their patients sane again?

I did like how some of the Wonderland aspects were twisted and born new for the book. Everything was close enough to the Wonderland we know, but slightly skewed. People-eating flowers for instance. And a Mad Hatter who actually became his clients so that the hats he made were a perfect fit for them.

But over all, I wasn't impressed enough with this book to read the rest of the series.

This review was originally posted on Fantasy of the Silver Dragon

[girlinthepages]

Actual Rating: 3.5 Stars

First and foremost, Splintered has a beautiful and evocative cover. Combined with the fact that I love fairy tale retellings, and it was inevitable that I would add this novel to my collection. Now I’ll be honest and admit that I’ve never been the biggest Alice in Wonderland aficionado, but I love the imagery and know that it’s popular enough to have inspired dozens upon dozens of retellings in the past few years. I went into Splintered hoping it would be a quality retelling amidst many lackluster ones, and found myself satisfied with some elements and disappointed by others.

The start of the book initially grabbed me. I loved the dark tone of the novel, and the creative and contemporary twists, with Alice’s “curse” inflicting the family with what many think are schizophrenic tendencies, and Alyssa’s questioning of her future sanity. The way she uses the bugs that speak to her in her art to create landscapes of wonderland scenes is incredible, and the whole integration of the classic Alice in Wonderland story into a contemporary tale of Alice’s descendants was so creative. This novel has so much originality plot-wise. Howard’s imaginings of wonderland are stunning and border-line disturbing in some instances, with incredibly vivid imagery and her own twist on every classic scene. The book takes the stance that the original fable everyone knows was drastically altered by Lewis Carrol, making it much more child friendly. Reading the scenes in wonderland, from the twisted tea party to the quasi-theological elements where souls and the afterlives are discussed (and managed by the Twid sisters…guess who they’re based on…) was a real treat, and I found myself having to read this book in a lot of small chunks to let the imagery of each wonderland scene and quest really sink in.

While the plot and setting were wonderfully creative and original, the characters in this book were really hit or miss for me. Alyssa was an OK protagonist, and I love her family history and her journey to battle her family’s curse, but at times she felt really immature to me. She’s really resolved in her anger and determination one minute (usually regarding Jeb, her next door neighbor/crush who’s really a controlling jerk most of the time) and then her resolve will diminish the next. This happened a lot during the love triangle elements, as Alyssa is torn between Jeb and Morpheus, her enigmatic wonderland companion who has deep ties with Alyssa’s ancestors. I really like Morpheus as he serves as both friend and antagonist to Alyssa, and often points out the controlling and unbalanced nature of her relationship with Jeb. Morpehus has such skewed motives, and his character is so fun to read because you really don’t know where his loyalties lie. Overall though, the romance in this book is heavily based in a love triangle that doesn’t work for me. Much of the drama in the human world felt petty, such as Alyssa’s fued with Jeb’s girlfriend Taelor (which was so pointless I can’t even tell you…I mean she’s HORRIBLE to Alyssa but Jeb expects Alyssa to extend an olive branch and accept his relationship with her? I don’t understand him. Psh. Boys.)

Yet the characters in Wonderland almost make-up for the lackluster romances. They are such twisted versions of their Lewis Carrol counterparts, and their histories wind together in such intriguing ways. I personally enjoyed the characterizations of the White Queen, the Twid sisters and this cutely revolting ferret thing. Wonderland is the best part of this book, and I thought the plot twist of how Alyssa’s family and Wonderland end up being all tied together is really creative and not something obvious or easily guessed. The language and grammar the characters use is crazily constructed and perfect for the novel, and the nonsensical whimsy of Wonderland is just portrayed so well in this book, and Alyssa existing in moments of limbo between sense and nonsense, finding her comfort in insanity and madness is perfectly done.

