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The Night Country
(The Hazel Wood #2)
by
The highly anticipated sequel to Melissa Albert’s beloved, New York Times bestselling debut The Hazel Wood!
In The Night Country, Alice Proserpine dives back into a menacing, mesmerizing world of dark fairy tales and hidden doors. Follow her and Ellery Finch as they learn The Hazel Wood was just the beginning, and that worlds die not with a whimper, but a bang.
With Finc
...moreGet A Copy
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Community Reviews
Showing 1-30
Start your review of The Night Country (The Hazel Wood, #2)
4.5 stars
A new BookTube Video is Up all about whether you should buy, borrow or burn 2020 YA books! Let me know what you think!
Three-times Alice struck terror into the hearts of those in her story....but she was trapped - doomed - to live out her short, miserable life again and again.
"You were a monster in the Hinterland. Why are you pretending to be a mouse?"
Her mother, stole her once from the story and raised her in the real world. And Alice became trapped back into her story, E ...more
No need to talk about the elephant in the room. It is so obvious that I didn’t enjoy the first book and I didn’t foresee my request would be accepted but one morning I checked my library and here we go I got this sequel and I firstly admit, WHAT AN ARTISTIC, AMAZING COVER reflects book’s darkness approach to the fairytales.
And you know what! I surprisingly enjoyed this one more. I still went back and forth between 3 and 4 stars but 3.5 rounded up again to 4. And another interesting fact during m ...more
And you know what! I surprisingly enjoyed this one more. I still went back and forth between 3 and 4 stars but 3.5 rounded up again to 4. And another interesting fact during m ...more
I'm definitely going to read this a lot of times.
Edited to add: You can read the book's first chapter here!
http://bit.ly/2UaxKyR ...more
Edited to add: You can read the book's first chapter here!
http://bit.ly/2UaxKyR ...more
Mar 05, 2019
emma
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
dark,
fairytale,
gorgeous-covers,
4-and-a-half-stars,
owned,
recommend,
fantasy,
ya,
couldn-t-wait-to-read,
reviewed
I am my own worst enemy.
Here’s the thing. I have this huge rereading fixation. I’ve gotten it under control a bit this year, but before that, like one in three books I read was a reread. I would read books for the second time mere months after the first. There are MULTIPLE books on my shelves I’ve read over three times.
It’s an issue.
And yet. Every. Single. Time a sequel to a book I enjoyed comes out, do I read the first book?
NEVER. I never do.
I just stumble through the first 100 pages hoping for ...more
Here’s the thing. I have this huge rereading fixation. I’ve gotten it under control a bit this year, but before that, like one in three books I read was a reread. I would read books for the second time mere months after the first. There are MULTIPLE books on my shelves I’ve read over three times.
It’s an issue.
And yet. Every. Single. Time a sequel to a book I enjoyed comes out, do I read the first book?
NEVER. I never do.
I just stumble through the first 100 pages hoping for ...more
Dec 02, 2019
Chelsea Humphrey
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Recommended to Chelsea by:
Flatiron Books
"To be honest, I don't know if I've even got a soul. If a soul is what makes you human, then I probably don't. Unless a soul is something you can grow, like, after the fact. And I don't think it is. So. No soul. Just to explain why your pickup line's not working on me."
Tehehehehe. I love being back in this world. If you thought The Hazel Wood was dark, just wait until you jump into The Night Country. This sequel kept all the things I loved about the first book, and brought in a bunch of new char ...more
Tehehehehe. I love being back in this world. If you thought The Hazel Wood was dark, just wait until you jump into The Night Country. This sequel kept all the things I loved about the first book, and brought in a bunch of new char ...more
Many thanks to Flatiron Books for sending me a copy in exchange for an honest review
There'd been four deaths now.
One was a warning,
Two a coincidence,
And three completely the fairy-tale set.
But four.
Four was a door.
An invitation to something more.
Okay....
So...
I am, to put it simply, disappointed. But unfortunately, my thoughts and emotions are never simple so let me explain why I am disappointed.
I read The Hazel Wood around one and a half years ago and I absolutely adored it. It's ...more
Full of twists, turns and places we’ve never seen before, Melissa Albert delivers a sequel that’s more than lived up to the enchantingly grim tale that came before it.
“A book is always a door.”
With Alice’s return from the Hinterland, I guess this book verges into Urban Fantasy, more so than before. There’s further crossover between the Stories and our world as we follow Alice as she tries to unravel another mystery. While the Hinterland itself was once following her, now she’s haunted by new foe ...more
“A book is always a door.”
With Alice’s return from the Hinterland, I guess this book verges into Urban Fantasy, more so than before. There’s further crossover between the Stories and our world as we follow Alice as she tries to unravel another mystery. While the Hinterland itself was once following her, now she’s haunted by new foe ...more
This better be about Finch. That’s all I’m asking for. GODDAMN IT WOMAN PLEASE JUST GIVE ME MORE FINCH!
