Review: The Night Country by Melissa Albert

Title: The Night Country
Series: The Hazel Wood #2
Author: Melissa Albert
Source/Format: Borrowed from the library; Hardcover
More Details: Fantasy; Young Adult
Publisher/Publication Date: Flatiron Books; January 7, 2020

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Synopsis from Goodreads...

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 Finch’s help, Alice escaped the Hinterland and her reclusive grandmother’s dark legacy. Now she and the rest of the dregs of the fairy tale world have washed up in New York City, where Alice is trying to make a new, unmagical life. But something is stalking the Hinterland’s survivors―and she suspects their deaths may have a darker purpose. Meanwhile, in the winking out world of the Hinterland, Finch seeks his own adventure, and―if he can find it―a way back home...

Earlier this year, I finally finished reading The Hazel Wood. Since then, The Night Country was one of the 2020 sequels I was excited to pick up. The Night Country was an excellent sequel. I enjoyed it more than the first book. I loved the development the characters went through as well as the return to the colorful, strange, and terrifying world of the Hinterland.

From here on out, there may be spoilers for The Hazel Wood. So if you haven’t read it, click away from this post. You have been warned. :-)

Alice Proserpine thought she was done with the Hazel Wood and the Hinterland since she escaped her story at the end of the first book. However nothing was as it seemed, and the mystery of the ultimate fate of the Hinterland and the enigmatic and malevolent Spinner brought trouble right back into Alice’s life. Alice’s character arc was great. It was one of my favorite aspects about The Night Country. I liked how Albert dealt with Alice’s transition from story to ex-story and addressed her conflicting emotions about everything that had happened to her while also exploring the platonic and romantic relationships in her life.

Most of the story was told by Alice, but I didn’t mind the dual perspectives. It was interesting to see what was going on from Ellery Finch’s perspective. Since he had stayed in the Hinterland, his side of the story was filled with magic. It was a nice temporary break from the urban setting, and it bridged the two halves of the story before they were ultimately brought together. I was all for the trippy-magical landscapes, and all the dangers they presented.

The Night Country was pretty dark at times, just like most of the fairy tale themes common throughout this series. There’s no better example of that than the stories that made up the Hinterland.

Another great part of the book was the mystery surrounding the deaths of the people from the Hinterland. It was a solid mystery, and there were plenty of twists to keep the story moving.

The Night Country was an atmospheric read, and I was drawn in by the story from the beginning. The ending was full of possibilities, and it left Alice and Ellery’s story in a much more satisfying place. Plus I liked how everything that happened to places and people who weren’t the main characters wasn’t magically fixed in the end. It drove-home how the magic in the book had consequences.

Ultimately, The Night Country turned out to be an excellent sequel that answered most of the questions I had about the end of The Hazel Wood. Now, I just have to wait for Tales of the Hinterland to be released.

Have you read The Hazel Wood or The Night Country?

Music Monday (114): Seinabo Sey, Woodkid, Diana Ross, Lionel Richie

   Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: Last week, I mainly listened to one of my playlists. So I don’t have any new-to-me-artists to talk about today. One of my favorite songs that I listened to on repeat last week is: Never Get Used To by Seinabo Sey. It's one of my favorite songs by this artist....

Adri: Long time no see, I have not listened to anything new recently. However, Woodkid came out with a new song called Goliath. I really like the music video's atmosphere. For some reason, it's giving me Horizon: Zero Dawn vibes.

Andrea: I hope everyone is doing well. I just wanted to share one of my favorite songs of all time, Endless Love by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie.

What are you listening to this week? Tell us about your favorite songs in the comments....

The Friday 56 (177) & Book Beginnings: The Night Country by Melissa Albert

The Friday 56 is a weekly meme hosted by Freda's Voice where every Friday you pick a book and turn to page 56 or 56%, and select a sentence or a few, as long as it's not a spoiler. For the full rules, visit the the page HERE

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading.

Synopsis from Goodreads...

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 Finch’s help, Alice escaped the Hinterland and her reclusive grandmother’s dark legacy. Now she and the rest of the dregs of the fairy tale world have washed up in New York City, where Alice is trying to make a new, unmagical life. But something is stalking the Hinterland’s survivors―and she suspects their deaths may have a darker purpose. Meanwhile, in the winking out world of the Hinterland, Finch seeks his own adventure, and―if he can find it―a way back home...

Beginning: "I was eighteen years old, give or take a fairy-tale century, when I had my first kiss."

56: "The oppressive heat had picked up after yesterday's rainstorm, and I was sweating through my T-shirt by the time I hit the shop."

Comments: I was very excited to read the sequel to The Hazel Wood. I really enjoyed The Night Country. What are you reading this week?

Short Stories I Read In March

Last month, I realized that I never actually talked about any of the short stories I’ve read. There is no shortage of good short fiction out there, and today I’m here talk about the stories (and other miscellaneous articles) I read in March. 

**Note: the titles are linked to the respective stories**

La Bête by Leah Bobet (Strange Horizons, Issue: 9 March 2020) 

I always love a good story about a house. Especially when the place seems to be a character of its own, described in vivid detail, with mysterious rooms and equally enigmatic doors. La Bête by Leah Bobet checked all of those boxes. It had a little bit of a mystery, and the château had a very gothic feel to it. The story itself was a little eerie and haunting, and I found that it was extremely easy to get lost in it from beginning to end. All-in-all, La Bête was a great read.

The Touch Pool by Lisa Nan Joo (Strange Horizons, Issue: 16 March 2020)

The next story I read was The Touch Pool by Lisa Nan Joo. Oh gosh, how do I describe this one? To begin with, I loved it. Joo’s language is engaging and vivid in its imagery. The story was told in alternating pieces split between a present that was near the past—which was revealed over the course of the story. There were themes of love, loss, and letting go intertwined with descriptions of a house and land that, over time, was steadily being consumed by the sea. At times, The Touch Pool could be a little eerie and surreal, but it was an experience and an excellent read.

A Series of Steaks by Vina Jie-Min Prasad (Clarkesworld, Issue 124, January 2017)

I also reread one of my favorite short stories: A Series of Steaks by Vina Jie-Min Prasad. It came out a few years ago, and it left a lasting impression. It has such an interesting premise too, with a forger who creates counterfeits of pricey cuts of meat. It was a fascinating choice considering that the counterfeit products weren’t something that lasted for long, or even stuck around after dinner.

From Around the Web...

So those were the stories I read last month. Now here are a couple of other miscellaneous articles I read in March.

• The Appeal of Gothic Horror (Seanan McGuire; Tor.com, October 28, 2019)
• Beyond Cinderella: Exploring Agency Through Domestic Fantasy (Marissa K. Lingen; Tor.Com, March 16, 2020)
• Why Don’t SFF Characters Ever Read The Manual? (James Davis Nicoll; Tor.com, January 1, 2020)

Music Monday (113): Allie X, New Kids On The Block

   Rules:

• Music Monday is a weekly meme hosted by Lauren Stoolfire at Always Me that asks you to share one or two songs that you've recently enjoyed. For the rules, visit the page HERE 

Breana: Recently I’ve been listening to music by Allie X. I’m not going to go too much into her EP, Super Sunset, right now since I have an upcoming post that better explains my thoughts about it. I will say that one of my favorite songs from it is Girl of the Year.

Andrea: I hope everyone has had an amazing week. Although I am not the type to really hang out in clubs. I am still spending my time at virtual clubs on Instagram Live. One of my favorite songs, House Party, was recently released by New Kids On The Block. Check out the video below.

Are you listening to any new music this week?