The Night Country

The Hazel Wood #2

by Melissa Albert

The New York Times bestselling sequel to Melissa Albert’s beloved The Hazel Wood!

In The Night Country, Alice Proserpine dives back into a menacing, mesmerizing world of dark fairy tales and hidden doors of The Hazel Wood. Follow her and Ellery Finch as they learn The Hazel Wood was just the beginning, and that worlds die not with a whimper, but a bang.

With Finch’s help, Alice escaped the Hinterland and her reclusive grandmother’s dark legacy. Now she and the rest of the dregs of the fairy tale world have washed up in New York City, where Alice is trying to make a new, unmagical life. But something is stalking the Hinterland’s survivors—and she suspects their deaths may have a darker purpose. Meanwhile, in the winking out world of the Hinterland, Finch seeks his own adventure, and—if he can find it—a way back home...

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fiction, Audiobook, Young Adult Fantasy, Magic, Mystery

331 pages, Hardcover

First published January 7, 2020

About the author

Melissa Albert is the New York Times and indie bestselling author of the Hazel Wood series and Our Crooked Hearts, and a former bookseller and founder of the Barnes & Noble Teen Blog. Her work has been translated into more than twenty languages and included in the New York Times’ list of Notable Children’s Books. She enjoys swimming pool tourism, genre mashups, and living in Brooklyn with her hilarious husband and magnificently goofy son.

Okay, now I will stop talking about myself in the third person. I try to reply to all messages and questions, so please reach out, or come find me on Twitter (@mimi_albert) or Instagram (@melissaalbertauthor)! (But please note: I don't accept GR friend requests anymore because of Amazon's related review policy.)

Reviews

[emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am my own worst enemy.

Here’s the thing. I have this huge rereading fixation. I’ve gotten it under control a bit this year, but before that, like one in three books I read was a reread. I would read books for the second time mere months after the first. There are MULTIPLE books on my shelves I’ve read over three times.

It’s an issue.

And yet. Every. Single. Time a sequel to a book I enjoyed comes out, do I read the first book?

NEVER. I never do.

I just stumble through the first 100 pages hoping for a recap, and if one doesn’t come, too bad! I suffer through it.

All of this is to set the stage for my reading of this. I couldn’t remember ANYTHING about The Hazel Wood...but I couldn’t put this down.

Like, legitimately couldn’t. I dozed off while reading due to pure exhaustion in the middle of the night.

This is so beautifully written, so creative, so well-constructed. The world is gorgeous, unique nonsense, and yet somehow it makes sense. I love it. (I never ever want to go there and if I found myself in the Hinterland I would, like, impale myself on the sharp thing on a spinning wheel or otherwise die in some princess-y way, but still. I love it.)

It reminds me, in some ways, of The Starless Sea - which is the highest possible compliment I can give a book. It’s a love letter to fairytales, and boy oh boy do I love me some fairytales.

I also love Alice, our spiky tough brave protagonist, and I’m not even just saying that because the fact that her name is Alice tricked me at first into thinking that the first book was a retelling of my very favorite one. (Good thing it wasn’t. I hate, like, every Alice retelling. If you can’t do it justice don’t do it at all!!)

And while this romance happened pretty suddenly - and unnecessarily if you ask me - I didn’t hate it. Shock of the century, really.

I can’t wait for Tales of the Hinterland, which is the book that, if anyone asks, sprung fully formed straight out of my brain.

Sorry, Melissa Albert, but also just…let me have this.

Bottom line: Bloody dark magical fairytale-y badassery. What more could you possibly need?!

-------------
pre-review

talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show-stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before

review to come / 4.5 stars

-------------
currently-reading updates

my hobbies include: reading sequels so long after i read the first book that i can't remember anything and just hoping for the best

-------------
tbr review

to whom it may concern:



yours with great sincerity and gratitude,
emma

[Miranda Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

"You were a monster in the Hinterland. Why are you pretending to be a mouse?"

Three-times Alice struck terror into the hearts of those in her story....but she was trapped - doomed - to live out her short, miserable life again and again.

Her mother, stole her once from the story and raised her in the real world. And Alice became trapped back into her story, Ellery Finch stole her twice to bring her back.

Here's a story I don't like to tell.

And now, just when she's set to live out a normal life...the Hinterland rears its ugly head.

Lock and latch, do up to the catch
And pray that your alone

There's someone (something?) killing the Hinterland survivors.

And it's circling Alice.

Ahhh! I am SO happy to have read this one.

My obsession with The Hazel Wood went pretty much 0 to 100 in zero seconds flat.

I think I just get absolutely swept away by the concept of story-characters coming to life - and then combine that with Holly Black level of creepiness...ahh. The Hazel Wood was JUST perfect.

So, of course I was going to read and review the second one as quick as humanly possible.

And allow me to assure you...it didn't disappoint.

Things did feel a bit sluggish in the beginning, as Alice was settling into her "new" life (and honestly, we all knew that wasn't going to stick)....

Then when the murders began ramping up and the Hinterland characters began to play a more prominent role...sheer perfection.

The imagery in this book was stunning. Absolutely stunning.

Every so often I would stumble upon such an incredibly perfect sentence that I would just lean back in awe of Albert -

Her smile came out like a sickle moon, all edge.

And the way she could turn a phrase kept me wholly hooked in The Night Country.

"I lit your candles," she said. "They're mine to blow out."

