Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige [Book Review]

So on my annual birthday trip to Waterstones (yep, I've aged once again!) I finally picked up a copy of Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige. I've wanted it for ages, it was a floppy paperback and it was in the 'Buy One Get One Half' price deal so I wasn't NOT going to pick it up! The concept of this novel has always intrigued me; it's about the series of events following on from where Frank L. Baum's 'The Wizard of Oz' left us, but instead of Oz living in a tranquil state where Dorothy goes back to Kansas, Dorothy is back and she's evil.

Amy Baum, an unsuspecting 16 year old who lives in a trailer with a very problematic mother and a pet rat is transported to Oz and is basically told that Dorothy MUST Die, no matter the cost. So not only has Amy left her old life to Oz of all places, she has now been assigned with the task of killing Dorothy by all Wicked characters who are left in Oz - who see it in their best interest to get Dorothy and her murderous ways off the throne. It doesn't help that Dorothy has manipulated her loyal companions, The Tin Woodman, The Scarecrow, The Lion and even Glinda the Good Witch to do her evil bidding, using the gifts the Wizard blessed them with to do unspeakable horrors to the inhabitants of Oz.

I thought this was a very fast paced read, it was a bit slow in certain places which is why it didn't get the full 5 stars from me, but other than that I thought this was a superb take on a very well known world and I'm quite excited to read the sequel - especially due to the fact it ended on a very satisfying cliffhanger!!

4 Stars!

Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix [Book Review]

Meet Amy Ponder.

She's your average young girl, struggling to pay bills all whilst working for a company named Orsk, who sell expensive flat pack furniture to anyone and everyone. We start the book with Amy hating her manager, Basil, and we discover that she wishes to transfer shops. Simple enough, eh? Happy story coming up about Amy's fabulous life?

WRONG.

Yes, Amy's life is about to get a whole lot worse. Horrorstor follows Amy, Basil and Ruby Ann as they spend the entire night in Orsk, trying to discover the source of some rather creepy goings on. At first it just seems like a usual scenario, maybe a thief? A maintenance problem? But no, this is far far creepier, and just a bit more supernatural. This book completely grips you, as the fear sets in with every page, and with the addition of the book actually looking like an Orsk catalogue, complete with furniture descriptions that get creepier as the book goes on. I was absolutely hooked.

Grady Hendrix has written Horrorstor in such a way that anyone could pick it up, believing they were going to read a simple tale about a young girl and be dragged into the horror element before they could even realise what was happening. Hairs were sticking up on the back of my neck, my heart was racing and even the very thought of being near a wardrobe made me feel quite queasy.

The writing style was superb, with fantastic build up to the really gruesome parts of the story, meaning that even when your stomach was going to turn inside out with fear, you couldn't stop reading. I absolutely adored this book, it has 100% made it into one of my favourite reads for 2014. An absolutely unforgettable unique book, I can't wait to see what Grady Hendrix does next!!

Goodreads Rating: 5 Stars

[I'd like to say a huge thank you to Quirk Books for sending me this to review, you guys rock!]