Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles #2) - Marissa Meyer

Review: Scarlet

Author: Marissa Meyer

Rating: 5/5

Genre: dystopia, sci-fi

Recommended To: fans of Grave Mercy, Shadow and Bone

The Plot: I finally finished! I'll try for no spoilers. In the second installment of the Lunar Chronicles, the main character isn't Cinder, which was disappointing at first, but it's all good because the third person POV switched to her pretty often. The plot basically centers on Cinder's struggle to come to terms with her true identity and how Scarlet and her grandmother have a part in Cinder's whole cyborg with no memory situation. It's all quite easy to jump back into actually after reading Cinder. It's very well connected, even if it is really obvious at times. What I thought was new, was the very interesting, completely psychotic take on the Wolf and about Levana's army. That was very twisted, even for a fairy tale retelling. I didn't say it wasn't completely welcome, and awesome though.

The Characters: Cinder we all know is a mechanical version of Cinderella who can pretty much control people with her mind. Prince Kai is an adorable version of Prince Charming. One can only hope they actually ever get a chance to talk with each other. Not the main characters though. Basically, the titular character, Scarlet, is a really feisty version of Little Red Riding Hood with a gun, and a grandmother who was in the military and knows secrets. Secrets that pertain to Cinder, hmm hmm....Anyway, Wolf too is a really mysterious and strange character. I don't want to give any spoilers but honestly, his name is a spoiler. Think about that. Finally, my personal favorite was definitely Thorne. I don't know how Cinder managed to  pick him up, but he made the whole book three times better with his ridiculous shenanigans. 

The Romance: Cinder and Kai are a nonexistent couple right now although their caring for each other over seas was very adorable. The focus was on Scarlet and Wolf as a couple. The most upsetting fact for me about their falling in love (we all know it happens, quit complaining) was that it occurs in nearly 24 hours. How can two people fall in love in one day? Other than that, it was all very touching. Wolf afraid he'll hurt her, by being so big and bad, and poor little Scarlet completely oblivious to her very seductive advances. Seriously, she was no shy girl when it came to romance.

The Style: I love the entire concept of the series. It's just so original. I can't fathom how she came up with a dystopian society, with not-so-princesslike princesses (one who is half metal and one who totes around a gun while looking for her grandmother), and an evil moon queen. The writing is also excellent and the descriptions of the world are amazingly vivid. One could almost be tricked into seeing Lunars left and right. 

Overall: If you haven't given Cinder a try, please do. Especially if you like dystopian, science-fiction , romance. It's very fun. And if you have read Cinder, Scarlet is a great follow up and continues the story at a great pace. I loved discovering all sorts of secrets and juicy stuff about Queen Levana's plan, all set against a backdrop of a world we know so well, yet so different. 

Snippet Saturdays - Scarlet

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

    "Get your things," said Wolf.

      She and Wolf moved at the same time. She thew her portscreen into her pack while Wolf crossed to the window and flung it open. The ground raced beneath them. Beyond the tracks, a dense forest stretched out, dissolving into shadows.
      Scarlet checked the pistol in her waistband, "Are we jumping?"
     "Yes. But they might be expecting it, so we have to do it before the train slows too much. They're probably prepping enforcement androids right now to round up runaways."
      Scarlet nodded. "If it is letumosis, we've probably already become a quarantine."
      Wolf thrust his head out the window, looking both ways down the length of the train. "Now's our best chance."
       Pulling inside, he heaved the bag onto one shoulder. Scarlet peered down at the ground fleeing beneath them, dizzied by a moment of vertigo. It was impossible to focus on any one spot as the speckled sun flashed against the trees. "Well. This seems dangerous."
                                                                "We'll be fine."
                                                                She peered up at him, for a moment expecting to meet 
that crazed madman again, but his expression was stone-cold and clinical. He was focused hard on the landscape that whizzed by them. "They're braking," he said. "We'll start slowing down faster now." Again, it was a few seconds before Scarlet sensed it too, the subtle shift of speed, the way they were decelerating fast, no longer just coasting to a steady stop.
         Wolf inclined his head. "Climb onto my back."
         "I can jump myself."
         "Scarlet."
         She met his eyes. His youthful curiosity from before was gone, replaced with a sternness she hadn't expected.
         "What? It'll be just like jumping off the barn into a haystack. I've done that a hundred times."
         "A haystack? Honestly, Scarlet, it'll be nothing like that."
         Before she could argue, before she could cement her defiance, he bent over and scooped her into both arms.
         She gasped and had just enough time to open her mouth, ready to demand he put her down, before Wolf was on the windowsill, the wind whipping Scarlet's curls against her neck.
         He jumped. Scarlet yelped and grabbed on to him, her stomach somersaulting, and then the shock of landing jogged up her spine.
          She dug her fingers into his shoulders. Every limb trembled.
          Wolf had landed in a clearing eight steps beyond the tracks. He staggered into the tree line and hunkered into the shadows.
          "All right?" he asked. 
          "Just like"--she caught her breath--"a haystack."
          A laugh reverberated through his chest, into her, and before she was ready Wolf settled her feet onto a patch of squishy moss. She scrambled out of his hold, caught her balance, then punched him squarely in the arm. "Never do that again."