Review: Heartless by Marissa Meyer

Heartless (Standalone)
Written by Marissa Meyer
Published November, 2016 by Pan Macmillan
464 Pages
Genre: Fantasy, Re-tellings
Rating: ★★★

Synopsis:

Catherine may be one of the most desired girls in Wonderland and a favorite of the unmarried King, but her interests lie elsewhere. A talented baker, she wants to open a shop and create delectable pastries. But for her mother, such a goal is unthinkable for a woman who could be a queen.

At a royal ball where Cath is expected to receive the King’s marriage proposal, she meets handsome and mysterious Jest. For the first time, she feels the pull of true attraction. At the risk of offending the King and infuriating her parents, she and Jest enter into a secret courtship.

Cath is determined to choose her own destiny. But in a land thriving with magic, madness, and monsters, fate has other plans.

Review:

This is my first ever Marissa Meyer and I have yet to read the Lunar Chronicles. But this book literally won me over, although there are times where I felt that I was dragging myself to finish this book. I still was a fun read.

There are a few things this book didn’t sit well for me. First, was Wonderland itself (specifically hearts). I just don’t get why Cath’s mother would fat-shame her own daughter, and force her to marriage that she clearly does not want. Like C’mon, it’s wonderland. I just found it too historical, which I wasn’t that keen on. And also, it just felt so unmagical and so rigid.

Second, was the pacing of the story. The pacing was very slow and it can be a bit tedious at times. I actually heard that this was also most people’s complaint with this book. You see the plot was mostly about Catherine not wanting to marry the King of Hearts which does get really repetitive and boring.

Now, Heartless wasn’t all complaints and disappointment. I actually really did enjoyed reading it, despite my reservations. The ending completely won me over, it was intense. I didn’t know what was going to happen next or who was going to die. I loved seeing what happened to Catherine that turned her into the beheading crazy Queen of Hearts that we all know.

While I did have a few problems with this book, overall I still found it to be quite an enjoyable read. I am still pretty upset that this isn’t going to be a series, I would really love to see more of Cath’s adventure but given the way it ended, I understand why it’s a standalone.

Nevertheless, I would still recommend reading “Heartless” if you are willing to look pass the slow pacing but if you aren’t a fan of slow book and quickly loses patience then maybe give this one a skip.