Alice does think a lot, and some of the thoughts are odd enough for twisted mathematician logic (Lewis Carroll was really Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, an English math professor).

The echoes of Lewis Carroll are softer and less direct, here, with more commonality with fairy tales and folklore. Alice has magic in her that she was always told to suppress now, she learns to use it, strengthen it, and triumph.

There are killers, people-eating giants, scorched earth, references to the grotesque violence of the previous book, children screaming in pain, lots of blood, and nasty creatures that you wouldn’t want to meet. Red Queen is less rape-centered and repellent than Alice (Isn’t that one of the strangest statements you’ve ever read in a book review?), the first book in the series, but it is still disturbing. This is a post-modern Wonderland, and things are not going to go according to your preconceived notions of what should happen in the story. They cross into barren, burned wastelands, villages that aren’t what they seem, and up a mountain, to deal with the Black King and the White Queen. Alice and Hatcher are looking for his daughter, who is somewhere in the east. The Cheshire Cat is an intrusive voice in Alice’s mind. The Jabberwocky is trapped inside a tiny glass ball. Alice has escaped from a mental asylum with Hatcher, the Mad Hatter, who is an axe murderer.

Red Queen by Christina Henry is the second part of The Alice Chronicles, a twisted, paranormal, violent retelling of the Alice in Wonderland saga. Details at the end of this post on how to win a copy of Red Queen and links to purchase it.

Red queen christina henry