And I loved the love interest in this book. The way the two of them clicked together really cinched it.

You are one of those impossible things.

And that ending. Ohhhh that ending.

I'm not going to give anything away but I literally could not turn the pages fast enough. The worst part...? It's gonna be forever before Albert writes another.

Melissa Albert - you created this addiction. You better be prepared for when it rears its desperate head.

A huge thank you to Flatiron Press and Melissa Albert for sending me a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

YouTube | Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Snapchat @miranda_reads

[Nilufer Ozmekik · Rating 4 out of 5]

No need to talk about the elephant in the room. It is so obvious that I didn’t enjoy the first book and I didn’t foresee my request would be accepted but one morning I checked my library and here we go I got this sequel and I firstly admit, WHAT AN ARTISTIC, AMAZING COVER reflects book’s darkness approach to the fairytales.

And you know what! I surprisingly enjoyed this one more. I still went back and forth between 3 and 4 stars but 3.5 rounded up again to 4. And another interesting fact during my read: I honestly wanted this book a little bit longer. Of course instead of getting lost at the horrifying labyrinth of Hazel Wood, focusing on dark fairytales was great move of the author.


CONS
I still have problems about Alice’s complex, unbalanced, weird character development and her indecisive relationship with Finch. (Actually at this book their relationship named to something but I don’t know if I like this definition or hate it.)

PROS
The author’s remarkable evil genius capacity to see the dark side of the stories and twist the entire fairy tales we’d been told when were children, are fantastic and too much creepy way of unique story-telling.

OVERALL
This is not my favorite series. I still have trouble for the direction of the story and progression of the characters’ stories. But I enjoyed the writing and the author’s creativity and braveness to bring out more darkness and wilder elements into equation and form a satisfying retelling of well-known fairy tales universe. And of course this book is sooo sooo and sooo much better than the first one. So this half cup of my Chardonnay and I know the author has full capacity pour more wine to my cup to fill it completely.

Thanks to NetGalley and Flatiron Books to share this surprisingly dark and interesting
ARC COPY with me in exchange my honest review.

blog
instagram
facebook
twitter

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm definitely going to read this a lot of times.

Edited to add: You can read the book's first chapter here!
http://bit.ly/2UaxKyR

[Chelsea Humphrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

"To be honest, I don't know if I've even got a soul. If a soul is what makes you human, then I probably don't. Unless a soul is something you can grow, like, after the fact. And I don't think it is. So. No soul. Just to explain why your pickup line's not working on me."

Tehehehehe. I love being back in this world. If you thought The Hazel Wood was dark, just wait until you jump into The Night Country. This sequel kept all the things I loved about the first book, and brought in a bunch of new characters and plot sequences that kept this follow up feeling funky fresh. I rarely enjoy sequels as much as their original counterpart, but I may have loved this second novel set in the Hinterland even more than the first. What a time to be alive.

"We were predators set loose in a world not made to withstand us. Until the summer we became prey."

This is one of those books where a) you really need to read The Hazel Wood before jumping into this one and b) I can't really give you specifics in a review, because it would take away from the fun of reading the book. However, I can say that the writing in this installment is just as crisp, engaging, and suspenseful as the first one was, and having the privilege to listen to an advanced audio copy has given me the opportunity to encourage the listening folk to make the audiobook a priority. The atmosphere is ethereal and has a dreamlike quality, and the narrator is beyond fantastic. If you enjoyed Melissa Albert's debut, then her follow up story is a must. Highly recommended!

*Many thanks to the publisher for providing my review copies via NetGalley and Libro.fm.

[Tola Grupa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Koniec dosłownie rozwalił mnie psychicznie, ale 4 gwiazdki bo niestety do 180 strony nic się nie działo

[Charlotte May · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars ⭐️

Ok, so I liked this one slightly more than the first book. But it was still too much weird and not enough explanation.

So all of the ex-stories have now left the Hinterland and are fending for themselves in NYC.
Alice finds herself drawn to them, despite her best attempts to separate herself from that part of her life.

When the Hinterland is destroyed, and ex-stories are turning up dead, Alice takes it upon herself to solve the mystery and save her people before even more of them are lost.

Love the writing, liked the premise - execution just still wasn’t up there.
Will still give this authors newest book a try. And I’m excited to read The Tales of the Hinterland- I reckon those short stories will be really good. 😊

[Tucker Almengor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Many thanks to Flatiron Books for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review

There'd been four deaths now.
One was a warning,
Two a coincidence,
And three completely the fairy-tale set.
But four.
Four was a door.
An invitation to something more.

Okay....

So...

I am, to put it simply, disappointed. But unfortunately, my thoughts and emotions are never simple so let me explain why I am disappointed.

I read The Hazel Wood around one and a half years ago and I absolutely adored it. It's on my all-time favorites shelf. I absolutely adored it. But this book.... it just didn't meet my expectations.

I think the first issue with The Night Country is that it followed an amazing book. It's really hard to live up to a book as great as The Hazel Wood.

Another thing that took away from my enjoyment was Alice, the main character. For some reason, she annoyed me a lot more in this book than in the first one so either I have faulty memory or I was more patient when I read The Hazel Wood.

Also, whereas the first book had a rather urgent, dark, and mysterious tone, The Night Country had a very grim, almost depressing tone. At least, that's what I picked up. I could be totally off base.

