The Night Country by Melissa Albert (Review)

The Night Country by Melissa Albert is the thrilling sequel to The Hazel Wood and the continuation of Alice’s story. If you’re unfamiliar with The Hazel Wood, be warned that this book picks up where the other one leaves off, and therefore this review includes Hazel Wood spoilers. Go read it first, then pick this book up right afterwards!

Alice was stuck in a fairy tale for about two years. Not one with bright skies and happily ever afters, either. These tales are dark, twisted, and spun by a master storyteller. Alice lived the same story over and over, playing her role as if a puppet on a string. And then Ellory Finch broke her out of her story and a magical story land called the Hinterland, sending her back to New York. This is where The Night Country picks up.

Well, not exactly. It’s a year later, and Alice begins to feel the Hinterland tugging at her once more. But this time, something’s changed. For one, Finch is no longer there, having stayed in the Hinterland to explore a world that was once only on the pages of a book. For another, Alice has changed drastically. She’s torn between two worlds, encouraged to embrace the monstrous character she was meant to be rather than follow the ordinary path her mother has laid out for her. But when ex-stories, or people who also escaped the Hinterland, start turning up dead, Alice can no longer live in limbo. She’s faced with a monumental choice for both herself and the world as she knows it, a choice that comes with a price. A choice that involves the mysterious Night Country.

Finch has spent his days wandering the Hinterlands, and exploring the world he’d always longed to visit. Now, he’s discovered that the place he loves is beginning to crumble, one story at a time. Finch has to wander several worlds in order to find the source of the disturbance and, more importantly, find a way out.

I could only describe this story properly with the word “decadent.” Albert has proved herself as a master of language, giving readers a narrative that is smooth, elegant, haunting, and captivating. Each time I opened this book to devour more of it, I got swept away in a story that felt like it was being told in a hushed tone on a dark night. Albert allows us the pleasure of slowing down and exploring fictional worlds. She makes you feel as the characters feel, see what they see, and brings you close into the most intimate corners of Alice and Finch's minds in order to truly understand how they operate. It’s truly amazing to see how tiny, intimate details work seamlessly into the plot and enrich the experience of reading. The findings aren't always what we want to see, but in the end it makes for incredibly vulnerable, raw, and true characters.

There’s a lot of complex character development undergone in this book, and Albert does a fantastic job presenting readers with a tangled mess of emotions, thoughts, dreams, and fears, and gently unraveling her characters until you get to the core of their being. It’s emotional, painful, and raw, but the way she handles it is methodical, and you can truly see a difference in the characters from the beginning and end of the tale.

This story will keep you on the edge of your seat for hours on end. The plot is fast-moving, yet the descriptions are rich. The characters, while not all lovable, are compelling and incredibly developed, and, of course, the storytelling is incredible. This beautiful book is out tomorrow, and fans of The Hazel Wood will not be disappointed!