Book Review- Alice in the Country of Hearts vol 5 by QuinRose and Hoshino Soume

 Title: Alice in the Country of Hearts volume 5

 Author: QuinRose and Soumei Hoshino

Series: Alice in the Country of Hearts #5

 Published:  by Tokyopop

 Length:192 pages

Warnings: suggestive situations, mild violence, alcohol

 Other info: If you haven’t read this series before, it’s probably best if you read the review of volume 1. I’ll keep this spoiler free though, so read on if you want!

Summary :

 Review:  A ball is going to be held in the Country of Hearts, and Alice does not want to go at all. especially once she knows that Blood Dupre, mafia boss/mad hatter/irritating person will be there. However Boris the Cheshire Cat, Gowland the Duchess and Julius the Clockmaker  get her there, where she meets with Blood, Vivaldi (the Queen of Hearts), Peter White (the Rabbit) and others. Somehow she ends up in Blood’s territory,   where she is invited to his rose garden, and learns about the relationship between him and Vivaldi. It ends on a cliffhanger that makes me think that Quinrose is trying to bring Alice in the Country of Hearts to an end.

So the plot was interesting, slightly slowed down from other volumes and a bit boring. Theres a bit more serious stuff going on here, but there’s still a good dose of comic relief that makes it a quick light read. The characters all have distinct personalities that are completely different to those  of their corresponding characters in Alice in Wonderland, but still recognisably them.

The comedy probably isn’t to everyone’s liking. I enjoyed it though-this is one of my favourite comedy mangas. Theres some that the majority of people will like (ie Julius asking Ace to lead  him and  Alice to the ball, in the hope they will get lost enough that they miss it completely), but some jokes are slightly more mature which will be completely lost on younger readers.

The art is pretty, as always. Most of the time its simple and realistic, which really work for this manga and its storyline, theme,  etc. However the use of chibis (super deformed characters used for comic effect normally) that comes up occasionally also suit the manga, and the situations and they’re not too overdone. Its interesting seeing the characters in formal wear-especially Boris, now in a suit as opposed to his normal punk wear and pink feather boa. He still has the tail piercing though *laughs*

The ending makes me want the sixth volume NOW. I’m not going to giveaway spoilers, but if you read it, you will want to read it too.

Overall:  Strength 4 tea to a quick light read that WILL make you laugh. Recommended especially to those who enjoy classics re-done, Alice in Wonderland, cute things and a bit of romance.

PS: Why does Julius the Watchmaker and Elliot the March Hare look so much like Acheron and Kyrian from Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunter series?

Book Review- Alice in the Country of Hearts vol 1 by QuinRose and Hoshino Soumei

Title: Alice in the Country of  Hearts

 Author: QuinRose, Hoshino Soumei

Series: Alice in the Country of Hearts #1

 Published: 1^st March 2010

 Length: 184 pages

Warnings: suggestive situations, a little gore, a little violence, kissing, half the characters trying to chat up Alice.

 Other info: Started off as a computer game. There are five volumes currently published. An anime film has been announced to be produced at some time.

Summary from external site: The girly but bloody otome game re-imagining of Lewis Carroll's classic fantasy novel Alice's Adventures in Wonderland with bishounen characters and added romance.

In this story, Alice is not all what she seems. She is practical, strong, yet a cynical person. Instead of the tradition story, Alice is kidnapped unwillingly by a mysterious (yet somewhat bishie-looking) man with bunny ears into a place call Heartland. Stuck in Heartland due to a trick by the mysterious bunny eared man, she meets the residents of this world. Along the way, Alice meets Blood, handsome mafia leader; Ace, the psycho yet charming knight and more…What should Alice do in such a world!?

 Review:  Alice has stumbled into Wonderland and has been forced to play the 'game' by the White Rabbit. She must fill up a small container by getting everyone to love her if she ever wants to escape. But this is no simple matter as the Blood (the head of the mafia), the owner of the theme park and the Queen of Hearts are all at war with each other and many of the inhabitants of Wonderland have very sadistic natures -the chances of Alice succeeding are very slim.

Katy's thoughts: I love the updated versions of each character  and the introduction of a new one: Julius the watchmaker as god. Alice is just as naive as the original and twice as funny too. It is violent and many of the characters are highly bloodthirsty and have on respect for life. It is interesting to see Alice attempt to change their attitudes while trying not to get killed by them.

Nina's thoughts: I love the updated characters too, they are extremely funny and they make you rethink the way you saw Alice. My favourite has to be Boris, a punk version of the Cheshire Cat. I also like the new version of the duchess, Mary go land whose violin becomes a gun, and the Mad Hatter, mafia boss Blood. And Julius, who I say is not supposed to be God(I don't remember God being in the original story), but Old Father Time(who defiantly was) Anyway, no matter who he's supposed to be, I like Julius. The plot is simply Alice being carried down the rabbit hole and being forced to make everyone in wonderland love her, meaning she has to meet them all. She meets them all in comedic and awkward circumstances, them gets into a lot more comedic and awkward circumstances. And the art is pretty, detailed, clean and the style works well with the story. I recommend this to anyone wanting a quick light read with lots of laughs, and fans of Alice in Wonderland.

 Rating: 5 hilarious, interesting plot and a brilliant parody of Alice in Wonderland. 

P.S. If you know of any more Alice in Wonderland parodies, whether they be of a light comedic or twisted macabre nature, please share. I love reading them, and I think Katy does too.