Review: Dorothy Must Die Prequel Stories Vol 2 (Dorothy Must Die #0.4, 0.5 and 0.6)

Dorothy Must Die Prequel Stories Vol 2
By Danielle Paige

Heart of Tin (Dorothy Must Die #0.4)

Published By: Harper Collins
Publication Date: July 28, 2015
Date Read: April 24, 2022
Genre: YA – Retellings
Source: Bought
Format: Paperback
Pages: 93

From Goodreads:
Everyone knows the Tin Woodman as Dorothy’s lovable sidekick, the tin man who longed for a real heart to beat inside his tin chest. This digital original novella is the fourth installment in the prequel arc to the edgy and thrilling New York Times bestsellers Dorothy Must Die and The Wicked Will Rise, and tells what happened to the Tin Woodman after he got his wish.

In The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Wizard gave the Tin Woodman a heart, and all lived happily ever after—or so the story goes. But in Heart of Tin, the heart wants what the heart wants—and the Tin Woodman’s heart pines for Dorothy. The gift that the Wizard once bestowed on him turns twisted with longing. And when Dorothy returns to Oz with her own dark agenda, the Tin Woodman will do whatever it takes to help her rise to power—and to make her his.

Before diving in to Yellow Brick War, I decided that I would read the three prequel novellas that came before that book to get back into the world and the series. Heart of Tin follows the Tin Woodman as he deals with the news that Dorothy has returned to Oz. He discovers throughout this novella, that with his new heart, he has come to love Dorothy, and will do anything for her. And I do mean ANYTHING!

This novella was super creepy. And I mean… I get it… it fits with the whole dark retelling, vibe of the series but I felt a little uncomfortable by the end of the novella. The Tin Woodman has essentially become some kind of obsessed psychopathic stalker… and I guess we will see if he ever gets back to himself in the main series but this one was just super creepy for me.

The Straw King (Dorothy Must Die #0.5)

Published By: Harper Collins
Publication Date: November 10, 2015
Date Read: April 30, 2022
Genre: YA – Retellings
Source: Bought
Format: Paperback
Pages: 116

From Goodreads:
Once upon a time, the Scarecrow’s only wish was to have a brain. This digital original novella is the fifth installment in the prequel arc to the edgy and thrilling New York Times bestsellers Dorothy Must Die and The Wicked Will Rise and follows the Scarecrow after he finally gets his wish.

In The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, the Scarecrow received the gift of a brain from the Wizard and was appointed the new ruler of Oz. In The Straw King, the Scarecrow’s tale takes a crooked turn when his reign is threatened. With faith in his newfound wisdom shaken, the Scarecrow will turn to anyone who can help—even if others have their own interests at heart.

After finishing Heart of Tin, I dived straight into the next novella, The Straw King. This one featuring the Scarecrow. Honestly this novella was a struggle for me. I found it really boring and don’t really feel like it added anything to the overall story. I really like the Dorothy Must Die series, and so I will continue reading these novellas, however I am starting to question whether 9 of them is really necessary.

The Straw King was boring. The only thing is really showed is that like the Tin Woodman’s heart, the Scarecrows brain isn’t the blessing that he has hoped. He has become clinical and obsessed with finding truth… he’s essentially becoming a mad scientist. I skim read this one and honestly, I’m going to have to really force myself to pick up the next one. This one was really disappointing.

Ruler of Beasts (Dorothy Must Die #0.6)

Published By: Harper Collins
Publication Date: February 16, 2016
Date Read: April 30, 2022
Genre: YA – Retellings
Source: Bought
Format: Paperback
Pages: 84

From Goodreads:
When the Cowardly Lion set off for the Emerald City in The Wonderful Wizard of Oz with Dorothy and the others, he sought courage above all else. This digital original novella is the sixth installment in the prequel arc to the edgy and thrilling New York Times bestsellers Dorothy Must Die and The Wicked Will Rise, and is the Lion’s story after he got what he’s always wanted.

The Lion’s wish has finally come true—he is the courageous ruler of the forest and all of its beasts. But the Lion is bored—he misses the days of his adventures with Dorothy, the Tin Woodman, and the Scarecrow. When Glinda the Good Witch shows up unexpectedly and tasks him with a mission back in the Emerald City, he jumps at the chance to do something exciting, even though he knows she’s not telling him the entire truth.

After finishing the previous novella, I really had to force myself to pick up Ruler of Beasts. However, I’m glad I did. I feel like this is the best of the three novellas that released in between The Wicked Will Rise and Yellow Brick War. This one follows The Cowardly Lion… not so cowardly anymore. While the previous two novellas really focused on how the Tin Woodman and the Scarecrow ended up ‘bad’, this one gave me a little more hope.

I really liked the lion’s friendship with Ozma and how he started to see right through Glinda’s scheming and evilness. I’m left with hope that at least one of our oldtime friends is going to come back to the side of good. This has reinforced my faith in this series, and I am excited to go on to read Yellow Brick War.

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