A Blade So Black: The Nightmare-Verse Series, Book 1
(Adobe EPUB eBook, Kindle Book, OverDrive Read)
"A Blade So Black is the fantasy book I've been waiting for my whole life."
—Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Hate U Give
For fans of Marissa Meyer, L.L. McKinney's A Blade So Black delivers an irresistible urban fantasy retelling of Alice in Wonderland... but it's not the Wonderland you remember.
The first time the Nightmares came, it nearly cost Alice her life. Now she's trained to battle monstrous creatures in the dark dream realm known as Wonderland with magic weapons and hardcore fighting skills. Yet even warriors have a curfew.
Life in real-world Atlanta isn't always so simple, as Alice juggles an overprotective mom, a high-maintenance best friend, and a slipping GPA. Keeping the Nightmares at bay is turning into a full-time job. But when Alice's handsome and mysterious mentor is poisoned, she has to find the antidote by venturing deeper into Wonderland than she's ever gone before. And she'll need to use everything she's learned in both worlds to keep from losing her head... literally.
Debut author L.L. McKinney delivers an action-packed twist on an old classic, full of romance and otherworldly intrigue.
And don't miss the thrilling sequel, A Dream So Dark!
An Imprint Book
"Mixing elements of Alice in Wonderland and Buffy the Vampire Slayer... Delectable." —Entertainment Weekly
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Level 4.9, 13 Points
L.L. McKinney. (2018). A Blade So Black: The Nightmare-Verse Series, Book 1. Imprint.
Chicago / Turabian - Author Date Citation (style guide)L.L. McKinney. 2018. A Blade So Black: The Nightmare-Verse Series, Book 1. Imprint.
Chicago / Turabian - Humanities Citation (style guide)L.L. McKinney, A Blade So Black: The Nightmare-Verse Series, Book 1. Imprint, 2018.
MLA Citation (style guide)L.L. McKinney. A Blade So Black: The Nightmare-Verse Series, Book 1. Imprint, 2018.
| Library | Owned | Available |
|---|---|---|
| Shared Digital Collection | 1 | 1 |
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- bioText: Named one of The Root's 100 Most Influential African-Americans of 2020, L.L. McKinney is a writer, a poet, and an active member of the kidlit community. She's an advocate for equality and inclusion in publishing, the co-founder of Juneteenth Book Fest, and the creator of the hashtags #PublishingPaidMe and #WhatWOCWritersHear. She's also a gamer girl and an adamant Hei Hei stan. She is the author of A Blade So Black, A Dream So Dark, and A Crown So Cursed.
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"A Blade So Black is the fantasy book I've been waiting for my whole life."
—Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Hate U Give
For fans of Marissa Meyer, L.L. McKinney's A Blade So Black delivers an irresistible urban fantasy retelling of Alice in Wonderland... but it's not the Wonderland you remember.
The first time the Nightmares came, it nearly cost Alice her life. Now she's trained to battle monstrous creatures in the dark dream realm known as Wonderland with magic weapons and hardcore fighting skills. Yet even warriors have a curfew.
Life in real-world Atlanta isn't always so simple, as Alice juggles an overprotective mom, a high-maintenance best friend, and a slipping GPA. Keeping the Nightmares at bay is turning into a full-time job. But when Alice's handsome and mysterious mentor is poisoned, she has to find the antidote by venturing deeper into Wonderland than she's ever gone before. And she'll need to use everything she's learned in both worlds to keep from losing her head... literally.
Debut author L.L. McKinney delivers an action-packed twist on an old classic, full of romance and otherworldly intrigue.
And don't miss the thrilling sequel, A Dream So Dark!
An Imprint Book
"Mixing elements of Alice in Wonderland and Buffy the Vampire Slayer... Delectable." —Entertainment Weekly- seriesId
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"Mixing elements of Alice in Wonderland and Buffy the Vampire Slayer... a delectable urban twist on beloved fantasy tales."
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- source: Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Hate U Give
- content: "With memorable characters and page-turning thrills, A Blade So Black is the fantasy book I've been waiting for my whole life. Alice is Black Girl Magic personified."
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- source: E.K. Johnston, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of Star Wars: Ahsoka and A Thousand Nights
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- source: Heidi Heilig, author of The Girl From Everywhere
- content: "Wholly original and absolutely thrilling--A Blade So Black kicks so much (looking gl)ass."
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- content: "Retold fairy tales have been a popular trend... but you've never read one quite like A Blade So Black."
