I'm not normally a fan of fairy tales but this one was so creepy and intriguing that I couldn't stop reading. This isn't an airy fairy story like most fairy tales--it's dark. Alice has grown up running away from various houses/towns with her mother, always looking over their shoulders as if they expected to be followed. And one day they are--Alice is kidnapped by her own fairy tale. I found the premise very interesting and different and was fascinated by the legend and secrets surrounding Alice's grandmother. It was an intriguing story and I look forward to reading more in the series.

I really enjoyed this book. Not my usual type of book but a great read and it sent my imagination running wild.

Read a spin-off from this world first by accident so I do think that tainted my reading of this slightly, unfortunately, but still great worldbuilding and story!

Loved this one, not my usual thing but a nice break from the serial killer books 😂 a great read to get lost in and has your imagination running wild…a gem of a book looking forward to what comes next!!

I loved the literary twist on this young adult fantasy novel. Focused on the granddaughter of a writer, this is a novel about the power of words and imagination. The world-building here is second to none, and the sinister atmosphere is brilliantly sustained throughout, giving this the feel of a twisted folktale.

The characters here are thoughtfully and lovingly rendered, making us able to understand even the darkest of choices. The narrative style sweeps you into the tale, right up to the last page.

As a teacher, I loved that this novel is unashamedly literary; teens will come away from this with a renewed love of, and respect for, the power of literature and storytelling.

Now, all I want is to read the Hinterland tales!

Quite a creepy story, masquerading as a gentle stroll into The Hazel Wood.

The characters were well rounded and likeable and the journey into the woods was all i wanted it to be.

I loved this book . It was so atmospheric and creepy . The characters were interesting and the story kept me gripped throughout. Would certainly read other books by this author.

A fantastic, unique novel, perfect for fans of fairy tales. At times spooky and dark but a great read from start to finish.

A book I never knew I needed to read so badly!

The Hazel Wood is the first novel in the same named brand new series by Melissa Jones, which introduced me to the book genre of magical realism and intrigued me into reading more about it.

This novel revolves around seventeen-year-old Alice, who's been living like a nomad with her mother for the vast majority of her life. Her grandmother is the world-known writer of creepy fairy tale books, whom she's never really met.
However, when she goes missing, Alice embarks on a journey to find out what happened to her.
And, ends up with more answers than she ever expected - or, wished for...

A very good place to start if you're looking for unique magical realism books!

Admittedly, this was an exceptionally-written, page-turning novel, which kept me alert and anxious to see what comes next, all the way. It started out strong, and if it had kept that pace and tone I would have given it 4 or even 5 stars.

On the contrary, after the second half of the book, I felt like the writing style and the adventure's core characteristics drastically changed, and while it did not reduce the quality of this book, it did my enjoyment of it.
I am not sure whether this change was 100% voluntary and just not in my tastes, but I know for sure I am going to further explore this genre and continue on with the second book, in order to see how Alice's adventures continue.

I thought this was an interesting concept that kept me reading all the way through, but I couldn’t quite fully immerse myself into the world as much as I wanted or really relate to the characters.

I have heard so many good things about this book, and it has been residing on my bookshelf since it came out. So I decided 2020 was finally the year that I would read it.

I have to admit going into this book I thought I knew what to expect and Albert just completely did a total 180. I found this to be quite a creepy book, now it takes a lot to really weird me out, but this did give me a case of the heebies. I loved the story, and I found myself not knowing what was going to happen next.

I found myself loving Alice, and Finch as characters, they worked so well together, and Finch worked so well moving the story on and helping Alice find The Hazel Wood. I also found myself liking Ella as a character, especially when you find out what is happening with The Hazel Wood and how Ella and Alice are roped into it all.

I found the twist at the end totally unexpected, but the majority of this book was unexpected to me, and I did like it. The only thing that I did find wrong, was in some sections of the story, I found it slow going and sometimes there was a time jump or the setting of the story changed and this just wasn't explained too well.

Overall, I really did enjoy this book and I will be reading the sequel (it is currently residing on my bookshelf, waiting to be added to a monthly TBR.

Not my normal sort of story but I couldn't resist the front cover, blurb and the somehow captivating book name. Really enjoyed it - spooky, funny, interesting all at once. Quite unusual but who doesn't love a bit of magic in their lives? Love this new found author!

I thought this was good and I actually managed to finish a book so maybe my reading slump is coming to an end!!!

This was an okay read, I enjoyed the last half, mostly because I actually expected this book to take place in the hazel wood and be bursting with sinister fairy tales but seeing as it pretty much is only in the woods for about 100 pages towards the end and the fact that you really don't get to know many of the fairy tales I think you're only told 2 or 3 at most (I would have loved if they'd been at the being of each chapter or something ) I was kind of let down not sure if I was misled by the title or synopsis or I just expected something a bit different to what this ended up being, still an okay read. Would definitely pick up the authors next book although not if it's a sequel.

