Series: Kingdom #1
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Published by: Smashwords on July 16, 2012
Format: eBook
Pages: 129
Source: Purchased
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Alice is all grown up. Running the Mad Hatter's Cupcakery and Tea Shoppe is a delicious job, until fate--and a fairy godmother with a weakness for bad boys--throws her a curveball. Now, Alice is the newest resident of Wonderland, where the Mad Hatter fuels her fantasies and thrills her body with his dark touch.
The Mad Hatter may have a voice and a body made for sex, but he takes no lovers. Ever. But a determined fairy godmother has forced Alice into Wonderland--and his arms. Now, as desire and madness converge, the Hatter must decide if he will fight the fairy godmother's mating--or fight for Alice.
A sexy, but too short adventure into an adult Wonderland!
Marie Hall takes on one of my fave childhood fairy tales and revamps it for me as an adult in Her Mad Hatter. There’s just enough detail to bring you back to that familiar world with some new ideas that make it her own, this is not just another re-telling. The series focuses on five of the bad boys of the fairy tale world, showing us a softer side to these less than perfect characters beginning with the Mad Hatter of Wonderland.
Fairy godmother Danika has her work cut out for her with her latest charges. The “lost boys” of Kingdom are rebellious, outsiders who live by their own rules. Beyond their bad boy image lies a group of strong, kind hearted men who are fading into darkness without the love of a companion. In order to save Kingdom from falling to the wicked ways of these five, Danika must play matchmaker and find their mates. Her first task is bringing the “Mad Hatter” his one and only Alice, something she’s tried and failed at before, which has left the Hatter heartbroken. With time running out, Danika has one last chance to bring Alice to Wonderland and keep her precious Hatter from literally going mad!
Our leading lady Alice is a young woman who has finally fulfilled her dream of opening up her own cupcakery appropriately named the Mad Hatter’s Cupcakery and Tea Shoppe, with her best friend in Hawaii. Just days after, her world is turned upside down when she meets Danika (under cover) and is magically transported to Wonderland and into her favorite childhood fairy tale complete with the man of her dreams, Hatter. There’s just one problem, Alice looks just like the another Alice who broke his heart long ago. This creates great tension between the two and finds Hatter at war with himself, he is extremely attracted to her, but fears being betrayed again. Alice is tempted by this dark and brooding man but really just wants to get back to her life, especially after feeling rejected.
I will admit I wasn’t thrilled by the love match of Alice and Hatter or specifically this Alice. She wasn’t the feisty, strong female I envisioned for Hatter, she seemed too naive and too enthralled with the whole Alice in Wonderland concept for my tastes. It just made the romance unbelievable and a bit too easy for my liking…there was more physical than emotional attraction. Granted, he was a bit of a jerk to her in the first couple of chapters, but I had a hard time seeing them as a couple. The sexy banter that led up to the actual sex was fun, but the fireworks I expected between Alice and Hatter fizzled pretty quickly, even when they finally got it on. There are some sweet (and weird) moments between the two that are quickly overshadowed by their lust for each other. I wouldn’t normally see that as a bad thing, but I was hoping that Alice and Hatter would explore more than just their bodies if they’re meant to be soulmates.
Her Mad Hatter is a fun and sexy reinvented fairy tale. I was instantly drawn to Marie Hall’s brilliant fantasy world and her multi-faceted characters. Her vivid depictions of Kingdom transported me right into Wonderland with Danika, Alice Hu and the Hatter. The romance and ending was too rushed in my opinion, but I guess it fits when considering it’s a short length book and part of a series. Even though I didn’t love the romance, I was intrigued by this world enough to continue with the next book and can’t wait to find out what’s in store for the other sexy bad boys of Kingdom!
ugh…I still have these to read. I’ve got to stop pushing them back….anyways, great review Lori.
I love alice in wonderland, so knowing there is a retelling for adults, you know I’m signing myself up for alll the books! lol Too bad though that the heroine failed to impress and that Hatter was a jerkface in the beginning. Still though, if the story of Kingdom was intriguing enough to continue, despite the lack of true soulmate romance, then I’m in 😉 Great review Lori! 🙂
She was just a bit too naive for me, but that’s just one girl’s opinion 🙂 I will definitely be reading the rest of the series!
Great review – and I really agree with it. Marie Hall is one of my favorite authors, so I’m a little disappointed 🙁 I think this was her earliest work though, so I can really see how she’s grown as an author.
I think this might be my first book by Marie. I never really judge a series by the first book and I’m excited to see what’s in store for the rest of the bad boys!
Great review! I agree that it a was too short and that I didn’t care for the way Alice was portrayed. I was looking for someone stronger and spunkier myself.
Thanks! Me too, I wanted Alice to be a little feistier…looking forward to reading the rest of the series.