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chelle22's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Abandonment, Death, Confinement, Toxic relationship, War, Infidelity, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Classism, and Violence
h4wk1nz's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
catherine’s character arc
the way jest loved her
everything about hatta.
the five starrest five star i’ve ever given.
Minor: Blood, Grief, War, Eating disorder, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
protagonist’s mother shames her for eating too much and encourages disordered eating in order to have a slim figurelawbooks600's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Score: Six points out of ten.
A friend in real life recommended this to me which came from a familiar author since I've read many of her books like Cinder, Scarlet, Renegades, Archenemies, Gilded, Cursed so I picked it up and finally read it. When I finished it, I thought it was only okay and not at the same level as Scarlet but I've seen worse. It starts with the main character Catherine whose last name I don't know living in Wonderland (that sounds familiar but it is an Alice in Wonderland retelling after all.) The first few pages start the narrative slowly and that pace continues throughout most of it. Here's where the flaws surface, the worldbuilding isn't one of the strongest as it felt more like a world set in the 19th century with the Wonderland label slapped on than an actual setting. I couldn't fully connect to the characters either and unfortunately it's a common issue among Marissa Meyer's works but there are some that I could connect to (not in this novel though.) What frustrated me the most is that the author decided to name the villain the Jabberwocky but it isn't real. It's a poem. Not a creature. So why is it in here? She could've come up with any another name and instead she chose this one.
Catherine is forced to marry the king so she becomes queen but she secretly starts a relationship with another significant protagonist, Jest (as I said earlier, I couldn't relate to any of them.) In the midst of that Catherine must go to a realm called Chess but I thought chess was a board game and not another kingdom interconnected with Wonderland. The ending was terrifying as Catherine thought she killed the Jabberwocky but instead she killed Jest due to an illusion from a person added in the for the sake of the story to move forward. Then after some bereavement Catherine turns into the well known Queen of Hearts concluding the book where Alice in Wonderland would pick up afterwards (there is also an afterword where the author gives an answer to the question of why is a raven like a writing desk.)
Graphic: Death, Blood, Grief, and War
Full trigger warnings: Blood, grief and loss depiction, sword violence, death of a boyfriend, forced marriage, war themes, animal attacknxpe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I feel so bad for Catherine. All she wanted was to own a bakery with her best friend, and be with Jest. And she truly deserved that happy ending. She didn't deserve her emotionally abusive mother or the guilt-trip to marry the King. And it was so sad when her parents finally asked her what would make her happy, and it was simply too late.
I did get a little angry when I found out Catherine was the one who turned around and went back to hearts. All though Mary Ann didn't deserve to die, I really wanted Catherine to go through the looking glass and have her happy ending.
This book made me so sad! I don't ever want to read another book where the love interest dies- my poor hopeless-romantic heart can't take it.
Graphic: Death, Grief, and Murder
Moderate: Body shaming, Blood, and Emotional abuse
Minor: War
skyegbooks's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Violence and War
good_names_dont_exist's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Grief, Murder, and Death
Moderate: Body shaming, Blood, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Suicide and War
holiday7's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Grief
Moderate: Blood, Emotional abuse, and Body shaming
Minor: Suicide and War
beckyyreadss's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Grief, Murder, and Death
Moderate: Body shaming, Emotional abuse, and Blood
Minor: War and Suicide
michelleub's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.75
But I have to say, her writing style seemed pretty. Like it totally reminded me of the original Disney Alice in wonderland. But I think it was lost on me.
All in all, Meyer had a great writing style which sadly was not able to cover the lack of spark the book needed, even though it was way too long.
Rated it 2.0 but changed to 1.75
Graphic: Death
Moderate: Body shaming and Murder
Minor: War
arieslofi's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
i really liked the character of mary ann especially, though i'll say cath was neither here nor there and jest completely failed to be compelling to me,
this book could have been really good, personally, if we hadn't had any type of romance involved, only a girl losing her dreams and having to deal with being stuck in a loveless marriage with the king until she snaps. i would even have enjoyed it if there had been romance involved, though differently. if, for example,
the ending itself felt unsatisfactory to me,
generally, not a bad book, per se, but it left me wanting a lot more, so i can't say i'm exactly happy with it. the premise is much better than the execution itself, though it only goes south around 70% of the book for me.
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Death, Misogyny, and Body shaming
Minor: Gore, War, and Eating disorder