Splintered by A.G. Howard

Alyssa Gardner is a decedent of Alice Liddell, the girl who inspired Lewis Carroll to write Alice in Wonderland, and all the women of her family have been cursed since Alice came back out of the rabbit hole. Alyssa is scared to succumb to the same crazy that has kept her mother living in an asylum for years, ever since she attacked Alyssa with a pair of pruning sheers.  Alyssa has reason to be scared, she can hear bugs and flowers talk, but she has kept this a secret from her father, and her best friend/secret crush Jeb.

Then, Alyssa's mother's health takes a turn for the worse and Alyssa decides that she is going to enter Wonderland, break the family curse, and save her mother.  But, once she's there, Alice isn't sure who to trust, and finds herself torn between two worlds.  Nothing in Wonderland apparently is as it's described in the books.

Howard's Wonderland is creepy, deadly, and beautifully described.  Alyssa is a likable character, torn between the mortal world she is known, and a desire to connect with the ethereal Wonderland.  Some of the creatures described in this book are outright gruesome, but there is always an underlying beauty about all of it, even the most horrific descriptions.  There is a touch of romance to this book, and its pretty heated for not being explicit.  I liked that this was a fantasy book, but that the character wasn't your normal fantasy heroine.  Alyssa is a sporty artist who loved to skateboard.

I really enjoyed this book, and kept reading the character descriptions out loud to my fiance.  I'm excited to get this book in at the library so I can start sharing it with the patrons.

I was allowed to borrow an ARC e-book of this title through netgalley.  I received no compensation, nor fun book related swag for my review.