Dorothy Must Die Series Review [Spoiler Free]

“They talk about Oz where I’m from. I’ve heard about it my whole life. But this is messed up. What happened here?” Indigo’s impassive face twisted into a snarl. “Dorothy happened,” she said.

Dorthy Must Die

If you are a fan of the movie The Wizard of Oz you need to get your hands on the YA Dorothy Must Die series by Danielle Paige.

I loved every minute I spent with Amy Gumm and her wicked crew. It was refreshing to visit Paige’s Oz. It felt familiar yet dark and twisted. Paige was able to reimagine Oz with complexities I didn’t know I needed— that you need to explore.

Amy Gumm, the main character, is the other girl from Kanans. She grapples with darkness as she learns to wield magic to save Oz and defeat the evil queen Dorothy, yes the famous Dorothy. You follow Amy as she is thrown into the cruelty of Oz. Amy learn very quickly, there is a lot we do not know about Oz.

There are four books in the main series, the other books in the universe explore what happened before Amy Gumm arrived in Oz. I have no read those, nor have plans to.

• Dorothy Must Die
• The Wicked Will Rise
• The Yellow Brick War
• The End of Oz

My favorite book was book two, The Wicked Will Rise. The best cliff hanger was book one, Dorothy Must Die. I binged this series in a few days— It was so much fun.

She had been both good and wicked and then everything in between. She had been both at once, too, until it was hard for her to even tell the difference anymore

The Wicked Will Rise

Should you read this reimaged tale?

If you are a fan of the movie, The Wizard of Oz, you will enjoy the nostalgia and fun spin Page as to offer. The Dorothy Must Die series is a YA read. There is slight romance, teen drama, magic, laughs, flying monkeys, and much much more. When I think of the elements of a well rounded YA— this series checks the boxes.

As I said above, I enjoyed what Paige added to the famous story. Her characters were interesting and I enjoyed how they developed throughout the series.

There are a few things I didn’t like about the series, but they are overshadowed by the twists and depth Paige added to Oz. Things got a little muddy towards the end of The Yellow Brick War and into the last book The End of Oz. I can’t say much more than another POV is added.

I think perfect age for this series is 13- 15, but anyone could enjoy the Dorothy Must Die series. Have you read this series? Do you want to?