The content of the stories in The Sea Beast Takes A Lover by Michael Andreasen ranges from the bizarre to the more bizarre. Looking below the surface of the stories though, common themes do emerge. Each story seems to find its anchor in a character's need to be loved. In these completely unrealistic, often disturbing stories, the author manages to capture this very human emotion. It is this intensity that keeps me reading.

Reviewed for Penguin First to Read program.

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If I’m honest I found Alice Takes Back Wonderland difficult to get into. The author has taken many of the childhood stories that we all know and love and written them for an adult audience. I’m not entirely sure if I agree with this or not. The whole thing felt like stealing to me as the stories stayed remarkably close to the originals, leaving little originality.

The book was good in places I’ll agree but it left me bored more often than not, there wasn’t much character or even plot development as that was left to our own childhood memories of the original stories. I didn’t particularly like how a lot of our favourite characters had been vilainized and the portrayal of Pinocchio left me rather upset.

Really not sure who I would recommend this too sorry.

NB I Reveived this book free for an honest review