But, of course, there were quite a few things I did love so let's end on a high note.

This book, in my opinion, was a hecka lot creepier than the first one. There were quite a few scenes that had me on the edge of my seat.

Also, I really loved the world-building that took place throughout the novel. If you thought that there was nothing else about this world to be explored, you'd wrong. This fascinating world was dived (doven? dove) into even more than in the first book.

There were also some pretty cool twists at the end!

Overall, on it's own this book was okay. The problem comes when I think about it's stupendous predecessor. Compared to which, it falls short.

Bottom Line:
3.5 stars
Age Rating - [ R ]
Content Screening (Mild Spoilers):
Educational Value (0/0)
Positive Messages (0/0)
Violence (5/5) - [Body horror, Stabs, Fights, Blood, Death]
Sex (1/5) - [Innuendos and brief sexual themes]
Language (4/5) - [F**k, sh*t, d*mn]
Drinking/Drugs (4/5) - [Medicinal and Recreational Drug use, Alcohol consumption]
Trigger and Content Warnings - Body horror, Gore, Darkness, Spiders & other bugs, Murder, Dismemberment
Publication Date: January 7th, 2020
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Genre: Young Adult/Fantasy

----------------

review to come

----------------

OMG IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL

----------------

edit: A COVER! WE HAVE A COVER THIS IS NOT A DRILLLL!!!
OMMMGGGG!!!! A TITLE!!! DFDHEDGAJNSIFNE


| Goodreads | Blog | Pinterest | LinkedIn | YouTube | Instagram

[Elle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full of twists, turns and places we’ve never seen before, Melissa Albert delivers a sequel that’s more than lived up to the enchantingly grim tale that came before it.

“A book is always a door.”

With Alice’s return from the Hinterland, I guess this book verges into Urban Fantasy, more so than before. There’s further crossover between the Stories and our world as we follow Alice as she tries to unravel another mystery. While the Hinterland itself was once following her, now she’s haunted by new foes and old friends alike. And if the previous storytellers are all out of the picture, then who’s really pulling the strings?

I had a great time with The Night Country and so will anyone who liked The Hazel Wood. The setting expands, but still maintains that messy interconnectivity that I loved from Albert’s last novel. I never know where she’ll lead us next, but fingers crossed this isn’t the last we hear from Alice-Three-Times and her companions.

While reading this series I kept wondering, is this really young adult? Yes it’s about teenagers/20-somethings, but it doesn’t feel the same way other YA fantasy does. I can’t tell if it’s just breaking some tropes or has a different tone, or if it’s been miscategorized. I’ve seen some female fantasy authors talk about this on twitter; their books about female characters are classified as YA, but books by men about male characters are considered adult fantasy. Someone pointed out that many of the “High Fantasy” by men featured sexual assault, which doesn’t really appear in this series or many of the supposed YA by women. While the Hazel Wood series is mostly chaste, consent or not, it’s fairly violent and has cursing, discussion of suicide and some pretty brutal deaths. I just wonder who makes the distinction and if there’s any explicit criteria to reference.

But after finishing it, what this book really did was make me desperately want to read Tales from the Hinterland. Don’t hold back on me now Althea!! Though it’s supposed to be slated for Fall 2020, The Night Country was pushed back from 2019 to January 2020, so who knows when we’ll finally get the elusive collection that prompted the whole adventure. I’m just happy we’ll get it at all; I’ve grown so tired of hearing everyone’s stories second-hand.

*Thanks to Flatiron & Goodreads for an advance copy!

[Eliza · Rating 2 out of 5]

This may be the last time I give the first novel in a series 2-stars and still continue with the series. Because The Night Country is proof to me that a series you don’t like typically does not get better the further you get into it (the SJM books also proved this to me, too).

Similarly to the first book in the series, I found this one too boring and predictable. I think it’s mainly due to feeling like such a young novel/series. And it’s such a disappointment, too, because this story has such potential to be beautiful and mystical and haunting, only it’s not. It feels unoriginal, despite it being an original idea, and I really can’t pinpoint why I feel like that.

I want to also add that the writing is good and the story has a lot going on, so it’s probably a “it’s me not you” situation, which I feel like I’ve been saying a lot lately in my reviews. But opinions aren’t factual, so it really is a “me” thing!

That said, if you enjoyed the first book in this series, then you’ll love this one because they are quite similar.

[Cortney - Bookworm & Vine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let me start out by saying only read this book if The Hazel Wood is fresh in your mind.

It has just been so long (and so many books) between the first book and the second, that I struggled to remember stuff from The Hazel Wood. Really struggled. I tried reading reviews and searching for spoilers, but it just wasn't clicking.

That being said, it was still a good story with great characters and a fantastic imagined world. I honestly don't know how to rate this... I'm going to go with 3.5 stars based solely on my enjoyment, but rounded up to 4 because I did love The Hazel Wood and the characters so much.

When The Tales of the Hinterland is released (which I will pre-order as soon as I can), I will reread the first two along with it.

[el · Rating 4 out of 5]

what do you do, when you want to read fantasies again, but your brain simply won’t acquiesce, and puts you in a distinctly not-fantasy mood instead?

you thwart its unwillingness by reading a book that is fairytale, fantasy, and contemporary all in one.

