Review || Insanity (Insanity #1) by Cameron Jace
Insanity
by Cameron Jace
Series: Insanity (#1)
Series: Insanity (#1)
Release date: December 19th 2013
Publisher: N/A
Publisher: N/A
Genres: Retellings, fantasy
Age category: Young adult
No. of pages: 247 pages (kindle edition)
Source: Cameron Jace
ASIN: B00HFE668Y
No. of pages: 247 pages (kindle edition)
Source: Cameron Jace
ASIN: B00HFE668Y
Synopsis:
After accidentally killing everyone in her class, Alice Wonder is now a patient in the Radcliffe Lunatic Asylum. No one doubts her insanity. Only a hookah-smoking professor believes otherwise; that he can prove her sanity by decoding Lewis Carroll's paintings, photographs, and find Wonderland's real whereabouts.
Professor Caterpillar persuades the asylum that Alice can save lives and catch the wonderland monsters now reincarnated in modern day criminals. In order to do so, Alice leads a double life: an Oxford university student by day, a mad girl in an asylum by night.
The line between sanity and insanity thins when she meets Jack Diamonds, an arrogant college student who believes that nonsense is an actual science
My thoughts and whatnot
My rating: ★★★★☆
Premise - I've yet to read the original Alice in Wonderland but I've read a bunch of retellings about the book. And this has got to be the most unique retelling I've ever read. Ever. This book was insane! I mean, come on! "After accidentally killing everyone in her class..." That right there, made me want to read the book. I wasn't disappointed. This book was insanely great.
Characters - Alice Pleasance Wonder was a mystery to me. And to be honest I like the vagueness that Cameron presented. I'm still not sure who Alice really is but that's part of the appeal of the book. Alice was teetering in the sane and insane bar. She's yet to develop into a more mature (or insane) character so I'm excited to see more of her.
Professor Carter Pillar was a meh character for me. Probably because I like the Mad Hatter better than him. Or maybe because he's too insane for my liking. This was the first time I've read the Caterpillar being one of the main characters. Jack Diamonds was probably my most favorite character in the book. He's outspoken but very mysterious. I hope to see more of him.
The back story for the Cheshire cat was pretty underwhelming, for me. I was looking for that extra insane backstory but the delivery of it was lacking. Thus, making the Cheshire cat a flat character, for me anyway. I do like the insanity of this cat.
Professor Carter Pillar was a meh character for me. Probably because I like the Mad Hatter better than him. Or maybe because he's too insane for my liking. This was the first time I've read the Caterpillar being one of the main characters. Jack Diamonds was probably my most favorite character in the book. He's outspoken but very mysterious. I hope to see more of him.
The back story for the Cheshire cat was pretty underwhelming, for me. I was looking for that extra insane backstory but the delivery of it was lacking. Thus, making the Cheshire cat a flat character, for me anyway. I do like the insanity of this cat.
Writing style/technique - The author used multiple/alternating point of views. Some were first person some were third person, which is a bit confusing by the way. It lacks transitioning, I guess?
World building - My initial and final reaction squeezed in one word: insane. Seriously, the book is related to another book and another author in another era. That just blows my mind. That must've taken ages to research right?
Misc. - Am I insane yet?
Is this a page turner? Very! And fast paced, too/
Would I re-read it again? Yes. This has got to be my favorite Alice retelling.
Misc. - Am I insane yet?
Is this a page turner? Very! And fast paced, too/
Would I re-read it again? Yes. This has got to be my favorite Alice retelling.
Lots of thank you to Cameron Jace for offering me the book for review. This has been a very fun read. And to share my enthusiasm about the book, here are my favorite quotes:
I can't go back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.
What's life but a big, silly book?
Take it from me: sane is mundane, insanity is the new black.
The world is too sane. It could use a little madness.
A strong heart isn't enough. A true heart, no matter how much the truth hurts, is the strongest of all.
Sometimes, truth comes along with a little pain. The pain will subside eventually, and the truth shall remain.
About the author:Cameron Jace is bestselling author of the Grimm Diaries and Insanity series. A graduate of the college of Architecture, collector of out-of-print books, and obsessed with the origins of folk tales and the mysterious storytellers who spread them. Three of his books made Amazon's Top 100 Customer Favorites in Kindle 2013 & Amazon's Top 100 kindle list. Cameron lives in California with his girlfriend. When he isn't writing or collecting books, he is playing music.
Sign up for his mailing list here: http://bit.ly/1sxp3p1
Author links:
 Release date: December 19th 2013 Publisher: N/A Genres: Retellings, fant...){kind=link}
2 comments
Great review! I totally agree with Alice teetering the lines of insanity. Little spoiler: you will see more of Jack Diamonds!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteLove your blog. I love the set-up. How'd you make that photo on the top?
Thank you Vivien! That's probably the nicest spoiler I've ever read. Haha.
DeleteAlso, do you mean my header? That totally came with the blogger template. It's just my blog name. :)