This book is dark, mesmerising and thoroughly unsettling.
I felt on edge the whole time I was reading it. The first half of it has that "something out of the corner of your eye" feel that really good scary stories have, that familiar world where there's just something off that you can't quite pin down. But you keep going, on into the Hazel Wood, and the world starts to take on a dream like feel, hazy, and you're no longer sure what's happening and what's metaphor, what's real and what's just story.
It's beautifully done. The pacing, the gradual unfolding of the plot, the stories within the story, the language of the writing, it all has incredible subtlety to it.
The characters are superb too. I loved Ellery Finch, who always felt like he was vibrating with energy and potential. Alice's relationship with him was really interesting, and I liked the lack of any real romantic plot between them. Alice herself is a fascinating character, mostly defined by what we don't know and yet she felt real and complex.
I love fairy stories, and books about fairy stories, and I particularly like the darkness that is so often found just below the surface of these stories. That scary, thrilling side of stories is played out remarkably well in The Hazel Wood.
One of the most atmospheric books I've read in a long time.

I have been looking for a unique YA fantasy for a while and I thought The Hazel Wood might just fit that bill. I was very intrigued by the synopsis and I was so excited when I was approved for it on NetGalley.

Alice and her mother have spent most of Alice’s seventeen years travelling. Every time they try to put down roots, bad luck seems to follow them and they have to move again. Alice’s grandmother Althea Proserpine is the author of a rare book of dark fairytales, Tales from the Hinterland, which Alice has never read, due to her mother’s reluctance to talk about their family. When Althea dies, Alice’s mother is kidnapped by a strange figure claiming to be from the Hinterland. Alice is convinced that she is being held at The Hazel Wood, Althea’s elusive estate, and she recruits Finch, a Hinterland enthusiast to help her find the house and her mother.

Alice’s vagrant lifestyle means that she is always searching for a sense of belonging and for a direction. She has such a disjointed past that she can’t seem to find her own story and forge a future path for herself. It’s this lost, wandering part of her that makes it easy to dive straight into a strange world in order to find the one constant in her life -her mother.

When Alice first starts to make friends with Finch, the rich private school boy who is fascinated with Althea and her stories, they seem to make an unlikely pair. However as the story progresses, it becomes clear that they have more in common than it first appears. Hints of romantic interest appear but it’s the most subtle, friendship-based romance that I’ve ever read in a YA book. They’re both funny and likeable and it’s an incredibly believeable relationship that is really easy to root for -which makes events around the halfway point incredibly shocking and emotional!

The world-building is incredibly unique and well-developed. Lines between realms are blurred and fairytales are leaking into reality. Essentially, The Hazel Wood is a fairytale within a world of fairytales. Alice is learning her own story while navigating the strange, dark landscape and encountering the shadowy, whimsical characters of her grandmother’s creation. I’d really love to discover more of Hinterland and hear more of Althea’s stories, so I have my fingers crossed!

The Hazel Wood is a unique YA fantasy that is perfect for fans of Ransom Riggs’ Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. It has a similar mystical vibe that is unsettling while maintaining a charm and magic that is incredibly addictive.

Good day! Before anything else, I would like to extend my deepest, sincerest gratitude for sending me a digital review copy of this book (via NetGalley). Thank you very much for the opportunity!

Unfortunately, I am sad to say that I have lost interest in this particular title, and consequently, I have decided against finishing it. Forcing myself to finish a book I am disinterested in (solely for the sake of finishing it) can only negatively impact the entirety of my reading experience, which, in turn, could result in me writing an unfairly negative review. That is a circumstance I hope to avoid. With that said, I believe that the best course of action is for me to simply not read it and to refrain from publicly posting any feedback regarding this book.

I hope you understand where I'm coming from. Again, thank you for the lovely opportunity!

This book took me a long time to read. I got about halfway through the book but then lost interest in it. Fast forward several months later and I decided to pick it up again and finally finished it!

Despite taking a break from reading it, the story stayed with me. I remembered what had happened and was able to continue reading it no problem. With the amount of books I have read in between, I was pleasantly surprised that this was so easy to do.

It was a good story with a plot unlike anything I've read before. That being said though, I felt that the ending was a bit of a let down. It was dull and seemed rushed.

This came well recommended, and those recommendations rang so true!

For some reason I expected more it to be NIGHT CIRCUS-y but I’m still not disappointed. This is a fantastical, beautiful novel. I’m thrilled to know there’s a sequel.

The Hazel Wood was just not for me. I don't read a lot of fantasy and often don't enjoy it, so don't take my word entirely but I couldn't get through this one. The writing was repetitive and nothing unique. The premise sounded enchanting but sadly it didn't live up.