[h o l l i s · Rating 3 out of 5]

This series has definitely been one of the darker, and bloodier, stories surrounding fairytales that I've ever read. And it feels very true, reads so much more honestly, than the versions our generation grew up with. I think it's that darkness, that depth, that I love most of all. The creativity of twisting these tales, or letting them be their truth, is fantastic. I love it. But there's also another side of these books that just doesn't quite line up for me.

In book one, it was Alice's unlikeable self, the strangeness of the set up, before it finally settled and things were explained. Once again, in book two, it's the same early chapters where I'm just.. waiting. But this time, I'm waiting it out to understand and see where things are going.. and just how far we're going to backslide.

This installment does reunite us with a character I didn't think I missed as much as I did and yet I'm also a little confused about how his presence, and his role, jives with a throwaway line near end of book one? Curious. But anyway I enjoyed his chapters, I enjoyed all the fairytale/Hinterland characters and their backstory woven into their page-time, and I think the eerie disturbing concept around the whole big purpose of THE NIGHT COUNTRY was really interesting and weird, but like, getting there? I don't know.

Also, I mean, how was it not obvious to an extent? I'm conflicted.

I honestly finished this book with no idea what to rate this. But as I sit here, typing these words, I know : it's not a four, it's more than a two, so I guess we're going with the old faithful three. These are incredibly fascinating and creative books, written so well, but I guess my problem is not always enjoying where it goes? Or how we get from one point to the next? I don't know, it’s weird. But I'll definitely keep picking up this author's books and hoping for a slam dunk win. I think there's one out there for me.

If you read and enjoyed THE HAZEL WOOD, you absolutely need to pick this up.

** I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you!) in exchange for an honest review. **

---

This review can also be found at A Take From Two Cities.

[Amy Imogene Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars

Not everyone's cup of tea, but for fans of Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children series, gritty urban fantasy, lyrical portal fantasy, and murder mysteries.... this was tailor-made for us.

Writing: ★★★★★
Plot/Pacing: ★★★★★
Enjoyment: ★★★★★

WARNING! There are SPOILERS for the first book in this duology, The Hazel Wood, in this review. In order to talk about the setup for this book I have to SPOIL how the first book ends. Consider this your spoiler alert!

A recap of The Hazel Wood:
In The Hazel Wood, Alice discovered that she was a Story, a girl made from the twisted magical imaginings of the Spinner in the fairy tale landscape of the Hazel Wood. The Hazel Wood was the kind of setting that would make even the Grimms brothers hesitate. It was brutal, bloody, and cyclical in its relentless drive to make its Stories (other Made characters, like Alice) act out their dark fables with no escape.

When Alice and her friend, Ellery Finch, discover a way into the fairy tale they soon fall into the clutches of the Spinner—Alice gets sucked into her Story and can't get out, and Ellery has to battle the realm itself to free her. The end of The Hazel Wood shows Ellery shattering Alice's Story in the Hazel Wood and freeing Alice...at the cost of the fabric of the realm itself.

Alice escapes to New York City, and Ellery stays in the Hazel Wood to explore the doors of realms he's only dreamed about.

Now's it's time for The Night Country.

Alice is trying to be a human. She's desperately trying to forget the events of The Hazel Wood. Her years spent trapped in the role of Alice-Three-Times have marked her soul.

But Alice can't escape her Story roots—the other Stories won't let her. When Ellery shattered the realm, he caused its decay. The center would not hold. With holes in the Hinterland, other Stories have found their way into the city, and to Alice. They are like refugees in a strange land, Other and off.

But then, Stories start turning up dead. And certain body parts are missing from each dead Story.

~Meanwhile, Ellery Finch is in a bind. He's trapped in the remnants of the Hazel Wood, desperate to get out and yet unwilling to return to our world. When a beautiful young woman with the ability to create Doors offers him a bargain, he jumps at the chance to travel with her. But where is she going to lead him?~

It turns out that Alice's life of Alice-Three-Times isn't something she can shake off. And maybe the lie wasn't that Alice was a Story at heart—maybe it was that Alice never had a shot at playing human.

With ice in her veins, dead bodies lining up, and a mysterious red-headed stranger stirring up the Stories to vengeance, it's time for Alice to get to the bottom of what's happening to the other Stories and the Hazel Wood—before it's too late.

Alice and Ellery aren't done with their adventures just yet. And the other realms aren't done with them either.

I cannot describe how much I LOVED this installment. The Night Country was everything I'd hoped it would be, and more. It's darker, bloodier, and richer in detail and scope. While The Hazel Wood was almost trapped in its confines as a fairy tale landscape, The Night Country had the floor wide open for plot and character arcs. I loved where we took Alice and Ellery in their journeys. The murder mystery element was a surprise—but it was fantastically done. More fantasies should have murder mysteries, maybe?

Overall, a fantastic book that I devoured in one sitting. Cannot wait for more from Melissa Albert.

Blog | Instagram

[Agnieszka Małecka · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nie wiem, co myśleć. Może jestem za mało rozgarnięta na tą serię... Odniosłam wrażenie, że dopiero po 200 stronie coś się działo... Pierwsze 200 stron można było zmieścić w 50... Wizja autorki jest naprawdę ciekawa i wciągająca, jednak język i sposób snucia opowieści mnie osobiście nie porywał, choć bardzo tego chciałam... Dobra książka, ale znów, musi być czytana w dużym skupieniu i aktywnie.

