Review: Yellow Brick War

Yellow Brick War by Danielle Paige
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Thank the Lord we didn't have to wait till 2017 for this one...

Back in 2015, I thought we were awaiting the end of a trilogy with Yellow Brick War. No longer is that the case - there's one more book after this one, The End of Oz. So yes, Paige does end this threequel on a cliffhanger.

It's a short book - even shorter than The Wicked Will Rise, I think. The first half or so of this book takes a different route than I expected - putting Amy back in her old school to search for answers to the mysteries of Dorothy's life after her legendary first visit to Oz, and having her meet her old nemesis. Remember Madison, the pregnant girl from the first book? In Amy's absence, she's given birth, and she's had a surprising amount of character development. She's finally grown out of her old self somewhat - sure, her wardrobe hasn't changed, but she's more acutely aware of what really matters in life, and of the value of doing good in this world. Amy mistrusts her at first, of course, but soon Madison becomes an integral part of the adventure - which really ramps up in the second half of the book as another ancient threat to Oz makes itself known.

The limited length of Yellow Brick War is a bit of a point against it for me. However, the addictive prose certainly helps, as does the decision to front-load the mystery (which wouldn't feel out of place on Teen Wolf, I'm thinking) while back-loading the action.

Now I'm all caught up before my library gets Stories Vol. 3 and The End of Oz, both of which I'm expecting to pick up this Friday. I'll be reading and reviewing those very soon, I hope. Can't wait to wrap up this series...oh wait, I can, because it really shouldn't end. Ever.

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