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4.0 AVERAGE
4.0 AVERAGE
adventurous
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
The prophecy got it wrong. The Mad Hatter didn’t go mad, it was ME.
This review will be mainly spoiler free until the end.
For someone that did not watch the original Alice in Wonderland movies – both the animated and live action versions – my knowledge was limited to the characters, key quotes, and iconic settings, so I was a bit worried I would be confused reading Heartless. However, I was really pleasantly surprised by how easy this was to follow and how magical the story felt! This is my first Marissa Meyer book and her writing is very reminiscent of Stephanie Garber and Elizabeth Lim’s works. It felt so familiar and whimsical and I was sucked into the world she crafted. I was so hungry reading about all the different desserts. All the different settings also felt so magical I wanted to visit all the different places in Hearts. I also liked that even as a prequel to Alice in Wonderland, I never felt lost or like I needed context. Everything was explained really well and it makes me want to watch the movie even more.
I came off a really bad read, so this was a really great palette cleanser. I thought romance was dead, but maybe not because Cath and Jest were EVERYTHING. Cath is so relatable – she just wants to bake and fall in love. She is me. And Jest. In a world of boys, he is a gentleman. Everything about this man is my TYPE. Jest is a court joker so I expected whimsical and Marissa DELIVERED. From his first appearance I was sold. He was so captivating and alluring he left an impression on me from the first scene he was in. I was in awe every time Jester performed. But beyond his joker persona is someone so adorable, sweet, charming and chivalrous. Man got me swooning and giggling like crazy I would reread all of his scenes.
“How did the joker warm up some hands? By being a warm, handsome joker indeed.”
We love a self aware king.
The romance worked soooo well. The pining, the yearning, the angst, the slow burn, the star-crossed lovers. Yes to all of it. I have so many quotes I could put on here. Everything between them was so wholesome.
Unfortunately, the pacing did drag at times. I honestly felt a little bored when Catherine was not with Jest since everyone is literally so insufferable except him. A lot of the chapters where Catherine is with the side characters felt like filler, I didn’t think it was necessary or could have been condensed. Sometimes the prose could get lengthy too and I wanted things to just get to the point. Then the last 20% felt way too rushed and I was left feeling very unsatisfied and frustrated. There were so many good things being set up only for it to go downhill from there. When the moment of dread kicked in, it went by too quickly and it felt like the angst did not have time to settle in for me to feel any emotion.
This part of the review will now contain spoilers!
This review will be mainly spoiler free until the end.
For someone that did not watch the original Alice in Wonderland movies – both the animated and live action versions – my knowledge was limited to the characters, key quotes, and iconic settings, so I was a bit worried I would be confused reading Heartless. However, I was really pleasantly surprised by how easy this was to follow and how magical the story felt! This is my first Marissa Meyer book and her writing is very reminiscent of Stephanie Garber and Elizabeth Lim’s works. It felt so familiar and whimsical and I was sucked into the world she crafted. I was so hungry reading about all the different desserts. All the different settings also felt so magical I wanted to visit all the different places in Hearts. I also liked that even as a prequel to Alice in Wonderland, I never felt lost or like I needed context. Everything was explained really well and it makes me want to watch the movie even more.
I came off a really bad read, so this was a really great palette cleanser. I thought romance was dead, but maybe not because Cath and Jest were EVERYTHING. Cath is so relatable – she just wants to bake and fall in love. She is me. And Jest. In a world of boys, he is a gentleman. Everything about this man is my TYPE. Jest is a court joker so I expected whimsical and Marissa DELIVERED. From his first appearance I was sold. He was so captivating and alluring he left an impression on me from the first scene he was in. I was in awe every time Jester performed. But beyond his joker persona is someone so adorable, sweet, charming and chivalrous. Man got me swooning and giggling like crazy I would reread all of his scenes.
“How did the joker warm up some hands? By being a warm, handsome joker indeed.”
We love a self aware king.
The romance worked soooo well. The pining, the yearning, the angst, the slow burn, the star-crossed lovers. Yes to all of it. I have so many quotes I could put on here. Everything between them was so wholesome.
