Heartless by Marissa Meyer

Off with its head.

I am at a loss of words for this book. For starters, I came into reading Heartless with a mindset of distaste. Now, this may sound absolutely crazy to you, but I am not the hugest of fans of Alice and Wonderland. I know, shoot me now. The entire story just seems so chaotic and mad. But that's another review. Therefore, before I even read the first page, I doped Heartless as a failure and a book I surely would not wish to finish.

I have never been more pleasantly surprised after reading a book than from Heartless.

As a hardcore fan of Meyer's Lunar Chronicles, Heartless had a lot to measure up to. Thankfully, Meyer did not disappoint.

Written in a mature Meyer style, Heartless begins lighthearted and rather happy, but takes a dark turn almost halfway through the book. The reader can easily see the shift in the characters as the plot evolves and develops from a story about a girl wanting to have her own bakery, to a girl running away from her own fate.

Catherine is the beautiful yet privileged daughter of a marquee in Hearts. What is her fate? To become the Queen of Hearts. Against her parents' wishes, Catherine dislikes the current King of Hearts as his behavior follows that of a spoiled child instead of a ruling leader. However, the king loves nothing more than Catherine and her baked goods (literally not figuratively).

However, Catherine doesn't want this fate. She wants something, someone else entirely. Her life as the marquee's daughter has its own share of challenges, but chief is succumbing to her family's wishes and the king's. All Catherine wants is to fulfill her dream of owning her own bakery and with that, her own freedom to do with her life as she wishes.

However, when you hold the king's heart, there's little place for you to go.

It is not my intention to spoil anything but simply encourage you to read this book. So, without giving away all the drama, mystery, heartache and break, here is my rave-- ahfhajagrlrhajafowefl.

Interpret as you will.

This book won me over with characters that were like no other and a world I had once despised, now openly wish to know more about. This isn't just a tragic story of fate, but a book of mystery, adventure, romance, and of course, heartbreak.

Please, if you love fairy tale retellings, read this. You will not be disappointed. If you don't love Alice and Wonderland-- like my past self, read this. It will change your mind.

five stars!!

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Pink rating

*in all my reviews, I give some parental guide for anyone who wants to make sure their books are safe to read. following the link to understand the code.*

Sophia