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Book: Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Page

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Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Genre: YA Fantasy 

Status: PG-13

Contains: suggestive, violent, drug addiction and animal abuse content. 

Synopsis:

My name is Amy Gumm—and I’m the other girl from Kansas. I’ve been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked. I’ve been trained to fight. And I have a mission: Remove the Tin Woodman’s heart. Steal the Scarecrow’s brain. Take the Lion’s courage. And—Dorothy must die.

I didn’t ask for any of this. I didn’t ask to be some kind of hero. But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado—taking you with it—you have no choice but to go along, you know?

Sure, I’ve read the books. I’ve seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little blue birds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can’t be trusted, Wicked Witches may just be the good guys, and winged monkeys can be executed for acts of rebellion. There’s still a road of yellow brick—but even that’s crumbling.

What happened? Dorothy. They say she found a way to come back to Oz. They say she seized power and the power went to her head. And now no one is safe.

Review:

Plot:

In the land of Oz we have our hero’s, Dorothy, The Lion, The Scarecrow, The Tin Man and of course Glinda the Good Witch. The plot takes these timeless characters and twists them into something cruel and unrecognizable, changing the way we view the innocent girl in a blue gingham dress. It has extraordinary potential for the story of a lifetime, something Grims Fairytales may even be piqued at, but even with the wonderful wizard of Oz turned grey, the story lacks emphasis and urgency. 

Amy Gumm, a poor high school trailer trash girl in Kansas gets swept in a tornado, planted in the destruction that is Oz and is told to assassinate the former hero, Dorothy. Generally speaking, it’s understandable to at least beg the question of “why?” Why is this random ordinary outsider cast with such a task? This question gets asked in the book but then causally swept under the rug with no answer. This current plot hole causes the seriousness of this read to feel bland.

Character Development:

From chapter one to the last page of this book Amy Gumm evolves into someone strong and courageous. It’s a slight of hand maneuver given that nothing in this novel felt drastic or dramatic. She simply got the hang of the land she was thrown violently into. That being said, I’m not sure she had enough conviction as a character to be considered a wise candidate to relieve this land of their current authority. 

World Building:

The atmosphere in this novel was splendid. With visual effects and sentences that captivate and bring you into the misguided and distorted land of Oz. Amy Gumm isn’t enjoying life over the rainbow and Dorothy isn’t at all what she has been portrayed to be in their modern fiction. It takes our classic tale and continues the story in a haunting ominous way, bringing about a dark twist to our yellow brick road’s reputation. 

Writing:

The writing in this book had complimented the environment. As the reader it was easy to visualize our corrupted Oz. In action sequences it was clear to see what was happening but it lacked the ability to capture the intensity of the moments. It did not bring wariness for the character’s well being or belief that she would prevail, either. It was simply more about disjointed tantrums from Dorothy. 

Final Thoughts:

I would still recommend Dorothy Must Die in any and all Halloween, or October TBR lists. It’s the perfect read for its creepy alterations in one of the best fairy tales ever made. I am still looking forward to diving into and exploring Oz in the second book of this series.

Amber