Mini Review--The Wizard Returns by Danielle Paige

The Wizard left Oz in a hot air balloon—or did he? This digital original novella is the third installment in the prequel arc to the edgy and exciting New York Times bestseller Dorothy Must Die.

Dorothy Gale is back . . . and she's not the sweet little heroine of Oz anymore. She's power-hungry and vicious, and she leaves a trail of destruction beneath her spike-heeled, magical shoes. But she wasn't always in charge. There used to be a different ruler of Oz. Someone who also came from the Other Place, and who stole power for himself. They called him the Wizard.

The story goes that when a young Dorothy revealed the Wizard as a fraud, the man behind the curtain fled Oz in his hot air balloon. But in The Wizard Returns, he wakes in a field of poppies to find out that not only had he never left, but that he has no memory of who—or where—he is. As he undergoes a series of tests to uncover his memories, he finds that the very girl who threw him from the Emerald Palace is in control. And that Oz may be his destiny after all.

The Wizard Returns by Danielle Paige is a dark and compelling reimagining of a beloved classic and is perfect for fans of Cinder by Marissa Meyer, Beastly by Alex Flinn, and Wicked by Gregory Maguire.

Another read down! Okay, it was a novella, but still I finished another read! Danielle Paige's The Wizard Returns is the third prequel novella of the series and it was quite interesting. Granted, my memory (again) of Dorothy Must Die is pretty bad. I can bring up a few things and moments, but the Wizard wasn't one of them. So definitely hoping The Wicked Will Rise fills in the blanks for me.

Needless to say, this novella focuses on him. We start off right when he leaves Oz after Dorothy saved the day. He was a bit miffed at having to leave the place he had grown to enjoy living in. You couldn't say that he loved it really, because he was a selfish sort of guy. He loved having the power for sure though. And then suddenly, his balloon gets caught in a storm and he crashes into the poppy fields.

Twenty-five years later--yup, you read that right--he wakes up with no memory of who he is or how he got to be where he's at. It's the help of a strange fellow named Pete who clues him vaguely in on the situation. In order to gain back his memories and figure out where he needs to be, he must pass a series of tests. Famous tests. Ones that will test his brains, courage, and heart.

I really probably should've read this right after Dorothy Must Die, but you know how things go! One books leads to another and another and then a dozen others and this poor little novella was forgotten for some time. So while I did still enjoy it, I just wish I could remember if we had seen the Wizard yet in Dorothy Must Die. I feel like we have or at least gotten the skinny on him.

Regardless, it was an enjoyable read. I went through quite the series of emotions over this guy. You hate him, you sympathized for him, then you feel a variety of other things too. And by the end, just wow! I cant quite get a read down on this guy and I like that. For now at least! We shall see how the feelings change after The Wicked Will Rise, which I plan to start next!!


Overall Rating 4/5 stars