Note: There’re no spoilers for the series of The Lunar Chronicles in this book review of Fairest.
Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles #3.5) by Marissa Meyer • contains 222 pages • published January 27, 2015 by Feiwel & Friends, Macmillan Publishers • classified as Fantasy, Science Fiction, Young Adult • obtained through library • read as hardcover • shelve on Goodreads Synopsis:
Mirror, mirror, on the wall.
Who is the Fairest of them all?Pure evil has a name, hides behind a mask of deceit, and uses her "glamour" to gain power. But who is Queen Levana? Long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress in The Lunar Chronicles, Levana lived a very different story — a story that has never been told... until now.
New York Times–bestselling author Marissa Meyer reveals the story behind her fascinating villain in Fairest, an unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes a special full-color image of Levana's castle and an excerpt from Winter, the exciting conclusion to The Lunar Chronicles.
Winter is coming! In the lead-up to its release I realized that I hadn’t posted my review of Cress and Fairest yet. So, here we go with my thoughts on Fairest, which I enjoyed a lot. The focus on Queen Levant added a fresh perspective to the series since she’s the villain in The Lunar Chronicles.
Is Fairest Redundant?
On the whole, it might not be crucial to read this book before delving into Winter. However, it does give readers a glimpse of life on Luna and its palace. Villains have their stories too about how they came to be but stories conventionally are about the heroes. Villains matter when they’re in the way of the heroes.
If you’ve ever sat there and wondered about the villains and wanted to read about the darkness that clouds their lives, then Fairest is definitely for you.
Empathising with Evil
Fairest amazingly managed to appeal to my emotions and made me empathise with Levana. Not to say that I thought her actions as queen are excusable but through this books they became infinitely more understandable. This book also is a testament to the writing skills of Marissa Meyer. She crafted a most evil character with such a twisted mind and yet there I was, feeling oh so sorry for Levana.
Great review! I love how you separated it by section. I definitely appreciated the addition of this installment, as I felt like I truly understood Levana. Through feeling sorry for her, I grew to hate her even more. Now THAT is a good author. ;-)
It was interesting to read Fairest. I didn’t particularly love it, but I did like that it gave readers a new perspective on this world and this villain.
Yeah, I’m glad that this alternative perspective worked. Sometimes such attempts can fall flat but in the hands of Marissa Meyer, we did get a good book.
I completely agree with everything! I really enjoyed this and never thought I would side with the villain, but it made me understand Levana more and understand where she’s coming from. I can’t wait for Winter!
~Sara
I’m glad to hear we have shared sentiments over Fairest! :)
I thought Fairest was interesting to read, but unlike you, I didn’t sympathize with Levana at all after the beginning. I know she suffered, but her actions were completely inexcusable, and I think she deserved most of what she got. :D
Inexcusable, yes, definitely! But I still felt sorry. Haha. Plus, I admired how well a character she was developed ’cause the book fit very well into the series.
It definitely explained a lot. It was worth reading, even if I didn’t exactly enjoy the experience – which is what my rating reflects, not Marissa Meyer’s writing itself. I’m wondering now if that wasn’t a bit unfair of me.
Well, I gave it a high rating because I thought Levana was a realistic character. It wasn’t too far-fetched for her to turn out the way she did.
As for ratings, I think it’s fair to factor in enjoyment levels. I do that too. Just that the way I see it, it’s kinda like the actors as villains in movies. The more we hate a villain, usually the better the actor. Haha. That’s why my high rating, even if Levana will never be a character I like as a person.