Subject A: Wonderland: Book I

by M. Ennenbach, Candace Nola (editor)

You've heard the tale of Alice in Wonderland, but never quite like this. Alice has fallen down the rabbit hole, and nothing is as it seems in this strange world.

Welcome to Wonderland.

“Ennenbach is one of the most unique and talented voices in literature today. Every work is provocative with a sort of unusual wildness that is both captivating and suffused with a comforting sense of ‘otherness’ that I think so many of us crave...”—Megan Stockton, author of LOVELY, DARK, AND DEEP


“Poetry in motion, M Ennenbach delivers the universal truths every one of us faces in our lives. Fear, elation, uncertainty, horror, love, and every emotion in between have its place layered within his prose, reminding us all what it is to be human. As a reader, go in with your mind open to explore just how far down the rabbit hole this author is willing to go.”—RJ Roles, author of NECRONADO

Genres: Horror

119 pages, Kindle Edition

First published February 28, 2025

Reviews

[Corrina Morse · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I'd had Mike to read me fairytales when I was a child. His uniquely brilliant narrative is as captivating as ever, the images he invokes are fantastical and vibrant, and a little bit trippy, it'll certainly make you question your sanity.

This is so very Mike, it's insanely perfect! A tale of Alice in a way only he could tell it.

Like an acid trip without the acid, or maybe a mushroom trip, yeah, a mushroom trip... a "kerfuffle of discombobulation" if you will! 💜

With lots of ups and downs, this story gets weirder, darker and deeper the more it continues.. and it's so curiously gripping.

The most beautifully confusing and bonkers trip, that had me enthralled the whole time! I loved the twist to this and cannot wait for the next installment.

Also…. Albert!!!! 🧡🧡

[Allison | crazypageturner · Rating 3 out of 5]

An Alice in Wonderland story we recognize with a shocking twist. She’s gone down the rabbit hole, meets some odd characters and seems to constantly say the wrong thing. Can Alice hold her temper and make it out of Wonderland?

~MY THOUGHTS~

Thank you to Uncomfortably Dark Horror for ARC!

The writing and silliness, the vocabulary and sentence structure very much reminds me of the original Alice in Wonderland book and movie. So while it is rather odd, it’s a nod to the OG which I can appreciate. There are even exact quotes used from the movie and book.

This book was honestly hard for me to get into…the pace is fast and feels like pure chaos. But I kept reminding myself of the Alice book by Lewis Carroll (which I’ve read) and of the movie. The ending had a lot of potential because it takes the story in a whole new direction! I think it just took too long to get there for me. There is going to be a second book so perhaps that will dive deeper. Looking forward to reading it!

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

As always, Mike's poetic prose and bizarre ideas are a perfect fit for my brain. The way he writes has always just worked for me, and Subject A is no exception.

This strange re-imagining of the classic Alice in Wonderland is darker and weirder than the original. It's not an easy feat when the original itself is an oddly dark children's tale. But not only did Mike pull it off, he excelled in a way that placed the next book in the series extremely high in my most anticipated list.

Highly recommend for dark fantasy and dystopian fans.

[Lia's Haunted Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Before diving into my review, I highly recommend checking out Alison’s review @crazypageturner for a perspective from someone familiar with Alice in Wonderland.

Having never read Alice in Wonderland, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was missing something. The chaotic writing style fits the narrative well, and I loved the intentionality behind the word choices—it added to the immersive, disorienting atmosphere.

However, the abrupt ending left me wanting more. The transition to the finale/epilogue was strong, leading us into the madness, but we only got about two or three pages of unveiling, which felt too short. But as I’m writing this review, I realize that the epilogue felt like an after-credits scene in an Avengers movie—offering glimpses of what’s to come while adding another layer of intrigue and confusion, which is probably fitting given the Alice in Wonderland inspiration. So, it could very well be intentional.

The element of speculation played a role in my 4-star rating—long after I finished reading, I kept thinking about it, and I always appreciate a book that lingers in my mind, even if it leaves me in a state of lingering confusion. So for the same reason I enjoyed it, it could be different with someone else.

Really looking forward to seeing where the sequel takes it.

One of the highlights of this read was speculating with Alison about where the story might go next—her theories are fantastic, and this book invites that kind of discussion.

Thank you, Candace, for the opportunity to read this book!

[Megan O'Brien · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a strange and wonderful take on Alice’s adventures down the rabbit hole!

Alice is in Wonderland…or is she? All of our favorite side characters and creatures from the classic tale make an appearance, but something is just slightly off about this world. M Ennenbach’s poetic writing brings this classic story into modern parlance with ease, updating and mixing in some new elements that highlight his fresh take in a fun novella format!