Unfortunately, the pacing did drag at times. I honestly felt a little bored when Catherine was not with Jest since everyone is literally so insufferable except him. A lot of the chapters where Catherine is with the side characters felt like filler, I didn’t think it was necessary or could have been condensed. Sometimes the prose could get lengthy too and I wanted things to just get to the point. Then the last 20% felt way too rushed and I was left feeling very unsatisfied and frustrated. There were so many good things being set up only for it to go downhill from there. When the moment of dread kicked in, it went by too quickly and it felt like the angst did not have time to settle in for me to feel any emotion.
This part of the review will now contain spoilers!
Spoiler
I really dreaded the prophecy and I had different theories as to how Jest’s death would play out, but I was really underwhelmed and it felt like Marissa had trouble connecting her story to the Alice in Wonderland movie. Jest’s death felt so cheap it felt like a disservice to his character. There was no time to even process his death because of how fast things moved on and I couldn’t even cry. I didn’t like that Peter killed him either. It would have made more sense for Catherine’s mother or the King of Hearts to kill Jest and would have made it much more impactful. For an incredibly well written character as Jest, he deserved a better death with proper emotion put into it. There was so much yearning and angst between Catherine and Jest I felt like Catherine and us as the reader never had time to properly mourn Jest. And because of that, I will forever be in denial of his death and will pretend that he is alive and well and they have their own little bakery together.Spoiler
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
5/5 stars!
This book was so fun to read but also heartbreaking at the same time! I wish I had read this book sooner because now I won’t be able to shut up about it lol.
This book was so fun to read but also heartbreaking at the same time! I wish I had read this book sooner because now I won’t be able to shut up about it lol.
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked this book A LOT! I thought it captured the magic of Wonderland very well and Catherine’s development as a character was SO WELL DONE. I could almost completely understand where she was coming from and it made her descent from a kind girl who wants to start a bakery into the Queen of Hearts very believable. The side characters were also good, but I wouldn’t say any besides Jest really stuck out to me. Also, I was told that this book would be super sad, and, although it WAS DEFINITELY SAD, it wasn’t quite what I was expecting. It could also be a little predictable, but I don’t mind that that much. Also, I felt like some plot points were kind of only brought up when necessary, especially with like the Treacle Well stuff. However, all of this is sort of unnecessary when compared to how great the rest of the book was. It made me feel lots of emotions and was super well written in general. I had a great time with it and it has further cemented my opinion that Marissa Meyer is a great writer.
My Rating: 4 stars
This was a great read and welcome entry into the wackiness of Wonderland. With characters new and old, I loved seeing how the Queen of Hearts came to be and how she
once was a girl with a dream. Full of fun and wonderland goodness, I would definitely recommend this read! Read on if you are alright with slight spoilers!
The Good:
Alice and Wonderland is a classic, a setting that is fun and fantastic and entering the world of Wonderland in Heartless was fantastic. Meyer took a world that was already created and established but used it well, creating intrigue and looking more in depth at the characters we know and love. The dreams which came true like the lemon tree and the pumpkins and all those things added to the background and just make it whimsical and fun.
The characters were great. I loved seeing Cath and her love of baking throughout the story and her interactions with lots of different people. So hard to see her become the Queen of Hearts since at the beginning she was happy and content with baking, despite having ridiculous parents. Jest was adorable and I loved seeing what he brought to the character as the joker and as we learned more about him.
The additions from the original Alice were welcome. I adored the Mad Hatta and his attitude towards life (snarky characters are so good) and Haigha (Hare) and the Cheshire Cat as well as the ridiculous Red King. Meyer took these characters and didn't destroy them, if anything it made me love them even more.
The story was doomed and though I knew it from the beginning I still hoped for some silver lining. The plot kept me enthralled from the start and I desperately wanted to know more. The ending was sad and heartbreaking especially when you think of the girl who just wanted to open a bakery. Definitely worth a re-read just to visit all the aspects of Wonderland that I zoomed past in the beginning.
The Bad:
I feel as though the third act was not up to the standard of the rest of the book. It went by really quickly and sort of snowballed. I suppose that is the way that it was meant to go and how life goes but there could have been more development before it all went wrong.
Also, in the synopsis it says that there is a secret courtship between Jest and Catherine. I would have liked to see more romance in secret than the two scenes we got before it all went crazy. I love romance and think it would have made more sense for Cath to really get to know Jest before she lost him, resulting in her being the Queen of Hearts. It all happened really fast and I would have like more development of their relationship, especially with how quickly she does a 180.