[Angela Staudt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don’t really know what my feelings are about this book. Was it good? Sure. Was it memorable and what I thought it was going to be? No. I loved the concept of this series, and the first book was really good. The whole fairytales are real, but are also scary, evil, and creepy. That was awesome and learning about Hinterland was exciting, but also terrified me.

The first 100 or so pages of this book, I felt like nothing was happening. Honestly though, once you get past that it does get interesting and pulled me back into this crazy, magical, and deadly world. I really loved how Finch had his own POV and I thought that made it 10X better. I was intrigued by all the worlds Finch was seeing and the whole concept of how these worlds exist was just spectacular. Alice is what disappointed me, her woe is me attitude was quite annoying. She can finally live a normal life which is what she has always wanted and it isn’t enough, she wants to hang out with the ex-stories and maybe find a way back to Hinterland? Uh no girl.

I did like the ending, but found it predictable. All in all, I loved the concept of this series much more than the actual plot itself. I thought The Hazel Wood was much more intriguing and captivated me from the beginning.

[Victor Almeida · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.75

[Obsidian · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yikes. This was just not very good. It dragged a lot. The book would have been better if Albert focused primarily on Alice and not on Ellery and his adventures. It really read as two stories being crammed into one. Also all of the writing was so dramatic. At one point Alice mentions how the rain feels like tongues and blood against her skin. My response, eww and really? I think this had an interesting idea. Alice is now an Ex-Story trying to be a real live girl. However, we don't get that. Just her messed up friendship with Sophia, being taken in by Daphne, and her trying to figure out who is murdering the ex-Story's. The book ended on a whimper.

"The Night Country" follows Alice Proserpine finishing up her last year in high school. Alice broke free of the Spinner and the Hinterland and can now set down roots with her mother. Too bad that something seems to be stalking the Story's that got away from Hinterland. Pieces of the Story's are being taken away to be used for some dark purpose. Alice is trying to figure out who is doing the killing to protect her mother and her friend Sophia. Ellery Finch is now loose in the Hinterland and realizing it is not all it's cracked up to be. He writes letters that magically find there way to Alice while she's investigating the murders.

Well this gets 2 stars since Albert managed to make Alice less loathsome in this one. There is one point though that she puts her hands on her mother and her mother found the black mama in her and threatened to touch her back if she puts her hands on her again. Seriously, Alice's excuses about her anger got old in book #1. I also think she was so indecisive and exhausting. Without her having a sidekick like Ellery along in this one it just made her sections start to drag. She was clueless from beginning to end. Also if you are waiting to hear about Alice Three Story real story have fun. That's still not divulged to us readers. I really wish that this book had just focused on Alice and her mother Ella. Ella fought to make sure Alice had a choice and a life. Instead of jumping back and forth between Alice and Ellery, I do think this book could have been about the love of a daughter for her mother and a mother for her daughter.

Ellery's sections were beyond boring. And I called out what happened with one of the traveling companions. I felt everything in this book was so telegraphed. Albert really needs to let go the whole Ellery and Alice love story thing. I just saw a meme going around Twitter the other day about forced couples that no one ever rooted for and man oh man that sums up these two with the quickness.

The writing was over the top as I already said. Nothing is just rain or snow or air. It's all full of dark purple prose and I was over it at the halfway mark. There's a semblance of a plot that just gets ignored for a majority of the book I felt. I don't know there was too much going on and then we were getting other Story's stories and I started to read faster since I wanted to be done.

The flow was awful. I think jumping back and forth between Alice, then letters to Alice, and then Ellery, and other characters was just a lot. The book dragged until you get to the end.

The setting of the Hinterland felt really empty this time. Probably because Ellery is walking into other worlds. The setting of New York felt off too. I wanted a twisted dark fairy tale and this book just limped along.

The ending was a big yeah I pretty much figured who the big bad was, oh good I was right. Good grief this is dragging. Oh nice it's over.

[Erth · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF bad

[Sima ✨ · Rating 1 out of 5]

some books don't need sequels and I think this book was one of those books... when I learned that finch has his own POV I was motivated to finish this book then again I lost it again and got careless that all I was aiming for was to finish the book and being left unsatisfied, this story was not good, I didn't enjoy it, maybe fairytales is not for me or maybe I'm just not willing to like them! so one star it is...

[MiraC]

Okay, all I can say is that I hope that Alice and Finch can find their way back to each other. Maybe she'll join him in another world along with her mother - after all, Ella missed the magic too.

[♠ TABI⁷ ♠ · Rating 4 out of 5]

'This wasn't magic like I'd seen--the snarled labyrinth of the Hazel Wood, the unlatched cages of the Hinterland. It was older. Cruder. This magic was a blunt and wily animal, fed on horrors.'



I actually liked this book so much better than the first one. Which is good for a sequel!! But I still felt like it was perhaps a bit awkwardly paced in quite a few areas, Alice was still a bit confusing character . . . and there definitely wasn't enough Finch. I also wanted this to be longer?? The original dark fairytales played a larger part in this sequel which was probably why I loved it so much more , however this also came across as just overall written better than the first book??

"That sounds good," I told him.
"Which part?"
"The part where you're with me."



I was a teeny-tiny bit disappointed with the romantic arc that Alice and Finch took, because it was so neat to have them follow all the romantic tropes . . . but then twist it where they're friends instead?? Look, I'm not saying I didn't like the turn they took, I'm just a little sad they didn't stay friends and still have a powerful relationship but as friends. However, Finch is adorable and such a bookish nerd, and his character arc was probably the best (albeit a bit unexplained??) of all the characters.