Overall: Splintered has incredibly vivid settings that do justice to the mad and nonsensical world of Wonderland that readers will expect, while interjecting a lot of dark and quasi-disturbing elements that make it a force of its own in a market saturated with Alice and Wonderland retellings. It puts a unique, contemporary spin on the beloved Alice in Wonderland story, focusing on Alice’s modern-day descendents and the curse that afflicts them. While there is a love triangle and some immature character behavior, the creativity of Splintered makes it an enjoyable and original read that fans of fantasy and fairy tales will really love. The book ends with most of the loose ends tied up and with the satisfaction that befits a stand-alone, so I’m curious to see how Wonderland is kept alive and the plot is woven through the rest of the trilogy.

This review was originally published at Girl in the Pages

[lindsey]

Splintered is a modern retelling of Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. Alice is one of my favorite books, so I was really excited to read Splintered. Plus, the cover is really lovely, and I'm a sucker for a beautiful cover.

I would say this is only loosely based on the original story. It's obvious that it got its roots from Wonderland, but it definitely has its own unique characters and plot.

Alyssa is the great-great-great-granddaughter of Alice Liddell, the girl who inspired Carroll to write Alice in Wonderland. The females in her family have been cursed, and Alyssa believes she can break the curse by returning to Wonderland.

I really enjoyed A. G. Howard's writing style. It flowed really well, and the story was imaginative. While the characters are well-written, the love triangle made it lose a star.

It seems that a lot of authors fall back on the plot point, and it is really over-used. Like Alyssa isn't interesting enough on her own to carry the story, so she needs two guys to fight over her to make her seem more interesting and desirable. And honestly, as much as Alyssa annoyed me at times, she could do so much better than Morpheus AND Jeb. For starters, Jeb has a girlfriend and doesn't act on his feelings for Alyssa because he doesn't want to hurt her. Of course, that's why Alyssa never told him about her true feelings, too! What a coincidence!

And then there's Morpheus. I don't understand why there are "Team Morpheus" sites out there, because he was basically a manipulative jerk throughout the entire book, until the very end when gives a nice speech. But actions speak louder than words, and I think Morpheus would always choose himself over Alyssa. Now, my opinion may change after I read the next two books in the series, and I may have to come back and eat my words, so we shall see. Because despite how the last couple of paragraphs make it seem, I actually did enjoy this book, and I am interested to see what happens at the end of the series.

A little bit goth, a little bit steampunk, and a little bit Alice, Splintered is definitely a unique twist on the original, and I would recommend this to readers who like topsy-turvy versions of classic tales.

[boghunden]

I read this book just a few days after having read [b:Alice in Wonderland|13023|Alice in Wonderland (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland #1)|Lewis Carroll|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1391458382s/13023.jpg|2933712] and [b:Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There|83346|Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland #2)|Lewis Carroll|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1359299332s/83346.jpg|17240250], which, as it turns out, wasn't the best idea. The two Alice books were fresh in my mind and I remembered most of the storylines, characters etc.

My main problem with this book was that it was confusing. It didn't really make sense. First off, the originial Alice in Wonderland is supposed to be somewhat of a guide to Wonderland (as far as I understood), yet the characters in this book makes the same mistakes as Alice did. That just seemed incredibly stupid to me.

In the beginning, we follow Alyssa and her family. Her mom is in a mental institution and supposed to suffer from some mental disorder. This takes up a lot of place - 20% to be exact! Then the Wonderland part starts. I don't feel like I know what really happened down there, because honestly? It felt so rushed that I didn't have time to sort out my thoughts and understandings. It was just...confusing! I felt like the caterpillar:


I also didn't really care about the characters and the love aspect.
That being said, I still liked some parts of the book. I found the dialogue to be pretty good, and I also liked the description, I just think it was a bit too much.

[tweetybugshouse]

3 stars

Listened via audible.com

This was an interesting version of alice in wonderland with heavy dregs of goth i kinda felt like i was listening to a Johnny Depp retelling where all the great things i loved about Alice in Wonderland as a child had been turned completely on its head and flipped upside for an adult to enjoy. I gave this 3 stars as i was listening i kind of got lost in the descriptive lyrical flow of the authors words. I think it kind of lost me a bit and had me trying to figure out where the story was actually going. I also left wondering where they are going to take the story as this was the first book in the series. Not a book i would read again but a book that was different for me.