The Interesting:
I loved the world of Wonderland, I loved the references to what we know happens in Alice in Wonderland and I love seeing a villain's origin story. It was interesting and compelling and well worth the read.
I also really found Catherine's parents interesting and how they were so strong in the beginning and awful and then at the end tried to change. It just added a bit of sadness to the characters. "How different everything could have been," she said, "if you had thought to ask me that before."
Recommended for:
If you love fairytales new and old and love to read a book full of whimsy and fun, then this is the book for you. It is a great YA book.
Quotes (Spoiler Free):
“But hoping," he said, "is how the impossible can be possible after all.”
“The easiest way to steal something, is for it to be given willingly.”
“When pleased, I beat like a drum. When sad, I break like glass. Once stolen, I can never be taken back. What am I?”
“Perhaps we know each other in the future and you’re only remembering backward.”
“A heart, once stolen, can never be taken back.”
“Fascinating, isn't it, how often heroic and foolish turn out to be one and the same.”
“Her rage split her open.”
This was a great read and welcome entry into the wackiness of Wonderland. With characters new and old, I loved seeing how the Queen of Hearts came to be and how she
once was a girl with a dream. Full of fun and wonderland goodness, I would definitely recommend this read! Read on if you are alright with slight spoilers!
The Good:
Alice and Wonderland is a classic, a setting that is fun and fantastic and entering the world of Wonderland in Heartless was fantastic. Meyer took a world that was already created and established but used it well, creating intrigue and looking more in depth at the characters we know and love. The dreams which came true like the lemon tree and the pumpkins and all those things added to the background and just make it whimsical and fun.
The characters were great. I loved seeing Cath and her love of baking throughout the story and her interactions with lots of different people. So hard to see her become the Queen of Hearts since at the beginning she was happy and content with baking, despite having ridiculous parents. Jest was adorable and I loved seeing what he brought to the character as the joker and as we learned more about him.
The additions from the original Alice were welcome. I adored the Mad Hatta and his attitude towards life (snarky characters are so good) and Haigha (Hare) and the Cheshire Cat as well as the ridiculous Red King. Meyer took these characters and didn't destroy them, if anything it made me love them even more.
The story was doomed and though I knew it from the beginning I still hoped for some silver lining. The plot kept me enthralled from the start and I desperately wanted to know more. The ending was sad and heartbreaking especially when you think of the girl who just wanted to open a bakery. Definitely worth a re-read just to visit all the aspects of Wonderland that I zoomed past in the beginning.
The Bad:
I feel as though the third act was not up to the standard of the rest of the book. It went by really quickly and sort of snowballed. I suppose that is the way that it was meant to go and how life goes but there could have been more development before it all went wrong.
Also, in the synopsis it says that there is a secret courtship between Jest and Catherine. I would have liked to see more romance in secret than the two scenes we got before it all went crazy. I love romance and think it would have made more sense for Cath to really get to know Jest before she lost him, resulting in her being the Queen of Hearts. It all happened really fast and I would have like more development of their relationship, especially with how quickly she does a 180.
The Interesting:
I loved the world of Wonderland, I loved the references to what we know happens in Alice in Wonderland and I love seeing a villain's origin story. It was interesting and compelling and well worth the read.
I also really found Catherine's parents interesting and how they were so strong in the beginning and awful and then at the end tried to change. It just added a bit of sadness to the characters. "How different everything could have been," she said, "if you had thought to ask me that before."
Recommended for:
If you love fairytales new and old and love to read a book full of whimsy and fun, then this is the book for you. It is a great YA book.
Quotes (Spoiler Free):
“But hoping," he said, "is how the impossible can be possible after all.”
“The easiest way to steal something, is for it to be given willingly.”
“When pleased, I beat like a drum. When sad, I break like glass. Once stolen, I can never be taken back. What am I?”
“Perhaps we know each other in the future and you’re only remembering backward.”
“A heart, once stolen, can never be taken back.”
“Fascinating, isn't it, how often heroic and foolish turn out to be one and the same.”
“Her rage split her open.”
slow-paced
This book was very good. Entertaining, and such a clever back story of the queen of hearts!! Everything matched up. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but I really like anything Marissa Meyer writes.... So far anyhow.