Review: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

Author: Marissa Meyer
Title: Scarlet 
Series: Lunar Chronicles #2
Publication: February 5th 2013
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Source: Around the World Arc Tours 

This is not the fairytale you remember.

But it’s one you won’t forget.

Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. The police have closed her case. The only person Scarlet can turn to is Wolf, a street fighter she does not trust, but they are drawn to each other.
Meanwhile, in New Beijing, Cinder will become the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive – when she breaks out of prison to stay one step ahead of vicious Queen Levana.
As Scarlet and Wolf expose one mystery, they encounter Cinder and a new one unravels. Together they must challenge the evil queen, who will stop at nothing to make Prince Kai her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Thoughts: Cinder is about to attempt the greatest escape of her life. Scarlet receives the news that the search for her missing grandmother has been closed, even though she knows something is amiss with her disappearance. Both of these girls are on a mission that somehow has to do with the mysterious Princess Selene and when their paths finally cross what they uncover comes as a surprise. As Queen Levana's uncompromising fury reaches a boiling point, she becomes a ticking time bomb determined to destroy everything in her way but Cinder is the bull’s-eye at the center of it all. Will Cinder fight her destiny or embrace her fate?

Queen Levana epitomizes evil hidden behind the facade of beauty. She takes her deviousness to a sick twisted level in this book. All she really wants is to start the war she's been threatening all this time but now one person stands to be the key to stopping her...Cinder. Prince Kai in an effort to keep the peace and maybe his feelings of betrayal agrees to hand Cinder over to the Queen not knowing that she is more valuable than he could imagine. Only a small few know why she fears Cinder so much and in this second book Scarlet uncovers the reason as well as Cinder. 

Cinder in this book dislikes the fact that her future seems to have been planned without her consent, she wants none of it. All she desires is to be left alone but as she gets closer to the truth of her origin she will question her place in the world. I like how she grows and becomes stronger and develops beautifully into the heroine that I hope she will be by the end of this series. Scarlet intrigues me, she has an innocence to her that speaks through the page but she also has a fire that simmers within her. She is not a damsel in distress and is not afraid to say what she feels and that's something great about her as a character. There are new males introduced one being Wolf, the shy mysterious street fighter with the hidden rage in his eyes and let me just say that when his secret is revealed, one word: Crazy! The other fella, I am unable to recall his name but he is humorous and sort of stuck on himself. 

The author weaves the story of Scarlet so intricately that it melds beautifully with the story of Cinder. The plot goes back and forth between Scarlet, Cinder and Prince Kai as they face difficult decisions yet it doesn't hinder the flow of the story nor the action. I agree this is not what I remember but it's so much better. This is how to revamp a classic fairy tale while remaining true to some of the original and adding a refreshing updated twist. I'm extremely curious how everything will tie in together at the end. Check this series out; I think any fairytale or sci-fi lover will enjoy it.

4.5 stars