Reviews

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

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hannahlnj's review against another edition

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adventurous 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

4.25

bertiethefern's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

etinney's review against another edition

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4.0

4 out of 5 stars

*spoilers in second paragraph*

After not being the biggest fan of Cinder, I wasn't super excited to read this, but I had heard that Scarlet was better and I do like the story of Little Red Riding Hood better.

And everyone was right. Scarlet was a much better plot in my opinion. There was a lot more action and everything was overall more believable (as realistic as this book can get, anyway). I liked Scarlet more than I like Cinder, and I thought her relationship with Wolf was better than Cinder and Kai's quasi-love thing. I enjoyed the fact that Cinder and Thorne had a platonic relationship (which will probably change, but I enjoy it for now). I really like the political intrigue and the elements of the "wolves". I do enjoy Meyer's imagination when retelling these stories.

However, there were just a couple of things that just didn't do it for me. The relationship between Scarlet and Wolf was better than the relationship in the first book, but it was still so instalovey. Especially at the end when he talks about knowing her for a week and wanting to protect her forever. The fact that he betrayed her actually made me happy. It wasn't super predictable, and I had the hope that maybe this author would surprise me for once. But sadly, no. He still loved her and did it to help her escape. I'm actually kind of disappointed. I wanted to be surprised by this "plot twist", but I saw it coming.
The predictability is my biggest issue in this novel. I personally can tell what is going to happen in most of the plot, but maybe it is more shocking for someone else. I just knew how everything would turn out, though this was slightly less predictable than Cinder.
Lastly, people call this a dystopian, but I really don't think it is. I feel that it is more apocalyptic personally. Whenever I read a dystopian or utopian, I ask myself "do I really see the issue here?" and if I can't, then I feel it really can't be a dystopian. I know the poor part of the countries are bad, but that happens now. That doesn't make it a dystopian. That has nothing to do with the book really; it is just a personal thing.

I am looking forward to the sequel though. I have heard the series is getting better as it goes along, and Scarlet was a pretty good indication of that.

galya_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous tense fast-paced

5.0

haileystewart6's review against another edition

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3.0

wayyyy too much alpha male shit for me. i really just care about cinder man.

whiskedawayreads's review against another edition

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dark funny sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I could barely put the book down once I started reading! It drew you in very quickly as a reader, despite the addition of a new POV. The POVs were cleverly combined and transitioned almost seamlessly. I was the plot engaging and always wanting to know what would happen next. The theme of good and evil were well utilized.