Book Review: Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

Release Date: April 1st, 2014

Read: May 12-14th, 2014

Publisher: HarperCollins

Series: Dorothy Must Die #1

Format: Hardcover, 452 pages

Source: Bought

Description from GoodReads:

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 blue birds. 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 the yellow brick road, though—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:

Remove the Tin Woodman's heart.

Steal the Scarecrow's brain.

Take the Lion's courage.

Then and only then—Dorothy must die!

Review:

Be brave. Be angry. Don't trust anyone.

   Wither it's about Oz, Neverland, or Narnia I will always love a twist for the original story. Dorothy Must Die wasn't that way for me. The idea for the book had me hooked from the first time I'd heard about it, but I just couldn't get into the book itself. The book started at a good pace, I really loved Amy in her school. Especially with her high school bully being pregnant, it showed to me that even though the 'popular' girls or boys always seem to have it all they do make mistakes the same as everyone else does.

  Eventually when Amy got to Oz the story lost it's pace and started to drag for a bit. Danielle had written the book trying to show us her version of Oz, but with the storyline she was going for, there was too much access description. As in, some of the villages and meetings on the yellow brick road were not needed. It all took away from what Amy was really supposed to be in Oz for. Don't get me wrong though, I loved Danielle's Oz. It's horrifyingly terrific. 

   When we were finally introduced to the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked the book was half done already. I felt like more should have been done with the Order of the Wicked, the parts that we experienced with them were not satisfying enough for me. The group would do the same thing over and over each day, then they were gone again. Overall I don't think the Order of the Wicked was a main focus like the books summery said it to be. 

   Dorothy Must Die was not my favourite read, but I am still excited for The Wicked Will Rise. I will definitely be getting my hands on a copy and give Dorothy and Amy another chance.

Rating:

Favourite Quote:

“You don’t need wheels on your house to get somewhere better. All you need is something to give you that extra push.” 

Recommend to People Who Enjoy:

Young Adult, Fantasy, Retellings, Fairy Tales