Overall Rating and Opinion of Splintered

Discuss the May 2014 book of the month Splintered by A. G. Howard.
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How do you rate Splintered?

1 star - poor, recommend against reading it
1
1%
2 stars - fair, okay
10
14%
3 stars - good, recommend it
40
58%
4 stars - excellent, amazing
18
26%
 
Total votes: 69

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sybil1reader
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Re: Overall Rating and Opinion of Splintered

Post by sybil1reader »

I never did care much for Alice in Wonderland, so it was with great reservation that I decided to give Splintered a try. Indeed, it is not what I expected and it was an interesting enough read. I got bored in a few places, but I was inspired by the love and sacrifice. This is not my normal genre, so I am on the fence about reading number two.
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Post by jmalone1994 »

I enjoyed Splintered quite a bit. I am rarely able to find a book like Splintered that has the fantasy aspect that is dark but not too dark. The story was very good and I really enjoyed the author's writing style. And I mean there's Morpheus, who can argue with that? ;)
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Post by stoppoppingtheP »

The book Splintered, was okay, not that great, but of course many may disagree with me. Perhaps others would enjoy it more, because I personally do not really enjoy fantasy books. Especially ones in which animals and other non-human creatures talk.
But I suppose that I must give credit to the author, as her literary style was not bad.

Why the book did not hold much weight with me was because, as a child I didn't really enjoy Alice in Wonderland either. I found her adventures to be very confusing, jumping from one scene to another.

What we can see from this book is that from a child's eyes everything in the world is clear and has a happy ending, but they do not understand or see the deeper, darker undertones even if it may be facing them.

“there have been so many times
i have seen a man wanting to weep
but
instead
beat his heart until it was unconscious.

-masculine”


― Nayyirah Waheed
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Post by David Dawson »

stoppoppingtheP wrote: Why the book did not hold much weight with me was because, as a child I didn't really enjoy Alice in Wonderland either. I found her adventures to be very confusing, jumping from one scene to another.
Must say, I definitely enjoyed it more than you but I find it hard to imagine liking it if I didn't know/ like the original Alice stories.
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Post by chstress »

After reading every-bodies opinions I might get this book even though its a triolgy so that I can take it on my summer vacation to keep me reading. I do like books that have lots of p[lot twists and this one just might suit me.
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Post by CamilleInPink »

I did not like the novel at all. I'm about 65% of the way through (per my Kindle), and I am bored. Generally I love young adult novels, especially those that tell a darker tale. But I feel as though this was poorly written on a whim - as if the author thought of a great idea then wrote it all out as quickly as possible before someone could steal said idea. Because of this, the wording feels forced, and the characters too unrealistic. I know it is a fantasy novel...but isn't the point to believe it?

I would not recommend this to a friend. But maybe I'm just a cynic.

(Edit for typos)
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Post by GeonnaMarie »

Alyssa Gardner is relate to Alice Liddell, the cute, curious little girl who fell through the rabbit hole so very many years ago. But, that was just a story, wasn't it? Maybe not. Splintered explores the idea that maybe Alice didn't wake up from a dream and that Wonderland is real. As many other people have already described the book pretty accurately, I'll just go ahead and explain what I think about it.

To begin with, the first time I saw this book at Barnes and Noble, I did a mini jig. How many times have I thought about Wonderland- all the what ifs and possibilities? Probably way more than your typical normal young adult, but hey, who wants to be normal anyway :lol: ? So needless to say, I immediately purchased the book and found myself engrossed in it. I'll be very honest and say I've been pretty averse to love triangles, Twilight killed it for me (sorry Twihards!), however, I actually enjoyed this book and the three main characters. Alyssa is intriguing, complex and just plain interesting. While it may seem that Morpheus and Jeb are the typical bad boy and guy-next-door, they hold their own in the story as well.
On a side note, all the characters kind of had a skater-y, goth-y vibe which isn't really my thing, but works pretty well as you read the book further. It was just a bit confusing at first. I think I tend to picture the cutesy blonde in a blue dress when I think "Wonderland". As for Wonderland, I absolutely love how dark Howard made this. The book really takes what you think you know about Wonderland and completely turns it topsy turvy. Overall, the book has quite a few "oh my gosh, what?!" moments and characters with actual depth. The imagery is quite wonderful; you'll be able to picture everything perfectly. Howard wasn't afraid to strip away all of the fluff that tends to happen with love triangles and show deeper love and sacrifice. As much as I enjoyed the book, I wouldn't say it's one of my all time favorites, but it is definitely worth a read.