Overall: this is a good series, I absolutely LOVE the dark fairytale vibes of it, but it's a bit lacking in character depth and plot pacing which means it felt weaker than it could have been.

I received a digital ARC from Flatiron Books via Edelweiss. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. Quotes in the review and reading updates were taken from an uncorrected ARC copy.

[Shelby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Don't get me wrong, I LOVED The Hazel Wood but it ended on such a good note... what are you going to do?

Edit:
It was a really going story. There were quite a few grammar issues that kinda hit me like a speed bump sometimes but it was good. I do have to say that the end moved rather quickly, maybe too quickly. But I am glad I bought it

[Miranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Melissa Albert’s The Hazel Wood was something I really enjoyed, so I was super excited to learn that it was getting a sequel. The Night Country was one of my most anticipated releases for 2020, but I did not pick it up until now. While it was not as strong as The Hazel Wood was for me personally, I still enjoyed it.

The Night Country follows Alice Proserpine, like many other ex-stories and travelers, as she attempts to settle into her life outside of the Hinterland after it falls apart. However, her normal routine is disrupted when someone starts killing ex-stories. Given their manner of death and Alice being seen as an outsider, many believe that she is responsible. The story follows Alice attempting to figure out what is going on and who is responsible. At the same time, Ellery Finch travels through other worlds before returning home.

Albert is a great storyteller and writer. I absolutely love how the fairy tale aspect is intertwined with the story, even if it is not the main focus this time. I love fairy tales and portal fantasy, so the whole premise of this series is something that I find really intriguing. I love how the author puts a darker twist on fairy tales though. I also really enjoyed meeting more ex-stories. I think this will be a great set up for Tales from the Hinterland. Along with the addition of new characters and stories, I am glad that Finch’s backstory and what he is up to was explored more as well. I liked learning more about him, and it helped bridge the gap between what was happening in the different worlds.

While I can appreciate what the author was trying to do in this book, some of it unfortunately did not work for me. The pacing was a little off at times, so it made certain chapters seem boring or unnecessary for me personally. Part of this also tied into the fact that I thought quite a few characters were annoying. I found a lot the story to be predictable too. I could guess where it was going, so the killer reveal was also not something that took me by surprise. The last thing that I did not really love was how the relationship between Alice and Finch changed. I am glad both of their stories were explored more, but I was hoping there was more of an emphasis on their friendship.

If you have read and enjoyed The Hazel Wood, I still recommend picking this book up. It was a quick and mostly entertaining read. I do enjoy Melissa Albert’s writing but was hoping for a little more out of this sequel. However, I am super excited for and looking forward to Tales from the Hinterland. The fairy tale aspect is my favorite part of these books, so that one sounds right up my alley.

*Content warning: violence, death, dismemberment*

[Bethany (Beautifully Bookish Bethany) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I absolutely adored The Hazelwood, but I was kind of nervous about getting a sequel because it works so well as a standalone. And honestly, while there are things I like about The Night Country, I really don't think it felt necessary. The standout here is the new fairytales, and Melissa Albert is the queen of wonderfully dark fairytales. (I can't wait to get my hands on Tales from the Hinterlands!) As for the rest of the plot, it was really a mixed bag for me.

I can't say too much without spoiling the first book, but we do get more than one perspective in this installment, although the method and timing of introducing that perspective feels a little messy. We learn a lot more about how this magical universe works, which is interesting but, again, not really necessary and perhaps takes away a little bit of the magic. Included in this is a murder mystery subplot as there seems to be a serial killer targeting people from the Hinterlands. That was interesting and got rather dark, eventually weaving into the other timeline/perspective.

The power of love seems to be a key theme in this book, but the ending in that vein feels a tad trite, especially coming after the more ambiguous Hazelwood. We do get some of that great moral ambiguity in some of the side characters with messy backgrounds and complicated motives, but the way things were tied up felt a little too neat for my liking.

Overall takeaway, this has some interesting revelations and few really great dark fairytales, but I think some of this content might have been better as a novella or two rather than as a full-length novel. As it is, I don't think it's super necessary and lacks some of the punch that made me fall in love with the first book so much. That said, people who didn't like the Alice in Wonderland quality of the Hinterlands section of the first book might do better with this. New York City plays a much more consistently central role (and is wonderfully depicted) with other worlds being sprinkled in between. I'm left feeling conflicted, but very much excited for Tales of the Hinterlands and whatever else Melissa Albert brings us in the future. I received advance copies of this book for review via NetGalley and Libro FM. (I listened to the audiobook while reading the e-book, and the audio is well done!) All opinions are my own.

[Cody Roecker]

This one was much creepier than the first and I really enjoyed that aspect of this one! The writing, as always, is beautiful! Love the way the worlds worked with and against one another and the layers that were continually peeled back as the story unfolded

[JenacideByBibliophile · Rating 4 out of 5]

Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the publisher, Flat Iron Books, via Netgalley for an honest review.

“‘You still think you live in a world where girls will lie down for you and show you their throats.’”



“‘Now lie down, and show me your throat.’”