EDITED TO ADD: WE HAVE A TITLE AND IT IS GOOOOOOOOOOOORGEOUSSSSSSSSS NOW ALL WE NEED IS A SYNOPSIS AND I WILL BE ONE HAPPY LADY
EDITED TO ADD: WE HAVE A TITLE AND IT IS GOOOOOOOOOOOORGEOUSSSSSSSSS NOW ALL WE NEED IS A SYNOPSIS AND I WILL BE ONE HAPPY LADY
Jan 26, 2020
K. Elizabeth
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
owned,
below-average,
fantasy,
boring,
fairytale,
fiction,
reviewed,
young-adult,
2-stars,
cover-love
This may be the last time I give the first novel in a series 2-stars and still continue with the series. Because The Night Country is proof to me that a series you don’t like typically does not get better the further you get into it (the SJM books also proved this to me, too).
Similarly to the first book in the series, I found this one too boring and predictable. I think it’s mainly due to feeling like such a young novel/series. And it’s such a disappointment, too, because this story has such pot ...more
Similarly to the first book in the series, I found this one too boring and predictable. I think it’s mainly due to feeling like such a young novel/series. And it’s such a disappointment, too, because this story has such pot ...more
Feb 10, 2020
Cortney LaScola - The Bookworm Myrtle Beach
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Let me start out by saying only read this book if The Hazel Wood is fresh in your mind.
It has just been so long (and so many books) between the first book and the second, that I struggled to remember stuff from The Hazel Wood. Really struggled. I tried reading reviews and searching for spoilers, but it just wasn't clicking.
That being said, it was still a good story with great characters and a fantastic imagined world. I honestly don't know how to rate this... I'm going to go with 3.5 stars based ...more
It has just been so long (and so many books) between the first book and the second, that I struggled to remember stuff from The Hazel Wood. Really struggled. I tried reading reviews and searching for spoilers, but it just wasn't clicking.
That being said, it was still a good story with great characters and a fantastic imagined world. I honestly don't know how to rate this... I'm going to go with 3.5 stars based ...more
Update 3/22/20: This is currently on Book Outlet for under $7!!! I just ordered my copy.
...soooooooo
I guess this means that I actually have to read The Hazel Wood now...
Because there's no way I am not jumping in on this hype!
FOMO is real, people!!! ...more
...soooooooo
I guess this means that I actually have to read The Hazel Wood now...
Because there's no way I am not jumping in on this hype!
FOMO is real, people!!! ...more
Nov 23, 2019
h o l l i s
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2019-reads,
arc,
family-focused,
dark,
ebook,
finished-in-november-2019,
contemporary,
ya,
hello-diversity,
mature-ya
This series has definitely been one of the darker, and bloodier, stories surrounding fairytales that I've ever read. And it feels very true, reads so much more honestly, than the versions our generation grew up with. I think it's that darkness, that depth, that I love most of all. The creativity of twisting these tales, or letting them be their truth, is fantastic. I love it. But there's also another side of these books that just doesn't quite line up for me.
In book one, it was Alice's unlikeabl ...more
In book one, it was Alice's unlikeabl ...more
Not everyone's cup of tea, but for fans of Seanan McGuire's Wayward Children series, gritty urban fantasy, lyrical portal fantasy, and murder mysteries.... this was tailor-made for us.
Writing: ★★★★★
Plot/Pacing: ★★★★★
Enjoyment: ★★★★★
WARNING! There are SPOILERS for the first book in this duology, The Hazel Wood, in this review. In order to talk about the setup for this book I have to SPOIL how the first book ends. Consider this your spoiler alert!
A recap of The Hazel Wood:
In The Hazel Wood ...more
Writing: ★★★★★
Plot/Pacing: ★★★★★
Enjoyment: ★★★★★
WARNING! There are SPOILERS for the first book in this duology, The Hazel Wood, in this review. In order to talk about the setup for this book I have to SPOIL how the first book ends. Consider this your spoiler alert!
A recap of The Hazel Wood:
In The Hazel Wood ...more
I don’t really know what my feelings are about this book. Was it good? Sure. Was it memorable and what I thought it was going to be? No. I loved the concept of this series, and the first book was really good. The whole fairytales are real, but are also scary, evil, and creepy. That was awesome and learning about Hinterland was exciting, but also terrified me.