In all honesty, even if I hated it, I'd have to finish the trilogy...I have a hard time leaving things unfinished, regardless. :)
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Post by Norma_Rudolph »

David Dawson wrote:
Tianarenee3 wrote:does anyone know the name of the sequel(s)?
The final book in the trilogy is called Ensnared, but I believe it isn't out yet(?)

-- 12 May 2014, 21:02 --
The books in the series are: #1 Splintered #1.5 The Moth in the Mirror #2 Unhinged #3 Ensnared
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Post by GeonnaMarie »

I didn't even know about The Moth in the Mirror. Definitely will have to read it...I have the unfortunate (sometimes) habit of needing to read every book in a series.
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Post by jhollan2 »

I finally finished Splintered. I thought it was a decent book, a quick read and interesting enough, but it didn't really captivate me. It sort of felt like Howard was trying too hard to make "interesting" characters instead of realistic ones...and I just wasn't sympathetic to Alyssa through most of the books. I did like the twist that she was related to the Red Queen instead of Alice, but it was telegraphed a bit too much and so I saw it coming. It was good, but it didn't blow my mind or make me fall in love with the characters.
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Post by GeonnaMarie »

I also liked the twist a lot. I saw it coming as well, but I did like how it kinda made sense of everything. I imagine it's pretty hard to take such a well known story and put your own spin on it. :D
"In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: it goes on." - Robert Frost.
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Post by Daniel Constancio Jr »

I've purchased it and returned it back the same day.

My idea of this book review is to ideally say that this book can't get any closer to an adaptation of Wonderland.
Except, this book fathom the mythology of psychiatry.
Similar to Edgar Allen Poe, the psychosis of mental disorders mildly explains what the paranoid sense.
Voices...
The theme maintains close to the original outline except we are in the modern era with the transcendent of Dear Alice.
Colorful metaphors explain a lot of the character and we see that her hobbies imply a mild form of suicide,as when she kills her bugs for collective art.
The idea of a rabbit going into a deep hole while suggests her mild manipulations of masturbation so she can sleep well.
Who can say that the original author didn't imply this method, but as a researcher of psychological problems, I know personally that mental illness does prelude to self gratification.
The story is simple and only the phrased dialogue gives the book a little intrigue.
If you're looking to doze off with a book, please buy this book.
Have a great read...
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Post by GeonnaMarie »

I completely forgot about the whole killing bugs for art thing...that was pretty odd, and I never really made sense of it. Seemed like a morbid and strange way to deal with things.
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Post by Daniel Constancio Jr »

It's quite true.
What a character does to other organic matter or indigenous person(s) really emulates
their intentions of their psyche.

As a writer, I'm prone to watch carefully how I manipulate my supporting characters,
and make dooley sure that I don't give them any type of opinion; unless they are
speaking with the main character(s), at that precise moment.

As far as I can see, the main character has issues of growing up, but this doesn't
phase her, due to her overexaggerative state of her "mother."
This gets redundant of her part for reasons unknowning to her. Possibly the
writer failed to keep the concept of "our heroine" on a path of her situations.

This could be a sub-plot of some sort, but ideally, it really goes too far.
So far--from our hero's dilemma.

If one thinks about it, some other readers do pick up "our hero's path" deviatived adventure.

Perhaps, if the writer combined a thought process of "our hero" to be "reflective"
on her mother's condition and "tried to bring revelance to her condition."
Hence, keeping her from falling into the abyss of mental disorder.

Yeah, that would be the right path for this story.

The Hero's condition and her genuine ability to avoid her "mother's condition"
would make it more compelling

What about you?

Do you see any redundant ablities for this heroine?

Daniel Constancio Jr
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Post by jhollan2 »

I'm a bit confused about what you mean by "redundant abilities." Could you clarify this a bit? To me, the book is about growing up, and Alyssa making her own choices for herself instead of being manipulated by those around her. The men in her life are overbearing and frankly condescending toward her, never allowing her to make her own choices and mistakes out of some misguided chivalrous impulse to protect the helpless female. Looking at it as if it were a reflection of Alyssa trying to overcome a mental disorder and avoid her mother's condition sort of misses the point for me, as according to the book Alyssa doesn't have a mental disorder at all, and neither does her mother. As a half netherling, they can experience the world in a way that other people can't, making them unique, not crazy.
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