Book Review: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

Title: Scarlet 

Author: Marissa Meyer
Series:  The Lunar Chronicles, #2
Pages: 452
Publisher: Puffin
Date of Publication: 7th February 2013
Source: Publisher*
Synopsis from Goodreads:

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...

My Thoughts:
I wasn't sure if I would like Cinder, back when I read it last summer. To my surprise, I absolutely loved it so I was super excited to read Scarlet, the sequel/companion. And although it took me over two weeks to read, I really enjoyed it and again am really looking forward to reading the next one. I love the way that Marissa Meyer retells some very well-known fairy tales in a completely unique, sci-fi/fantasy kind of way. With cyborgs. It's awesome.

As each book in The Lunar Chronicles is about a different character, and they don't all follow Cinder, I wasn't expecting her to have that big a part in the story. I was totally wrong, and Cinder's in it a lot, which I loved because she's really great. I really liked reading about her escape from her prison and being a fugitive - it was all very exciting! I was also really happy to see Iko back, even though she wasn't quite the same as she was before... You'll see what I mean when you read it!

Scarlet, however, funnily enough, is the story of a girl called Scarlet. I liked reading about her and Wolf, her companion I guess, but I did at times find myself wondering about Cinder was doing while reading Scarlet's story. I liked her enough, but gah I really felt like her relationship with Wolf was just instalove. I'm going to try and not spoil here, but seriously, as if he would give up everything he's been brought up to believe and the way he's been taught to act just for some girl he met a couple of days before... I'm sorry. It just annoyed me, but I guess I could overlook it because Wolf was pretty awesome while protecting Scarlet later on. So, you know, you win some, you lose some.

I loved the plot. I adore the way Marissa writes, it's so captivating and easy to read! I probably could have sat for hours and read the whole thing at once had my stupid life not got in the way. For the most part, Scarlet and Cinder's stories were told separately, and then they came together perfectly at the end. Marissa Meyer is such a brilliant storyteller! There were also a few chapters of Emperor Kai's story too, which was awesome because it was great to see how he was getting on since the last book. It was so cute to see he still cares for Cinder. I love him a little bit, I think...

Overall, I really enjoyed Scarlet. While I didn't think it was as good as the first one, and it took me such a long time to read, the writing is still awesome and the characters are still fantastic so I can overlook the minor issues I had with it (that you probably wouldn't) and say that it's well worth reading. If you've not read the first book yet, I cannot recommend it enough! Marissa's fairy tale retellings in a world of cyborgs and lunar people are so fast-paced and exciting that I'm sure you will love them, even if they don't sound like your cup of tea. I didn't think I'd like them even a little bit, and now I love them. So, so worth the read.