Alice in Wonderland is a story I’ve loved my whole life, and this is a great addition to its lore! I’m excited to hopefully take another trip with Subject A through a looking glass in the future!

Thanks so much to M Ennenbach and NetGalley for a chance to read this in exchange for an honest review!

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was perfectly brain tickle-y and an absolute wonderful nod to the OG weird girl Alice/Lewis Carrol but with horrofic bits. I do wish the ending came on a bit sooner BUT I will be patiently waiting for the second book to drop because I want answers.

[Angel Medina · Rating 5 out of 5]

M. Ennenbach is back with a new series, which is his retelling of Alice in Wonderland. His poetic writing makes a comeback in this one while we explore the rabbit hole known as the wonderland. Unlike the actual tale, though, we end up getting something pretty bizarre. Despite that, I found myself enjoying it. It's more of a creepy horror or like something out of a child's bad dream.

The writing is excellent, as his signature style brings out the bizarre nature of the story and makes it pop. It's like a detailed map of what happens in the mind of a human. I have to say it's a bit hard to explain, but man is it something else.

The only thing is the end... It was a bit abrupt for me, but that's only my opinion. Despite that, there will be a second book in the series coming, so I'll probably get more answers on book two.

Other than that, this is an excellent retelling of a classic tale. Just be warned, it might just freak you out.

I give this a 4.5/5 stars, rounded to five.

[Alison Faichney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great read by Ennenbach. After reading Cuckoo a while back, I’ll read anything he puts out. So I snagged Subject A as soon as I could. I’m actually not a huge Alice in Wonderland fan, but Ennenbach does a great job at keeping the reader engaged. The word play is excellent and this silly atmosphere portrayed juxtaposed with the dark reality that is really occurring makes for an endearing read.

Put simply, Subject A is a retelling of Through the Looking Glass. We know our protagonist comes from modern times but very little beyond that. There is a fair bit of gore in this one but most of the story has this whimsical vibe so when the curtain gets pulled back to give us a peek, things really get twisted and quickly.

I can’t wait to read the second book and see where Ennenbach heads with this one. It has a great vibe both within Wonderland and the lab. Definitely recommend.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my first foray into Ennenbach. I heard about this book on my Facebook feed and thought I'd give it a whirl.

For the first half or two-thirds of this book I kept waiting for the action. He did a really good job of painting a trippy Carroll's Wonderland that was fun to explore, but aside from a few snippets it wasn't very unique. The last part of the book did pick up and I was really into it; then bam! it ended.

I am excited for next next book to drop and will definitely read it. I liked where this book was headed.

[Kris Eshenaur · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun Wonderland retelling that follows the same beats of the original story, but changes things up enough to feel new! The ending, when you find out what is all going on, was expected due to the pieces dropped through the book, but it is interesting enough to make me want to read the sequel. I was expecting this to be a horror story though going into it, but besides the general Wonderland weirdness, there was nothing remotely creepy about this.

[Stephanie Cicero · Rating 2 out of 5]

Was really hopeful for this one, but honestly it fell flat for me. I felt like too much of the story was dedicated to the actual Alice in Wonderland story, with some confusing pieces mixed in, but not enough to keep it interesting. From the summary and title of the story I had it figured out after the first clue, so the payoff was anticlimactic.

[Eric Butler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ennenbach does what he does best, takes something familiar and interjects his own style of madness into it. When the something familiar is Alice in Wonderland, the madness and fun are cranked to 11. The pacing matches the original, and gives the reader a reason to keep turning the pages. If you're a fan of Alice (like I am), I think you'll enjoy this trip back down the rabbit hole.

[Wayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

First time reading M Ennenbach, and was very interesting. An Alice in Wonderland retelling, which is going to be a series. I enjoyed the characters, the plot, and the pacing. Will definitely need to get the next in the series. #SubjectA #NetGalley

[Ellen J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted more from this, think Christina Henry's The Chronicles of Alice. It followed the original very closely without diverging until rather late in the story. It was a good idea and could have been so much better had the author fleshed out the idea a bit more.

[Red Goddess Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very fun and feisty retelling of Alice in Wonderland. Trust me though because the fun really begins at the end of the book and yes there will be a sequel!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really wanted to give this five stars, but Alice's internal dialogue throughout the book was pretty dull. Overall though it's an interesting story and I'll definitely read the second one.

[Aaron Lebold · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun story in the wonderland universe. Well written with a lot of quirky characters. The ending is what really made the book for me.