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August 1, 2018
McKinney's debut novel introduces a no-nonsense, cosplaying, dark-skinned Alice with coily hair charged with defending two worlds while still making it home for curfew.The same night 17-year-old Atlanta resident Alice Kingston's father dies, she's attacked by a Nightmare, "a manifestation of humanity's fears," and saved by "punk rock Prince Charming" Addison Hatta, guardian of a gateway in the Looking Glass pub between our world and Wonderland, a dreamscape of Earth. Hatta recruits Alice to fight alongside him, and from that first meeting the story races readers through her metamorphosis from lost, grieving teen to a still-grieving, world-saving, dagger-wielding "black Buffy." McKinney beautifully exposes the immensity of the pressure Alice feels to balance her duties as daughter, friend, and Dreamwalker, emphasizing the precariousness of Alice's position as a black girl alternately worried about the threat of police violence in her community and the mysterious menaces in Wonderland. The nuanced representations of relationships, platonic and not (there is a dreamy, romantic lesbian love story), between the inclusive cast of characters are highlights of the text. Uneven pacing leads to sometimes feeling one step beyond the action and without sufficient worldbuilding. While representations of race on Earth are clearly established, in Wonderland they are conflated and lacking in nuance (Addison is white, and other Wonderland residents are described as appearing Latinx and East Asian).A thrilling, timely novel that ensures readers will be curiouser for a sequel. (Fantasy. 14-18)COPYRIGHT(2018) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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September 1, 2018
Gr 8 Up-Seventeen-year-old Alice is attacked by a Nightmare the night her father dies. She is saved and mentored by Addison Hatta, a handsome and mysterious Curiouser who decides to train her in becoming a Dreamwalker-a destroyer of Nightmares with magic weapons-in Wonderland. Her overprotective mother worries about her in their urban Atlanta community. Her high-maintenance best friend, Court, anticipates a huge birthday celebration at a time when it clashes with Alice's secret and near-deadly Dreamwalker life. Alice finds herself attracted to both Hatta and friend Chess. When Hatta is poisoned with the Madness at the hands of the Black Knight, Alice has to find the Heart and Eye antidotes, which have been hidden and misplaced in Wonderland. She receives help from unexpected characters on a life-defining journey to defeat the Black Knight, Nightmares, and Fiends-and to save herself from losing her head. McKinney has infused this urban contemporary retelling of Lewis Carroll's classic Alice's Adventures in Wonderland with a Buffy the Vampire Slayer sensibility and "Black Girl Magic." Readers will enjoy the acerbic sarcasm and comedy. The inclusion of various cultures, skin tones, languages, ages, and sexual orientations is expertly woven into the narrative and world-building. Teens will root for Alice as a strong, multidimensional black girl usually unseen in YA fiction. The novel's pace slows at times, but it will keep readers in suspense. VERDICT This is a must-purchase where refreshing urban fantasies and retellings are in demand.-Donald Peebles, Brooklyn Public Library
Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
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Starred review from September 1, 2018
Grades 9-12 *Starred Review* McKinney delivers an explosive, kick-ass debut, described by the author herself as, What if Buffy fell down the rabbit hole instead of Alice? This Alice is a black teen girl who is first seen fleeing a hospital after learning of her dad's death. She then stumbles upon Wonderland resident Addison Hatter and witnesses him battling a Nightmare, an evil entity from the dream realm of Wonderland that, as a mortal, Alice isn't supposed to be able to see. Her ability to see these dark, pernicious beings marks her as a human who can kill Nightmares instead of simply sending them back to Wonderland. As a result, Addison begins training Alice to battle Nightmare creatures. When Addison is poisoned, Alice must find an antidote by journeying into the heart and bowels of Wonderland?a place that is as dangerous as it is whimsical, as deadly as it is beautiful. McKinney breathes new life and fierce empowerment into Carroll's classic. Her Wonderland is menacing, lush, and unique and populated by nuanced characters that are fleshed out and refreshingly authentic. This is the Alice in Wonderland retelling the world has always needed.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)
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January 1, 2019
In this compelling reimagining of Carroll's famous heroine, we are introduced to a black Alice who courageously battles monsters appropriately called Nightmares in the dream realm of Wonderland. Alice also battles grief in the loss of her father, violence in her Atlanta neighborhood, and a clingy mom. In this action-packed fantasy remix, readers will simultaneously cheer our heroine and hang on for the ride.(Copyright 2019 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)
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"A Blade So Black is the fantasy book I've been waiting for my whole life."
—Angie Thomas, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of The Hate U Give
For fans of Marissa Meyer, L.L. McKinney's A Blade So Black delivers an irresistible urban fantasy retelling of Alice in Wonderland... but it's not the Wonderland you remember.
The first time the Nightmares came, it nearly cost Alice her life. Now she's trained to battle monstrous creatures in the dark dream realm known as Wonderland with magic weapons and hardcore fighting skills. Yet even warriors have a curfew.
Life in real-world Atlanta isn't always so simple, as Alice juggles an overprotective mom, a high-maintenance best friend, and a slipping GPA. Keeping the Nightmares at bay is turning into a full-time job. But when Alice's handsome and mysterious mentor is poisoned, she has to find the antidote by venturing deeper into Wonderland than she's ever gone...- sortTitle
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