Our theme for Mimsey March Madness, if you couldn't tell, is Alice in Wonderland!
So many takes on this classic tale. Books, movies and video games just to name a few. While the Mimsey is busy over in his neck of the woods getting something quirky going on his blog, I'm going to talk about my favorite renditions of this story. And then we'll fill you in on the Scavenger Hunt details and share the giveaway link. We are making this an interactive posting as you will have to 'hunt' for the answers, but I'll drop some bread crumbs along the way.
So, for my M/M genre fans, today I'm going to share a dark, beautiful and dangerous new take on this classic tale. The Back Road to Wonderland series by David R Metheny.
There is a world…Hidden beneath us…
Where Once Upon a Time…
Becomes corrupted with excess and control…
And when Kayden Daniels is thrown from being a New York City millionaire
Into the world of Wonderland…
His destiny of becoming The Mad Hatter will begin…
In the first installment of The Back Road to Wonderland… Finding himself in a strange world, Kayden begins his exploration of Wonderland and his journey to becoming The Mad Hatter. Infatuated with the devilishly handsome King of Hearts, our sex crazed hero decides nothing will stand in his way when it comes to pursuing the luscious closeted King.
The Queen of Hearts always gets what she wants or it’s off to the gallows and right now, she wants Kayden. However, when she begins to question if the stranger is who he says he is; she decides to employ other tactics.
The King of Hearts has always had desires for men, but afraid to act upon them. That is until he meets Kayden. Will Kayden be the first to break down his fears and his closet door? Can Kayden escape the Queens clutches and desires long enough to achieve his goal and his seduction of a King?
A dark and dangerous take on the classic tale with a gay twist. When Kayden Daniels journeys through the looking glass chaos ensues. Openly gay, rich and promiscuous, he sets his sights on the King of Wonderland. James, the King of Hearts, has an open marriage of sorts with Queen Verde. After James acts on his growing attraction to Kayden, he becomes very possessive, much to Verde’s dismay. As the relationship progresses and James obsession with the sex crazed visitor starts to show, it just may cost Kayden his head, in a manner of speaking. Obsession, lust, jealousy and anger have thrown things off balance in Wonderland.
"You'll find Wonderland is made up of beautiful things and offers many pleasures, but remember all things have a balance."
As the story progresses, Kayden begins the slow descent into madness with his closeted lover, a psychotic queen and a white rabbit. Marcus, James stepson, adds a juicy twist to this story that is already beautifully bent. Gruesome deaths are plaguing the kingdom and James is doing his best to stay focused on his duties, while trying to keep an on his new lover. When Kayden catches the eye of another lover, James jealousy may cost them both their soul.
I’ve read this book twice and I’ll admit, I’m still a little bit confused. Not an easy story to follow told from the perspective of multiple characters, and there are a lot of characters! But, there is potential here for greatness. This first book in the series is laying the groundwork for things to come. I was a little disappointed that while the author is taking this daring risk by turning a beloved classic into a dark and sexy gay story, he fed into the sex crazed sleeping around can’t keep it in my pants misgiving that a lot of people associate with gay men. That being said, as I said, there is still potential. And I will concede, the sex was off the charts hot.
I’m excited to see where Metheny goes with this world he’s building. Kayden becoming Hatter; James learning to control his jealousy; Marcus evolving as the white rabbit; oh and Queen Verde, every story does need a raging bitch, right?
Yes, this is a hard one to follow, but if you stick it out to the end, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. And as anxious as I am for the next book in this dark new series. {3.5/5 stars}
** I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through MM Good Book Reviews **
What is your favorite rendition of the classic tale? I hope you'll share in the comments, I'm always looking for more Alice to keep me busy!!
Okay, now for the good stuff. The rafflecopter giveaway is posted below, in the entries are questions for you to answer that relate to this event and/or the author and myself. The answers can be found either on my blog, Mimsey's blog, my facebook page or Mimsey's facebook page. We will be checking these entries, so don't even try to cheat, if you do I'll send you down the rabbit hole!!
Links you'll need to answer the questions:
In addition to somewhat eclectic tastes in television and movies, Jay reads voraciously. He enjoys compelling stories with strong characters, and will gladly read anything from comic books to Steam Punk, Harlequin romance to Kenneth C. Davis’ fantastic history books.
Jay enjoys long walks through the countryside, laughing with friends, and learning to draw something better than stick figures. His dearest ambition is to personally thank Janet Evanovich for proving that fast talking characters can be charming and goofy simultaneously.
** NOTE ** there will be updates to this post weekly and new Scavenger Hunt questions added to keep things interesting and interactive. As well, the Mimsey will be posting something fun almost every day in March. So keep coming back to answer the new questions that are posted for even more entries into this kick ass giveaway ~
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