The first 100 or so pages of this book, I felt like nothing was happening. Honestly though, once you get past that it does get interesting ...more
The first 100 or so pages of this book, I felt like nothing was happening. Honestly though, once you get past that it does get interesting ...more
DNF bad
Yikes. This was just not very good. It dragged a lot. The book would have been better if Albert focused primarily on Alice and not on Ellery and his adventures. It really read as two stories being crammed into one. Also all of the writing was so dramatic. At one point Alice mentions how the rain feels like tongues and blood against her skin. My response, eww and really? I think this had an interesting idea. Alice is now an Ex-Story trying to be a real live girl. However, we don't get that. Just
...more
Feb 06, 2020
Julie Zantopoulos
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
read-in-2020,
arc
I soft DNFd this book twice and while the writing is still beautiful the story dragged and just wasn’t necessary to tell. I am excited for the bind up of fairytales because I think that’s where Melissa excels but this wasn’t it. I loved The Hazelwood but this fell flat in so many ways.
Okay, all I can say is that I hope that Alice and Finch can find their way back to each other. Maybe she'll join him in another world along with her mother - after all, Ella missed the magic too.
...more
'This wasn't magic like I'd seen--the snarled labyrinth of the Hazel Wood, the unlatched cages of the Hinterland. It was older. Cruder. This magic was a blunt and wily animal, fed on horrors.'
I actually liked this book so much better than the first one. Which is good for a sequel!! But I still felt like it was perhaps a bit awkwardly paced in quite a few areas, Alice was still a bit confusing character . . . and there definitely wasn't enough Finch. I also wanted this to be longer?? The o ...more
I actually liked this book so much better than the first one. Which is good for a sequel!! But I still felt like it was perhaps a bit awkwardly paced in quite a few areas, Alice was still a bit confusing character . . . and there definitely wasn't enough Finch. I also wanted this to be longer?? The o ...more
Don't get me wrong, I LOVED The Hazel Wood but it ended on such a good note... what are you going to do?
Edit:
It was a really going story. There were quite a few grammar issues that kinda hit me like a speed bump sometimes but it was good. I do have to say that the end moved rather quickly, maybe too quickly. But I am glad I bought it ...more
Edit:
It was a really going story. There were quite a few grammar issues that kinda hit me like a speed bump sometimes but it was good. I do have to say that the end moved rather quickly, maybe too quickly. But I am glad I bought it ...more
This one was much creepier than the first and I really enjoyed that aspect of this one! The writing, as always, is beautiful! Love the way the worlds worked with and against one another and the layers that were continually peeled back as the story unfolded
Disclaimer: This book was sent to me by the publisher, Flat Iron Books, via Netgalley for an honest review.
“‘You still think you live in a world where girls will lie down for you and show you their throats.’”
“‘Now lie down, and show me your throat.’”
After escaping The Hinterland and her story, Alice is back in New York with her mother, just trying to make a new life for herself away from the magic and fairy tales. But after time paces, Alice finds herself drawn back to the ex-stories of ...more
“‘You still think you live in a world where girls will lie down for you and show you their throats.’”
“‘Now lie down, and show me your throat.’”
After escaping The Hinterland and her story, Alice is back in New York with her mother, just trying to make a new life for herself away from the magic and fairy tales. But after time paces, Alice finds herself drawn back to the ex-stories of ...more
Jan 16, 2020
Mogsy (MMOGC)
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
review-copy,
young-adult,
fairy-tales-and-folklore,
arcs-and-galleys,
netgalley,
fantasy,
urban
4 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum https://bibliosanctum.com/2020/01/20/...
The theme for 2020 so far seems to be sequels with a different tone or feel than their originals. The latest book to fall into this pattern appears to be The Night Country, the follow-up to Melissa Albert’s debut The Hazel Wood, which I really enjoyed. Believe it or not, this one goes even deeper in already dark territory, but I loved how these changes enhanced the story’s haunted atmosphere and complex characters.
Anyway, ...more
The theme for 2020 so far seems to be sequels with a different tone or feel than their originals. The latest book to fall into this pattern appears to be The Night Country, the follow-up to Melissa Albert’s debut The Hazel Wood, which I really enjoyed. Believe it or not, this one goes even deeper in already dark territory, but I loved how these changes enhanced the story’s haunted atmosphere and complex characters.
Anyway, ...more
I absolutely adored The Hazelwood, but I was kind of nervous about getting a sequel because it works so well as a standalone. And honestly, while there are things I like about The Night Country, I really don't think it felt necessary. The standout here is the new fairytales, and Melissa Albert is the queen of wonderfully dark fairytales. (I can't wait to get my hands on Tales from the Hinterlands!) As for the rest of the plot, it was really a mixed bag for me.