After escaping The Hinterland and her story, Alice is back in New York with her mother, just trying to make a new life for herself away from the magic and fairy tales. But after time paces, Alice finds herself drawn back to the ex-stories of The Hinterland as random murders begin targeting those who have escaped. With no explanation as to why, Alice tries to hunt down the culprit. While worlds away, Finch is in the Hinterland and it is tearing itself apart. With so many stories leaving, black spots and wastelands begin consuming what is left of the magical and eerie world. As he looks for a way out, and possibly a way back to his world, Alice and Finch’s paths come closer and closer together to crossing again.

Little mouse

Scratch scratch

Hasten to your home

Lock and latch, do up the catch

And pray that you’re alone

Little spider

Twitch twitch

Run to steal the gate

Weave and sew, stitch stitch

Pray it’s not too late.

Alice is back, and things are as creepy as ever.



So it has been two years since Alice returned to the human world (is that what it’s called?) and she has turned her life into one of productive normalcy. She spends time with her mother Ella, works at a quirky bookstore and hangs out with her best friend Sophia. Well, technically Sophia is Hinterland and had that whole fun tale about stalking Death (you go, girl) but you get the idea-Alice has turned a new leaf. Gone is the angry, murderous, black-eyed frost princess! Or…so we think.

“‘Look at me,’ I told him. ‘Look at your destruction.’”


In this installment, Alice is having difficulty completely forsaking her Hinterland side. As much as she wishes to leave that side of her life in the past, for her sake and Ella’s’, Hinterland seems to seek her out wherever she goes. Suddenly random murders begin happening, with each victim having a limb missing from their bodies. A left hand, a right hand, left foot, right foot, eyes. Oh yeah. Super fluffy stuff, huh? But what makes everything ten times worse, is that the killings begin to resemble traits from Alice’s old abilities of frost.

Dun Dun Dun.

Alice is a bit more tame in The Night Country, but we get to see some of her old side spark back to life as well. I’m not going to lie, I do miss the old sassy and fairly angry Alice who wanted to scratch everyone’s eyes out, but this version is nice…if you like that “tame and reformed” type of thing. Basically the entire book follows Alice as she struggles with her identity and tries not to get killed. Sinister creatures from Hinterland now run rampant through New York, toying with humans and going unseen. But no matter what Alice does, she can never escape Hinterland. Because she IS Hinterland.



Though there are Hinterland creatures where Alice is, we really don’t get to witness a lot of the magical and strange imagination that comes from that world. Thankfully, the story flips over to Finch and we get to partake in his world jumping. As Hinterland starts to crumble, and people begin to panic to find a way out, Finch meets a traveler who promises to help him get back to his world after they do a bit of world jumping. He agrees, and THIS is where we really get to see the creative side of this author again.

“There were patches of sky where the stars moved like living fireworks, creeks where girls with corpse-colored skin and dirty hair sang like bullfrogs and watched him through hungry eyes.”



I am still so impressed with how the author comes up with tales within a tale, and ties everything together so flawlessly. It is so much fun picturing these worlds and strange creatures in my mind. A place of huge walls of books that contain thousands of stories, and gadgets like a pen that sends messages right to the desired recipient or a mirror that would show you what your true love was looking at. The world building through each door is so creative and wondrous, and all I want is to see these stories come to life in movies!

Without giving too much away, I’d have to say this was a very enjoyable sequel to The Hazel Wood. Though Urban Fantasy isn’t really my thing, which is more what this book falls under, I found it to be a great story but not as addicting as the first book. Don’t get me wrong though, it was full of eerie and creepy happenings and I was loving the dark atmosphere that New York found itself in. It was twisted and murderous, which I love. But, I still think The Hazel Wood was my favorite of the two because it was like diving straight into a fairy tale.

I’ll leave you with this gem:

“I’d opened my eyes and found Finch standing in front of me, looking at me like I was a door, too.

The kind he wanted to walk through.”

[Mogsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2020/01/20/...

The theme for 2020 so far seems to be sequels with a different tone or feel than their originals. The latest book to fall into this pattern appears to be The Night Country, the follow-up to Melissa Albert’s debut The Hazel Wood, which I really enjoyed. Believe it or not, this one goes even deeper in already dark territory, but I loved how these changes enhanced the story’s haunted atmosphere and complex characters.

Anyway, as with all my sequel reviews, the usual caveat applies: the following may contain discussion involving plot details from earlier books in the series, so be sure to be caught up with The Hazel Wood before proceeding! The beginning of The Night Country takes us back to the story of Alice Proserpine, once called Alice-Three-Times, a princess of a fairy-tale realm known as the Hinterland. With the help of her friend Ellery Finch, she was able to escape the Hinterland’s clutches to attempt living as a mortal in the heart of New York City. However, the shadow cast by her enigmatic grandmother is long, and for Alice and the other survivors who were caught up in the sudden exodus, things will never be the same again. Alice, for one, is finding that living a wholly average and non-magical life as a normal teenager is tougher than she thought, not to mention someone is also out there hunting Hinterland’s ex-inhabitants, killing them in a horrible, gruesome manner…

Meanwhile, Finch finds himself wandering the many pathways of the otherworld dimensions, navigating its mysteries and attempting to unlock its many secrets. He is determined to make his way back to Alice, while trying to make sense of the strange things he encounters in this world where time passes differently and behaves in bizarre ways. On his journey, he learns of a place called The Night Country, which may be his key to understanding Alice and to reunite with her.

