Wednesday, January 18, 2017

Heartless by Marissa Meyer **Contains Minor Spoilers**





“A heart, once stolen, can never be taken back.” 


As you're all aware, I am a huge fan of Alice in Wonderland and most retellings. So when Marissa Meyer, author of the Lunar Chronicles--a sci-fi/dystopian series based on old fairy tales--wrote her own take on the story, it was at the top of my Christmas wishlist. (Thanks, mom and dad!)

Heartless tells of Cath, a girl who only wants two things in life: To open a bakery with her best friend, Mary Ann, and be recognized as the best tart maker in all of Hearts. The problem is, she is the daughter of a Marquess and Marchioness, who both believe entering the business world is unladylike and ultimately impossible.

“You’re the daughter of a marquess. Look around. Look at the things you have, the life you’re accustomed to. You don’t know what it’s like to work every day so you can feed yourself and keep a roof over your head. You don’t know what it’s like to be poor. To be a servant.”

To make matters worse, Cath attends a royal ball and finds out that she has won the favor of the King of Hearts, and he is about to propose marriage in front of her and everyone she has ever known in her life. Cath cannot imagine anything worse and thinks all her dreams are about to come crashing down when a certain Cheshire appears, and she convinces him to cause a distraction while she escapes.

She gets as far as the castle's rose garden before encountering Jest, the new court joker who has lemon-yellow eyes and speaks in riddles. Thus begins an adventure that starts with newfound romance and ends in...well, anyone who's familiar with the Queen of Hearts knows what Heartless must become.

Marissa Meyer took great lengths to make her book as historically accurate as possible, filled with recognizable characters, clever literary references, and word play, all in the hopes that readers will want to jump into the original world created by Lewis Carroll. I admire this, as well as her wisdom in character development. Cath's transformation from heroine-to-villain wasn't the happily-ever-after I was expecting, but a beautiful, cautionary tale that left me in a thoughtful state of mind hours later.


You can find Heartless here

P.S. If you're curious about the cute little jester-on-a-stick in the photo, stay tuned for an upcoming 'Ello, 'Ello post. :) 

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