Riddle of Hearts: An Alice in Wonderland Retelling by Rosie Grymm (A Classic Retold book 9)

“We’re all a little mad here…”

Madness is taking over the court and somehow Alice is at the center of it. Too bad she can’t remember a thing. With the king without a heart and the queen on the rampage, Alice teams up with a strange boy and an oddly familiar man in a funny hat to find the Blue Caterpillar.

Can she find the source of her dreams before the Madness swallows Wonderland whole? Or will her failing memory keep its secrets locked away from her?

“Remember, worse things than eccentric foliage are coming.”

This story was full of detailed, beautiful descriptions. Grymm created a world that was similar to Carroll’s, yet wholly new. The depictions of the key characters were enjoyable, and I liked all the nods to the various elements pulled from the original.

That said, I nearly DNF’d this book. Alice was such a difficult character to follow, and there were some editing choices that were hard on my brain. The biggest negative for me was the inaccurate portrayal of a character with Dissociative Identity Disorder.

3 Roses
In world swears
Minimal violence, but fear and chasing are key themes
No romantic elements