Alys (The Terra Mirum Chronicles)

by Kiri Callaghan

They are called Dreamers; mortals who possess a gift of remaining connected to Terra Mirum even after waking. They are the artists, the believers, the mad men. But for Alyson Carroll, this gift could mean her own salvation, or an entire world's destruction.

A dark retelling of the classic tale of the lost girl with an unparalleled imagination, Alys is a story about facing our fears, accepting the things we cannot change, and having the courage to pursue those we can.

****

4 Stars

I love reading retelling's of old school fairy tales, they are some of my favorite books. But I have never once been able to read one with an Alice in Wonderland theme, this being because I'm not much of an Alice in Wonderland fan.

This is probably the only one I have ever read from start to finish and actually liked. Alys in this book isn't what I was expecting. I really liked how you got a feel for her and the kind of person she is before all the crazy stuff started happening to her. I grew to like her before she went down the train tunnel and by the end of the book really loved her. I was pleasantly surprised by all the different characters that show up as well, and it was interesting trying to figure out who was who really. I really liked the part with Mr. Grey and Mr Gray, it was silly but not to silly and it had me cracking a smile.

I also liked the concept of Terra Mirum, and though it isn't really explained great it was explained enough to get the idea of it. I liked the way the Fae were a part of it as well, and how they bought up things that were strictly Fae and not Alice in Wonderland.

The way everything unfolds keeps you interested in the story even when you know the gist of it already. I liked how Alys handled everything as well. She just kind of went with it and didn't sit around moaning and crying about how none of it was real, she just accepted and moved on.

I can say I wasn't really expecting the ending, though it really made sense that the Nightmare would be who it was. I do feel that the end of the battle was on the rushed side, but at the same time am okay with that. I would have liked this book to be longer as well, but that is just me being greedy. It really is the perfect length for the story it contains.

Would I recommend this book? Yeah, it was a pretty interesting read, and if you like Alice in Wonderland you will like this one.