The New York Times bestselling first book in a dark new series that reimagines the Oz saga, from debut author Danielle Paige.
I didn't ask for any of this. I didn't ask to be some kind of hero. But when your whole life gets swept up by a tornado—taking you with it—you have no choice but to go along, you know?
Sure, I've read the books. I've seen the movies. I know the song about the rainbow and the happy little blue birds. But I never expected Oz to look like this. To be a place where Good Witches can't be trusted, Wicked Witches may just be the good guys, and winged monkeys can be executed for acts of rebellion. There's still a road of yellow brick—but even that's crumbling.
What happened? Dorothy. They say she found a way to come back to Oz. They say she seized power and the power went to her head. And now no one is safe.
My name is Amy Gumm—and I'm the other girl from Kansas. I've been recruited by the Revolutionary Order of the Wicked. I've been trained to fight. And I have a mission: Remove the Tin Woodman's heart. Steal the Scarecrow's brain. Take the Lion's courage. And—Dorothy must die.
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“In this dark reimagining of The Wizard of Oz, Amy Gumm is a trailer trash Dorothy on a mission to reverse L. Frank Baum’s classic tale. Amy is funny and down to earth with more real drama than the average YA heroine: a mother addicted to painkillers and an absentee dad, to start. A brilliantly recreated cast of characters rounds out this promising debut.”
— RT Book Reviews (4 stars)
“When a cyclone deposits a twenty-first-century Kansas teen in Oz, she and readers discover there’ve been some changes made…Readers of Baum’s books will take special delight in seeing new twists on the old characters, and they will greet the surprise climactic turnabout with the smugness of insiders.”
— Kirkus ReviewsDanielle Paige is a graduate of Columbia University and currently lives in New York City. Before turning to young adult literature, she worked in the television industry, where she received a Writers Guild of America Award and was nominated for several Daytime Emmys. Dorothy Must Die was her first novel.
Devon Sorvari is an Earphones Award–winning and Audie Award–nominated narrator. She graduated from NYU’s Circle in the Square program and the Classical Studio. She has nationwide theater credits ranging from Shakespeare to musicals.