I can't say too much without spoili ...more
I can't say too much without spoili ...more
3.5
I was definitely entertained by the story. I love Dark fairy tales and this did not disappoint. The action started right off the bat and did not let up. I remember loving the first book and being captivated by the characters. This time i felt very detached from the characters. I didn't care about them as much. That being said the story was captivating and I'm glad i read it. ...more
I was definitely entertained by the story. I love Dark fairy tales and this did not disappoint. The action started right off the bat and did not let up. I remember loving the first book and being captivated by the characters. This time i felt very detached from the characters. I didn't care about them as much. That being said the story was captivating and I'm glad i read it. ...more
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As always, a copy of this book was provided by the publisher or author in exchange for my honest review. This does not effect my opinion in any way. LIBRO.FM provided the audiobook for reviewing purposes. This does not effect my opinion in any way. You can also find this review here at Booked J.
The Hazel Wood Series
The Hazel Wood: ★★★★☆ (4.5--is likely to be bumped up to a five star)
The Night Country: ★★★★★
W-O-W. Wow. Just, wow. I'm obsessed.
You guys already ...more
As always, a copy of this book was provided by the publisher or author in exchange for my honest review. This does not effect my opinion in any way. LIBRO.FM provided the audiobook for reviewing purposes. This does not effect my opinion in any way. You can also find this review here at Booked J.
The Hazel Wood Series
The Hazel Wood: ★★★★☆ (4.5--is likely to be bumped up to a five star)
The Night Country: ★★★★★
W-O-W. Wow. Just, wow. I'm obsessed.
You guys already ...more
Melissa Albert’s The Hazel Wood was something I really enjoyed, so I was super excited to learn that it was getting a sequel. The Night Country was one of my most anticipated releases for 2020, but I did not pick it up until now. While it was not as strong as The Hazel Wood was for me personally, I still enjoyed it.
The Night Country follows Alice Proserpine, like many other ex-stories and travelers, as she attempts to settle into her life outside of the Hinterland after it falls apart. However, ...more
The Night Country follows Alice Proserpine, like many other ex-stories and travelers, as she attempts to settle into her life outside of the Hinterland after it falls apart. However, ...more
Jan 01, 2020
Juli
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
read-review-copies-2020
Another darkly awesome fairy tale by Melissa Albert! I was a little bit afraid to read a sequel to The Hazel Wood. So often, when I really love a book, I am disappointed in a sequel. Most of the time, they just don't have the same feel as the first book. But, I am glad to report that, for me, this book is just as good as The Hazel Wood! In places, maybe even better! It took me a few days after downloading my review copy to work up the courage to start reading -- I'm so glad I did! It ended up be
...more
Ever since I fell in love with the first book in this series, I have been excited to dive into the sequel. In the beginning, The Night Country was interesting. I mean, Alice was an okay character but not my favorite. I have no idea what happened between the first book and this one but she was just so annoying to me.
Besides that, the pacing was okay but I did find myself being bored during some parts. At times I felt bad for Alice and at others, I was rooting for the other person. This book also ...more
Besides that, the pacing was okay but I did find myself being bored during some parts. At times I felt bad for Alice and at others, I was rooting for the other person. This book also ...more
I’m hanging on for book 2 because of Finch and his worlds exploring. I think there is room to tell a better story that doesn’t drag and with a hero you would actually root for that also doesn’t dismiss the only person of color’s narrative. Also, Janet and the story spinner would be great folks to expand upon
This story has potential and it falls short in a number of ways. I did find a continuity issue at the end with Sophia Snow, feels like a late add that was poorly edited into the book. The tal ...more
This story has potential and it falls short in a number of ways. I did find a continuity issue at the end with Sophia Snow, feels like a late add that was poorly edited into the book. The tal ...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Challenge Corner: The Night Country by Melissa Albert -> Restarting September 19th, 2020 | 19 | 11 | Sep 19, 2020 10:43AM | |
| Serpent and Badge...: The Night Country | 1 | 8 | Jan 12, 2020 10:02AM | |
| Turning Pages by ...: REVIEW COPIES AVAILABLE: The Night Country | 8 | 58 | Nov 26, 2019 11:52AM |
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I write books slowly, and read books fast.
I try to reply to all messages and questions, so please reach out, or come find me on Twitter (@mimi_albert) or Instagram (@melissaalbertauthor)! (But please note: I don't accept GR friend requests anymore because of Amazon's related review policy.) ...more
I try to reply to all messages and questions, so please reach out, or come find me on Twitter (@mimi_albert) or Instagram (@melissaalbertauthor)! (But please note: I don't accept GR friend requests anymore because of Amazon's related review policy.) ...more
Other books in the series
The Hazel Wood
(2 books)
Articles featuring this book
Melissa Albert burst onto the YA scene (and catapulted into readers' hearts) with her 2018 debut The Hazel Wood. This darkly fantastical...
98 likes · 4 comments
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“Are all these books doors?'
'A book is always a door.”
—
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'A book is always a door.”
“Falling for someone makes you say shit that would've made you vomit, back before you were toast.”
—
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