With the narrative alternating between Alice’s and Finch’s perspectives, the tone of The Night Country is moodier and has a lot more bite now that the two of them are mostly apart, without their banter to lighten things up. In fact, their story lines don’t come together until nearly the end, when the plot culminates into a stunning climax and conclusion. Until that point though, there’s still plenty of intrigue and darkness in both threads to keep the reader’s attention hooked. Melissa Albert’s handling of the whole “fairy tale genre” is certainly different, putting an imaginative and macabre twist on her storytelling. The little vignettes woven throughout were stroke of genius and added so much to the overall haunting vibes of the novel.

I also liked what has been done with the characters. Alice’s experiences, as well as the knowledge she has gained from the first book have mellowed her out. She’s reached another stage of her life, trying to figure out her next steps. The revelations about her past have turned her world upside down, made her confused about her identity. She’s also trying to work out her feelings for Ellery Finch, and one of the things I enjoyed about this sequel was the way it handled their relationship. I really liked Finch from the first book and was so happy to get so much from his point-of-view, immersing myself in his exploration and discoveries. Without delving too much into the romance that was lightly teased in the first book, The Night Country still managed to create a deeply nuanced and meaningful dynamic between him and Alice.

The author has also made great strides in her writing, tightening up her descriptions and dialing up the atmosphere to make this one an engaging read. Combining fairy tale elements with urban fantasy can be a challenging task, but Albert seems to have no trouble finding the right balance. Her prose ranges from whimsical to haunting, depending on what is required, creating memorable scenes and moments that leaped out at you.

All told, if you enjoyed The Hazel Wood, then you must do yourself a favor and pick up The Night Country, a worthy follow-up that is even more luscious, imaginative, and satisfying. It’s dark yet compelling, and I have to say this new direction has made me even more interested in seeing what the author will do next. Apparently, she will have a short story collection set in the same world called Tales from the Hinterland. I’m not really into anthologies, but I might have to read this one, because I’m just loving the hell out of Melissa Albert’s approach to fairy tales.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blog | Twitter | Instagram

As always, a copy of this book was provided by the publisher or author in exchange for my honest review. This does not effect my opinion in any way. LIBRO.FM provided the audiobook for reviewing purposes. This does not effect my opinion in any way. You can also find this review here at Booked J.

The Hazel Wood Series
The Hazel Wood: ★★★★☆ (4.5--is likely to be bumped up to a five star)
The Night Country: ★★★★★

W-O-W. Wow. Just, wow. I'm obsessed.

You guys already know I'm a fan of this series! Melissa Albert's writing is so lush, darkly woven like our favourite fairy-tales. I want to live in it. Not the worlds, but the words. Much like The Hazel Wood, The Night Country gives readers very little time to jump into the thick of all the action. And everything about it was drenched in this beautiful and terrifying quality that cannot be explained in a review.

I'll try to keep my review as spoiler free, since we've still got about a month to go before it's out in the wild.

Not a lot of sequels can live up to their predecessor. Many never will. The Night Country is not one of those novels. Not only is it as gorgeously crafted and compelling as the first installment, it is actually better. Melissa Albert's prose was stunning before, but now? Now it is even better. It is the sort of writing that holds fantastical elements, but still ties us to the real world.

There's a reason as to why I've been quick to refer to Melissa Albert as one of my favourite writers, despite there being only two books under her belt, and all of those reasons can be found in The Night Country. If ever there were a series of books that feels as though they were written for me, this would be one of the top choices.

This is the story of worlds colliding, collapsing, and stories undoing themselves. Of good vs. evil. Of new beginnings. Of endings. Of betrayals. Of sacrifice. Of hope. Of fear. The Night Country is screaming with life. All of which is handled in a way that is nearly explosive.

My emotions were a wreck at certain points in the story. Other times, my emotions were of the rage fueled variety. (I'm really, really protective over Alice and Finch, okay? PROTECT THEM OR I'LL BE WEEPY.) Then, there were some times were I was a softie all bundled up in my own hope and joy.

We get a glimmer of light in the dark, stories within the story, and a brand new mysterious path. Old faces return, albeit sometimes slowly, and new faces reveal themselves in unexpected ways. Everything that was good about The Hazel Wood is present in this second installment. Stories that are rich with detail and full of atmospheric spookiness will always appeal to me, but this series is destined to be on my favourites list for the rest of my life.

As for the audiobook, Albert's writing translates into spoken word in the most magical of ways.

Paired with an excellent narrator, the dark whimsy and atmosphere of The Night Country makes for must-read material. Audiobooks are only as good as the narrators and source material, and combined? Phew. You are in for a treat. Much like with my experience with Erin Morgenstern's The Starless Sea, The Night Country comes to life in breathtaking ways and listening to the audiobooks is an excellent and immersive experience in and of itself.

If you are a fan of this series, and of Melissa Albert's writing, exploring the audiobook is like opening yourself up to a whole new exploration of her magical worlds. You won't regret it.

[julianna ➹]

ok update i'm actually going to take a break from reading this LMAO i'm at 16% and just not vibing... will probably attempt to procure a physical copy whenever i read it & also possibly reread the hazel wood!!!

-----

(apr 17 2021)

part two of the series, spontaneous brs with lily

ok maybe technically not a buddy read bc lily already finished the book before i even cracked past the first 3%! but we don't talk about that

tune in to see if i will love this book as much as its predecessor (one of my all time favorites)