Name: Briar's Reviews's review of Unbirthday by Liz Braswell
Item: Unbirthday
Rating: 3
Author: Briar's Reviews

Liz Braswell

Returning to the place of nonsense from her childhood, Alice, now eighteen, tries to stop the Queen of Hearts' tyrannical rule before the End of Time, and save her own world as well as Wonderland.

A Twisted Tale

Unbirthday

caly

Briar's Reviews

Everyone has been RAVING about this series, and I figured: I love fairy tales, I love Disney and I love Alice in Wonderland, so why not?

I wasn't as enchanted with this book as I had hoped. It was a really cool re-telling/addition to Alice in Wonderland's lore, but it just didn't hit all the right chords with me. 

Let me explain:

1. This book is 500 pages long. It is WAY longer than it needed to be and droned on at times. That made this book super slow, and I am a fast paced kind of reader.
2. The Queen's executions and property stealing seemed random yet planned. I don't know why, but that part of the story kind of threw me off. It was weird. And we didn't even get to see too much of her...
3. The plot didn't grab my attention, if I'm being honest.

What I did enjoy:
1. Katz was a cool character. Alice having a love interest was new and very intriguing! I have to admit, I kind of liked it? Especially since this book didn't go full romance either. Just cute plot suggestions to add to her story.
2. Alice is a strong female lead with likes and dislikes and hobbies. I like that.
3. The story telling and writing style of Liz Braswell is wonderful. That definitely helped this story a lot.

Overall, this book makes me want to read the rest of the series, especially based on the reviews of other readers. Disney fans will enjoy it for sure!

Three out of five stars.

Brianna

Lincy

Kayla 

*2.75* This book wasn't bad, but it wasn't entirely what I was expecting. I felt like this book felt more like the connected to the original Alice and Wonderland then compared to the Disney one. I have read one or two of the other twisted tale books and have enjoyed them. This one for me was a great concept but it was a little to slow paced for me, which made me drag my feet a little bit and took me almost a month to read. I also feel as though it could have been condensed down as the book is 504 pages.

danielle bush

When we start we have Alice in the real world. She is trying to avoid her sister who keeps trying to set her up with men, but all she is interested in is taking photos. She is exploring her town trying to find things that remind her of Wonderland. Anything weird, out of place, or nonsensical. When while developing her photos one day she realizes that one of the pictures she has taken actually looks alot like the Queen of Hearts. She had thought that Wonderland was just a series of wonderful dreams she had, but now know that they must be real. She has more pictures that show Wonderland Characters, but when she gets to the picture she took of herself, She finds a girl that looks alot like her, but isn't.She is obviously injured and is holding a banner that says Happy Unbirthday.. All the pictures of the Wonderland residents show them in distress and Alice knows she has to find away back to help her friends. 
I really liked the way this story was told, not really in different timelines. But one while Alice home in Kexford England, and the other in Wonderland. While in England she is trying to get back to Wonderland and avoid her sisters matchmaking attempts. In Wonderland she is trying to find away to stop the Queen of Hearts and save its people. 
The Cheshire cat is one of my favorite characters, especially once we meet his match in the real world. 
I loved that Alice had to balance her sense and nonsence in the different worlds in order to help everyone. 
also in the end we get a glimpse of Alice in the future and that was pretty great.. 
If you like retellings of Alice in Wonderland definitely pick this one up.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to review this ARC. All opinions are my own

What if Wonderland was in peril and Alice was very, very late? Alice is different than other eighteen-year-old ladies in Kexford, which is perfectly fine with her. She'd rather spend golden afternoons with her trusty camera or in her aunt Vivian's lively salon, ignoring her sister's wishes that she stop all that "nonsense" and become a "respectable" member of society. Alice is happy to meander to Miss. Yao's teashop or to visit the children playing in the Square. She's also interested in learning more about the young lawyer she met there, but just because she's curious, of course, not because he was sweet and charming. But when Alice develops photographs she has recently taken about town, familiar faces of old suddenly appear in the place of her actual subjects-the Queen of Hearts, the Mad Hatter, the Caterpillar. There's something eerily off about them, even for Wonderland creatures. And as Alice develops a self-portrait, she finds the most disturbing image of all-a badly-injured dark-haired girl asking for Alice's help.Mary Ann. Returning to the place of nonsense from her childhood, Alice finds herself on a mission to stop the Queen of Hearts' tyrannical rule and to find her place in both worlds. But will she able to do so . . . before the End of Time?

Alex Landau

I'm biased. I love all things Alice in Wonderland. This was no exception. 

With the Disney stamp on this, I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, but this book was absolutely amazing from the very beginning. Alice was a delightful young lady who clearly was still carrying a bit of Wonderland. 

Wonderland was... not what I was expecting and yet everything I wanted. All the crazy turns were amazing and the end left a giant smile on my face.

If you love Wonderland then you will probably love this. 

laura

* I got this book for review from the publisher for my honest thoughts*

I wanted to love this book. But i struggled with the pacing a bit and was not super invested in the story. I thought this book was very long and it was very complicated. I did liked alice going back to wonderland as adult. It was enjoyable read. I also liked the fact the Alice had to save the day again. it was fun read, but not my favorite.

Alexis 

4.5/5 Stars 

** I was provided an E-ARC from NetGalley and the Publisher Disney-Hyperion in exchange for my honest review** 

This was such a good book. It gave me all the Alice in Wonderland feels. It felt very realistic and true to me. I'll admit it's been a while since I read the original. That being said I had an awesome time reading this book, it just pulled me in. I didn't want to put it down. The beginning was a little slow for me, but it picked up the pace and I finished the rest of the book in one sitting. This was also the first book by Lis Braswell, and I now am happy to say I'm a fan and will be picking up her backlog list of books. I highly recommend everyone give this sensible nonsense book a read. It was everything and so much more that I thought it would be. I couldn't recommend it more.

