Wednesday, November 24, 2021

Skill and Lunacy Weaved Well Together


 

If she became queen of Wonderland, she promised herself she wouldn’t become steeped in madness. She refused to be like the rest, who relished the fall of the axe and the rush of red blood from the beheadings of questionable criminals.

Dinah’s father was the king of Wonderland, and she was the cities princess, which caused her emotional pain each time an innocent head rolled off the chopping block for the towns people and their children to witness. Winding tendrils of guilt entered Dinah’s mind.

Colleen Oakes wrote a tantalizing tale of Lewis Carroll’s 1865 “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland.” Many moons ago, and by sheer chance, I acquired book two of this trilogy at the dollar store and read it first. As soon I finished reading “Blood of Wonderland,” I immediately purchased “Queen of Hearts” and “War of the Cards” and none of the books disappointed.

 

Oakes has a great writing style, and the vast array of characters was a bit much at times, but she neatly weaved the story together and she wittingly detailed romance with medieval war violence.

The plot is simple yet complex, and it’s not predictable. By the middle of the second book, “Blood of Wonderland,” I assumed Dinah would become queen of Wonderland, and the man she loved and romanced, Wardley would be her husband and King. Even thinking I had the ending pegged before starting the last book, “War of the Cards,” the characters and the tale seized my senses along with Oakes writing prowess.

Three and half stars is my rating for this fascinating trilogy of Wonderland, and I’m not much of a fan for fantasy books, but I really dug the writing style of Colleen Oakes.

Mark Izzy Schurr  

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