“The Emerald Wars” by Grace Watson
Publishing Date: April 26, 2018
Genre: Retelling, Fantasy, LGBT
Page Length: ? (electronic review copy)
Synopsis:
When Leonie escapes from her life as a servant in the Emerald City, all she wants is to find her place in the outside world. After being saved by rebel fighter Dorothy, she finds herself drawn into a mission to retrieve the stolen heart of the Tin Man. But something much more sinister is happening in Oz, and before long they find themselves working with the exiled Professor Crow to save their home from being destroyed from the inside out.
It’s a perilous journey that pushes them to their limits, but the four friends keep going in search of the things they need the most; wisdom, love, courage, and a home. (description from Goodreads)
Review:
I love retellings so when the author reached out to me to read The Emerald Wars I was excited. Though I’ve never read the original novel I have watched numerous movie adaptations (The Wiz being my favorite) so i am somewhat familiar with the story. Watson has created a more diverse and inclusive version of the classic tale we all know with LGBTQA characters and PoC representation which I appreciated.
The story is told by the main character, Leonie, who runs away from her harsh life in The Emerald City. She is naive and a bit clueless about the world outside of the city, but she is determined to have a taste of freedom. We follow Leonie as she explores the wonderful and dangerous world of Oz along the side of legendary figure, Dorothy, and the Tin Man. It was fun to see a new inventive twist on a familiar setting and I like how the characters got a new look and feel. It’s got romance, action, mystery, magic and so much more!
Watson’s writing style is immersive for the fantasy world she creates in this novel and I was immediately drawn into the story from page one.I love the way that the story keeps some of the original aspects of the story while adding in many new elements. The world building was smooth and I kept looking forward to what would happen next. It’s a fast paced book where the action had me hooked and the suspense kept up the entertainment factor. I like the added touch of back story being told before the earlier chapters giving it that fairy tale aspect and more character depth.
This adventure filled Wizard of Oz style tale is sure to thrill a wide audience of readers.
Final Verdict:
FTC Disclaimer: I received this book from the author in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Like this:
Like Loading...
Good day. Just wanted to let you know that I like your blog.
Would you like to share your story on https://whatyoublogabout.wordpress.com/about/
what motivated you to start this blog ?