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: Unbirthday

Author: Liz Braswell

Book Series: Twisted Tales Book 10

Rating: 3/5

Recommended For...: retelling fans, Alice in Wonderland

Publication Date: September 1, 2020

Genre: YA Retelling

Recommended Age: can’t recommend, dnf-ed

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Pages: 512

Synopsis: What if Wonderland was in peril and Alice was very, very late?
Alice is different than other eighteen-year-old ladies in Kexford, which is perfectly fine with her. She'd rather spend golden afternoons with her trusty camera or in her aunt Vivian's lively salon, ignoring her sister's wishes that she stop all that "nonsense" and become a "respectable" member of society. Alice is happy to meander to Miss. Yao's teashop or to visit the children playing in the Square. She's also interested in learning more about the young lawyer she met there, but just because she's curious, of course, not because he was sweet and charming.

But when Alice develops photographs she has recently taken about town, familiar faces of old suddenly appear in the place of her actual subjects-the Queen of Hearts, the Mad Hatter, the Caterpillar. There's something eerily off about them, even for Wonderland creatures. And as Alice develops a self-portrait, she finds the most disturbing image of all-a badly-injured dark-haired girl asking for Alice's help. Mary Ann.

Returning to the place of nonsense from her childhood, Alice finds herself on a mission to stop the Queen of Hearts' tyrannical rule and to find her place in both worlds. But will she able to do so . . . before the End of Time?

Review: DNFed at 20%. The beginning of this book is really discombobulated and confusing. The pacing is really slow as well and immediately you're greeted with a ton of characters. The book is also obviously not just using the Disney Alice in Wonderland movie (and live action ones) for context but I'm not sure what the other sources they're using (although I'm getting Alice the Madness Returns vibes). I'll definitely circle back to this book when I get the finished copy but for now I gotta mull on this one. There are also some Lewis Carroll references in this book and references to rape/child molestation (honestly, those are one in the same with Carroll).

Verdict: It’s good, but not for me right now.

Ashley Moncayo

I've had all day to think about this book, and all I can say is WOW!

I absolutely ADORED this story so much! This Twisted Tale follows a different format than its predecessors, as it does not change a single thing from the original movie story. Rather, it starts 11 years after the events of the Disney movie, and it assumes that the reader is aware of said events in advance.

I loved that this felt more like a sequel than a reimagining of the original story. The parallels between Alice's "real world" life and those of Wonderland are absolutely perfect in every way. Almost like mirror images of each other...

Alice is more mature, and yet still keeps her curious nature from when she was a child, and I love that we got to see more of her character and what she stands for as a person.

I'm not going to lie, I really thought Liz Braswell was in over her head to try to re-create the whimsicality of Alice in Wonderland in her own way, but she exceeded my expectations 100%. I'm going to stop gushing over this book now, and just say that if you're going to pick up any of the Twisted Tales, I highly highly recommend this one!

Krystal Campbell 

There were moments of magic and then moments that dragged. I couldn’t really figure out if I loved it or was bored because my mind kept changing.

Nicole Moreno 

♥ BOOK REVIEW ♥ 

⭐⭐⭐/5 

"All amazing and new things are difficult... But most turn out to be worth it. And everything else is nonsense." - Liz Braswell 
.
Ever read a book that you don't hate but you don't love? A book that has a story your can follow but nothing ever really sticks out? This is how I felt reading this book. The story line made sense and there was always something new happening but I never felt a heightened sense of joy or curiosity which is what I expected with Wonderland originally being full of whimsy. We get to read about Alice's experiences both as an 18 year old in Angleland and the savior for the people of Wonderland. It felt slightly like reading a coming of age story where Alice slowly discovers what she is really capable of and what her role is in Wonderland. The end was very sweet especially the epilogue. Overall, this isn't a book I would pick up again but I don't feel like it was a waste reading it. 

Cons: Fairly long, lack of exciting/emotion provoking events.  

Pros: Introduces new characters to the Wonderland world

Erin 

You know, I didn't really think I would like this. I thought it sounded like a neat little spin-off of the Disney film, it would be a quick read, and I'd move on. And then I found out it was one in a series where many Disney movies were given the "what if" treatment, which I took as more of a marketing gimmick than anything. I then realised it was also nearly 500 pages long, which seemed like a chore. I just didn't want to dedicate the time to something I didn't think was that special anymore. 

BOy was I wrong. 

This was an absolute delight. YES it's nearly 500 pages, but you don't even notice because it is so delightfully filled with nonsense. I had such a fun time reading it. Somehow Liz Braswell captures the kookiness of Wonderland exactly, and you know what, when reading it and imagining the events, I pictured it animated! As in, not real people! That has never happened in my life and I am simply stunned at that revelation. I related so much with Alice, with her trying to make sense of Wonderland once again when it simply wouldn't happen and getting frustrated with the characters, probably because there was some underlying sense in what they were saying anyway. I loved that she was into photography and it provided the gateway to returning to the place of her childhood, and how she saw her old friends through the people that she knew. I actually did like Katz, although nothing much really happened with him in the actual story. I think he filled the role of decent man when Alice was surrounded by absolute goons perfectly. But mostly I loved how at home I felt, and how everything fell into place and was perfect, despite being brand new. This is the first of the Twisted Tales series I have read and may be the last, but I had an awful lot of fun doing it and would totally recommend it if you wanted something familiar and entertaining.

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

caly &
Unbirthday by Liz Braswell

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