L.L. McKinney

"The fantasy series I've been waiting for my whole life." —Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Hate U Give In A Crown So Cursed, the third book in L.L. McKinney's Nightmare-Verse series, Alice is called to save Wonderland from itself. Alice is doing her best to recover from her last boss battle, but members of her crew start having these... dreams. And they’re all the same dream: visions of a dark past—and an even darker future. It seems the evil in Wonderland may not be as defeated as they’d hoped. When word spreads of an encroaching army of Nightmares unlike any ever seen, Alice finds she may have to step between the coming darkness and the mortal world once more. But this time is different. This time, the monsters aren’t waiting for her on the other side of the Veil. They're in her own back yard. An Imprint Book "A breakout author." —Entertainment Weekly

A Crown So Cursed

In the third book in L.L. McKinney's Nightmare-Verse series, Alice is called to save Wonderland from itself. Alice is doing her best to recover from her last boss battle, but members of her crew start having these... dreams. And they’re all the same dream: visions of a dark past—and an even darker future. It seems the evil in Wonderland may not be as defeated as they’d hoped. When word spreads of an encroaching army of Nightmares unlike any ever seen, Alice finds she may have to step between the coming darkness and the mortal world once more. But this time is different. This time, the monsters aren’t waiting for her on the other side of the Veil. They're in her own back yard. An Imprint Book

❝ Don't forget to mind your Muchness, and keep moving forward. ❞

❓ #QOTD What's your favorite fantasy retelling OR your favorite character from Alice in Wonderland? ❓

🦇 The long-awaited final installment of L.L. McKinney's Nightmare-Verse trilogy is finally here! The Nightmares that are leaking into the mortal realm are no longer so easily defeated with Figment Blades. With the monsters now seeping through the Veil, Alice and her crew must save Wonderland from itself. Between Hatta's Madness, Humphrey and Chess's strange, shared nightmares, and Alice's family in danger (again), it's almost more than Alice can take. Can she confront Wonderland's dark past to save the mortal realm's potentially darker future?

💜 L.L. McKinney is a magical moon goddess who weaves words with exquisite, unmeasured Muchness. As always, McKinney excels with both her word choice and dialogue, painting vivid pictures and powerful, raw characters that bounce right off the page. There's no refuting how fun, creative, and enchanting the entire Nightmare-Verse series is, and McKinney's spellbinding prose is perfect for an Alice in Wonderland retelling. How can you not love the badass, multi-fandom-loving bi baby girl that is McKinney's Alice? From the first chapter, readers are rushed off their feet, out of this reality, and into Alice's. Every fight scene conjures spectacular, action-packed imagery. Each line of dialogue sounds like you're talking to a familiar, fascinating friend. Alice in Wonderland is one of my all-time favorite classics, and no one has rewritten that world quite like McKinney has. I devoured this book in one sitting, as I'm sure many readers will (after all, we've been waiting since 2019 for this final installment, and it's finally here!).

🦇 Though I'm sure this will be a five-star read for many, this is my least favorite of the Nightmare-Verse books. The entire story, while action-packed, seemed rushed, as if the author was trying to fill 300+ pages to get to the grand (unsurprising) reveal. There are many plot points that are never fully resolved. For starters, the relationships in the book are a mess (Alice/Hatta, Alice/Chess, Chess/Humphrey, and Alice/Haruka...the latter seems like it was thrown in there to remind us that Alice is bi, even though she's kind of dating Hatta at the time?). There's a reveal involving Hatta, Chess, and Humphrey that gets mind-wiped, leaving us with no resolution there (a reveal that complicates the confusing ships mentioned above). Perhaps the most frustrating is the reliance on magic as a quick fix to a messy plot. The majority of the story is meant to get Alice to an epic final battle, but there aren't enough clue drops or slight reveals placed throughout the story to build suspense or intrigue. 

🦇 Recommended to fans of Alice in Wonderland retellings, action-packed fantasy fight scenes, and magical mayhem.

🦇 Major thanks to the author @ll_mckinney and publisher @macmillanusa / @mackidbooks / @fiercereads for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book. #ACrownSoCursed

Jazelle H

🦇 A Crown So Cursed Book Review 🦇

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐

❝ Don't forget to mind your Muchness, and keep moving forward. ❞

❓ #QOTD What's your favorite fantasy retelling OR your favorite character from Alice in Wonderland? ❓
 
🦇 The long-awaited final installment of L.L. McKinney's Nightmare-Verse trilogy is finally here! The Nightmares that are leaking into the mortal realm are no longer so easily defeated with Figment Blades. With the monsters now seeping through the Veil, Alice and her crew must save Wonderland from itself. Between Hatta's Madness, Humphrey and Chess's strange, shared nightmares, and Alice's family in danger (again), it's almost more than Alice can take. Can she confront Wonderland's dark past to save the mortal realm's potentially darker future?

💜 L.L. McKinney is a magical moon goddess who weaves words with exquisite, unmeasured Muchness. As always, McKinney excels with both her word choice and dialogue, painting vivid pictures and powerful, raw characters that bounce right off the page. There's no refuting how fun, creative, and enchanting the entire Nightmare-Verse series is, and McKinney's spellbinding prose is perfect for an Alice in Wonderland retelling. How can you not love the badass, multi-fandom-loving bi baby girl that is McKinney's Alice? From the first chapter, readers are rushed off their feet, out of this reality, and into Alice's. Every fight scene conjures spectacular, action-packed imagery. Each line of dialogue sounds like you're talking to a familiar, fascinating friend. Alice in Wonderland is one of my all-time favorite classics, and no one has rewritten that world quite like McKinney has. I devoured this book in one sitting, as I'm sure many readers will (after all, we've been waiting since 2019 for this final installment, and it's finally here!).

🦇 Though I'm sure this will be a five-star read for many, this is my least favorite of the Nightmare-Verse books. The entire story, while action-packed, seemed rushed, as if the author was trying to fill 300+ pages to get to the grand (unsurprising) reveal. There are many plot points that are never fully resolved. For starters, the relationships in the book are a mess (Alice/Hatta, Alice/Chess, Chess/Humphrey, and Alice/Haruka...the latter seems like it was thrown in there to remind us that Alice is bi, even though she's kind of dating Hatta at the time?). There's a reveal involving Hatta, Chess, and Humphrey that gets mind-wiped, leaving us with no resolution there (a reveal that complicates the confusing ships mentioned above). Perhaps the most frustrating is the reliance on magic as a quick fix to a messy plot. The majority of the story is meant to get Alice to an epic final battle, but there aren't enough clue drops or slight reveals placed throughout the story to build suspense or intrigue. 

🦇 Recommended to fans of Alice in Wonderland retellings, action-packed fantasy fight scenes, and magical mayhem.

✨ The Vibes ✨
♠️ Alice in Wonderland Retelling
♥️ Third in a Trilogy
♦️ Love Triangle (Square?)
♣️ Young Adult Fantasy Fiction
♥️ Bisexual MC

🦇 Major thanks to the author @ll_mckinney and publisher @macmillanusa / @mackidbooks / @fiercereads for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book. #ACrownSoCursed

A Crown So Cursed

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