Book Review - Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

Title: Dorothy Must Die

Series: Dorothy Must Die #1

Author: Danielle Paige

Publication Date: 1st April 2014

Publisher: Harper Collins

Source: Purchased

Audience/Genre: Young Adult

Rating: 4 ☆ Out of 5 ☆

Summary 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:

This book is one of those books that I've had my eye on for a really long time. One of my favorite genres of books are actually fairytale-ish retellings and I think this falls under that perfectly. I didn't know what to expect honestly but I really wanted to read it because I loved the summary and everyone was raving about it. And honestly, now I know why that is so. This book is fun and quick-witted and just the right amount of dark and gory and twisted. Just the way I like it.

 Isn't the ARC packaging just so beautiful! I want to own one so badly!

Firstly, my likes. I think Amy is hella kick ass. I usually don't like female main characters a lot. This is honestly just because I find most of them pretty whinny and a little too needy. However, Amy proved me wrong. At first, I had the feeling she would be like them - and she was, a bit here and there. But she grew on me. I understood why there were moments when she was like that. Most importantly, she's in an unfamiliar please OBVIOUSLY you would have your moments. Over time, as the story went along, I felt that Amy truly grew into a much more mature woman. After reading it, she may have became one of my all time favorite book heroines just because her character development was fantastic.

Secondly, I felt that the world was presented brilliantly. I know that this is not Danielle Paige's world. As such you may think that there may not be as much work cut out for her. But there is. Because of the premise of her own plot, she has to change the world in such a way that it becomes hers but still has the beauty of the original world. And that's another reason why I applaud her because let me tell you. When you take a work of art and are required to change it to suitably fit your plot, it is hard. There will be so many people out there who love the original and are just waiting to criticize you for whatever reason as soon as you make the slightest difference in the book. Personally, I have never read the Wizard Of Oz (yes, yes I know), but I feel that the way Danielle Paige wrote it managed to give the original Wizard Of Oz the respect it deserved. So, well done Danielle Paige. This was a really really wonderful work of art of your own.

Thirdly, personally to me, the book's overall plot, characters, and setting all wrap up so nicely and neatly. Everything just fits in here and there. There is adventure, and magic to fill up the book, thus not making it a flat plot. The characters all have a unique personality that makes you even more intrigued about the book because TRUST NO ONE IN OZ. Also, I love how the whole Wicked is Good, Good is Wicked thing and how everything seems to settle into a nice plot with Amy Gumm, kickass witch now, trying to kill Dorothy because I mean read the book title - Dorothy MUST die. Also, it's just so funny watching how everyone is different from who they are supposed to be.

Lastly, I would honestly have given this book a five because the plot, the characters and the setting of the world were all very vividly written by Danielle Paige. The only part that I felt didn't work for me was that I would honestly have loved to see more romance time. I understand that the plot takes priority because it is setting for the next two books. (Yes. It's a trilogy). However, I would have liked it even better if there were more romantic moments instate of random moments in the book. The base of the romance had been set up but not much was build on it. I didn't really feel like there was a relationship there as much as I should have. Also, I would have liked to see more of Nox just because I feel like he could play a more important part in the book. 

Asides from that though, I thoroughly enjoyed Dorothy Must die a great huge deal and it's definitely gonna make a hell of a television series, something I'm really hoping for. Could you imagine the magic and all the weird magical animals and DOROTHY come alive in a live action TV show!

Danielle Paige made a wicked debut. If you’re a fan of Oz, definitely please give Dorothy Must Die a chance. It’s spectacular.