Dorothy Must Die Series

 Throughout December, (and a tad bit of January,) I listened to the entire Dorothy Must Die series.  Actually, there were a few novellas that weren't available on audio so I read the ebook, but you get my point.  I read the whole series and I loved it.  Of course, there were books in the series that I liked more or less than the others, but taking it as a whole, I really did enjoy the series.  I've always been a fan of The Wizard of Oz, both the books and the films, and I also really enjoy a good retelling.  I got very behind on my blogging, so to save some posting, I'm going to share the reviews for all of the series here.  I'm going to put them in the order I read them, so here we go!

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Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige

I've been meaning to read this series for so long now. I'm so glad I finally picked it up. Think The Wizard of Oz if it were just a bit more twisted and slightly dystopian.

I love the imagination that went into this work, and the descriptions are so very vivid that it's like you're right there in Oz watching everything play out. I think the characters in this book were very well developed as well. You get to know Amy before she ever leaves Kansas, and while some of the characters in Oz are harder to get to know, the mystery surrounding them makes them into more in depth characters.

The idea that the desire to gain power will turn someone so evil is a good theme in this book. It shows how even the most trusted people can be turned into something wicked through their desire for power and control. That's true in the real world as well and something that we all need to watch out for.

There are some pretty graphic descriptions in this book, so I would recommend this book for older teens and adults.

I loved the story and how it's progressing and can't wait to read the next book! 

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The Wicked Will Rise by Danielle Paige

I am really enjoying this series that takes a spin off of the original Wizard of Oz story. Not only does it bring some nostalgia to the reader, but it's a thrilling new adventure that fans of the original are sure to love.

Asking yourself what would happen if Dorothy went back to Oz for good, this series explores what the desire for magic, power and control can do to corrupt a person. In addition to seeing some of the characters you remember from the original story, there are some new and charismatic characters we meet in this series. I listened to this book on audio and I was very impressed and amused at the voice acting for the character, Lulu.

This book had a bit more action than the first in the series. That being said, remember that there are some scenes of violence and gore that weren't in the original story, younger readers might be bothered.

I love a book that I find difficult to put down and walk away from, and that is definitely the case in this series so far. I'm very eager to get started on the third, and I think final, book in the series!

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The Straw King by Danielle Paige

This little glimpse into the life of the Scarecrow shows just how early Glinda began to change things in Oz. From the first three books in the series, I assumed it all began with Dorothy coming back, but it seems as if something started to get dark before then. You can clearly see how Glinda was pulling strings from the beginning.

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Heart of Tin by Danielle Paige

Reading about how the Tin Man turned was actually kind of sad. He had so much love for Dorothy but not much smarts and it caused him to be taken advantage of. It was interesting to see how the change began in the heart he was given. It also really made me hate Dorothy and Glinda that much more, but now I'm also really hating the Scarecrow! 

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The Wizard Returns by Danielle Paige

Quite a few things were answered and explained in this novella addition to the Dorothy Must Die series. We finally learn where the Wizard went when he left Oz in the original story. We also get some background into the magics of Oz and the gifts the Wizard gave to the Scarecrow, Lion and Tin Man. This shows us why the Wizard asked Amy to retrieve them. It also gave us a look at the Wizard's true personality. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The Witch Must Burn by Danielle Paige I enjoyed this novella that tells Jellia's story and how she got involved with The Order. I liked the glimpse into the inner workings between Glinda, Dorothy and even the Wizard that we got while learning about Jellia. It was also kind of cool to see what Nox was doing before Amy got there. **************** Yellow Brick War by Danielle Paige Each book in this series gets more and more exciting and dangerous. I find myself flying through the books and eagerly checking out the next in the series. I just found out that this was not the final book and there is another! There's also a bunch of novellas to go along, so I'm happily scouring those out as well. If you're a fan of retellings at all or a fan of the original Wizard of Oz stories, you're sure to like this series. This book goes between Oz and Kansas which is slightly different than the previous two. In fact, more seems to take place in Kansas than in Oz. I loved how we got to see some of the characters from book one and how they are faring and how the relationship between Amy and some of those characters has changed. Amy isn't the only character who has matured and found new perspective. There are also new villains to face, mainly the Nome King. I think I dislike him even more than Glinda and Dorothy! The writing is excellent and the reader really feels like they are there and a part of the action. This is a must read series!  >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Dark Side of the Rainbow by Danielle Paige Because I did not read this series in chronological order, like I prefer, this book was a sad one for me since I already know what will happen to some of the characters. However, I did truly enjoy getting a look into Polychrome's life and how she first met Bright. It was also interesting to see how smarmy Dorothy could be.  ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Order of the Wicked by Danielle Paige This wasn't my favorite of the novellas, it started a bit slow for me, but I think that's because I don't remember who Lanadel is from the main books. Maybe she's someone I will encounter in the fourth book? In any case, once I really got into the story and more and more characters I remembered came into play it got more interesting. When I finished the last line, I literally said "uh oh" out loud! There's also a quote I really liked in this book, "Any tool is a weapon if you hold it right." ~~~~~~~~~~~ No Place Like Oz by Danielle Paige I really enjoyed this novella addition to the Dorothy Must Die series. It was fascinating to see how exactly Dorothy came to return to Oz and the things she saw and did before the Power got to her. It also made me dislike Glinda a little more and gave me more than a few questions as to where she came from. I'm wondering if book 4 will have answers to those questions. It was enlightening to see what happened to Dorothy's family and to Ozma. I'm reading these a bit out of order, but they are still interesting and great additions to the series. ************** Ruler of Beasts by Danielle Paige I think this one has been my favorite of the novellas so far. I like how we get to see how easily the Lion is persuaded and how much he flips back and forth. I love when Ozma told him that she didn't think he thought much on good or evil. I think that's very true. I also really enjoyed seeing the Nome King and the Wheelers and hearing about the Princess with all the heads. It reminded me of watching Return to Oz as a kid. There were also some questions about Glinda answered and even about Dorothy's shoes. A great addition to the series. ^^^^^^^^^^^^ The Queen of Oz by Danielle Paige This was a novella in the series that told about how Pete came about and how Ozma was eventually restored to the Emerald City. I liked getting a closer look into Mobi as a character and seeing different sides of Glinda and Glamora. It was also very cute to see Pete's interaction with the munchkin he met. I really liked this addition to the story! ~~~~~~~~~~ The End of Oz by Danielle Paige What a stunning conclusion to this epic series! I think this may have been my favorite book of all of them. There is so much going on, and I loved the alternating view points. Madison plays a bigger role in this book, and I also loved getting more interaction between Amy and Nox. There's less of the witches and more of the younger characters in this book and it really feels like they have grown and matured. I liked the new munchkin character and finally learning about Lanadel, (after I'd read the novella about her I was sort of confused.) This book also has the reader really hating the Nome King, but I did enjoy seeing more of Ev and it's people. I found the Wheelers to be super interesting when I watched Return to Oz as a kid, so I loved seeing them again in this book. The descriptions were so in depth, I could almost smell them. I was in tears at the end of this book, but I think it ended the way it should. I think readers will be happy and that fans of Oz in general are going to love this series.