Review: Queen of Hearts by Colleen Oakes

I have Title: Queen of Hearts 

Author:  Colleen Oakes
Publisher: HarperTeen

Publishing Date:  May 3rd, 2016

Pages: 306
Genre: YA Retelling 

Series:  Queen of Hearts Saga #1
Source:  Audio

 

Only queens with hearts can bleed.
This is not the story of the Wonderland we know. Alice has not fallen down a rabbit hole. There is no all-knowing cat with a taunting smile. This is a Wonderland where beneath each smile lies a secret, each tart comes with a demand, and only prisoners tell the truth.
Dinah is the princess who will one day reign over Wonderland. She has not yet seen the dark depths of her kingdom; she longs only for her father’s approval and a future with the boy she loves. But when a betrayal breaks her heart and threatens her throne, she is launched into Wonderland’s dangerous political game. Dinah must stay one step ahead of her cunning enemies or she’ll lose not just the crown but her head.
Evil is brewing in Wonderland and maybe, most frighteningly, in Dinah herself.
This is not a story of happily ever after.
This is the story of the Queen of Hearts.

I have had this on my list for a while now. I tried to read it a couple of times and didn't seem to be in the mood so I would put it down. I finally started and finished this book and I am very happy I did. I really did enjoy the book. The story was interesting and even though it was a little slow I kept reading and the ending just blew me away. It was good, real good. 

Dinah is princess of Wonderland and she knows one day she will become queen. Her father, the king of Wonderland is not a warm person, never says anything encouraging to Dinah, and seems to lack any kind of love. Dinah has found that life in Wonderland keeps getting more complicated. With the help of her crush, Dinah starts a journey to understand the secrets of Wonderland and she discovers nothing is as it seems and there are so many secrets, betrayals, and evil in Wonderland.

This book was really good. I love any twist on Wonderland and any story from the evil one's point of view. I have recently read Heartless and I can say that I think it was hard to read another Queen of Wonderland book after that one. It's a very touch act to follow; however this book did hold it's own. 

I struggled a little bit in my final thoughts of this read for the simple fact the beginning was a little slow for me. There was a lot of time in Dinah's head and I guess it was a bit too much for me. Once the book took off though, a little bit over halfway probably, I didn't want to put the book down. Honestly, I am having a bit of a hard time of this with many books lately. It may just be me.... at any rate, at some point in the book I was so totally into the story. 

I had mixed feelings most of the book when it came to Dinah. Honestly she was a bit spoiled and rotten but there was something buried deep inside of her wanting to escape. She lived her life in fear of disappointing her father, loneliness from missing her mother and her father not really being a part of her life, and jealousy over everything that took her father's attention. She did have some loving servants in her life and one boy that stole her heart. I do believe that it is due to these people that she is still a very strong girl. She lacks when it comes to making good decisions, she has never had much of a role model. She needs direction, leadership, and love in her life and she is getting none. 

There is a handful of characters in this book but really the only one that I was give the chance to really connect to was Dinah. I feel that this is one are the book lacked. This is Wonderland I feel there was so much to work with in character development and I didn't really get it. I do like that I was able to feel and understand Dinah, which is important for the story of Queen of Hearts, but I needed or wanted a bit more with the other characters. 

I do feel this book lacked with aspects and it didn't really hook me until late in the book. In some ways it felt like this was just a build up to a much bigger story. The ending was left on a cliffhanger... this bugged me just a bit since this is when it got really really good. I do understand the importance of the world building and I do think this book fulfilled this part... I just wanted a bit more. 

I will be reading the rest of the series. At least the next book. I need to know where the story will go and I am hoping the thrills and the excitement from the end of the book will continue over to the second book with no speed bumps. 

I did like the story... it needed a bit more but I was able to get involved and invested enough to want to know the rest. 

Colleen Oakes is the bestselling author of books for both teens and adults, including The Queen of Hearts Series, The Wendy Darling Saga and the upcoming YA novel The Black Coats. She lives in North Denver with her husband and son and surrounds herself with the most lovely family and friends imaginable. When not writing or plotting new books, Colleen can be found swimming, traveling or immersing herself in nerdy pop culture.

She currently at work on her third YA fairytale series, a YA thriller and a fantasy collaboration.

You can visit her webpage at: www.colleenoakes.org, find her on Facebook under Author Colleen Oakes or follow her on Twitter @ColleenBlooms.