Book Review: Fairest

Fairest (TLC #3.5) written by Marissa Meyer

Release Date: January 27th, 2015

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Format of Novel: Nook

Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary (From good reads): In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

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(Warning, minor spoilers in this review)

Okay, so I guess I did spoil myself in some way for this wonderful series, but you know what, I don't care. I wanted to learn about Queen Levana's past, and holy crow I was not disappointed when it came to her character and story. Upon reading this book, I really started to feel horrible for Levana and the people around her like little Winter. With the treatment she kept receiving from her sister and others when it came to her looks/attitude, its no wonder she grew up to be the way she is portrayed in the series. She grew up emotionally alone,cold-hearted, very shallow, but still attempted to be 'human' enough to embrace love for her new family and her niece once her sister died from the disease that is constantly mentioned in the main series. She was almost like a tragic hero with the way she was able to keep her word in advancing her country's overall growth and try to maintain a sense of humanity in her to keep her happiness around.

The other characters were a nice touch as well. Each of them had their own individuality that shined within the content, and they didn't become little shadows within the story like you normally see happening with minor characters in books. I sort of enjoyed seeing Levana's sister in action and understanding that she wasn't meant to be a ruler. However, I feel that she began to grow slowly once she gave birth to Cinder and she wasn't given a full chance to have a internal battle with her younger sister for the crown. It would've brought out more action and bitterness to get Levana to rampage on her quest for power. It was interesting to see the development of Levana's psychological mindset going downhill once she was able to achieve her goals, and I applauded a little when she did 'win' her inner peace.

However, I felt that once she 'snapped' per say, things were ehh at the end. I mean yeah, she ended up getting everything she desired, but at what true cost? More jealously and fear over her niece and step-daughter's deceased mother's internal beauty? More angst over the fact her husband couldn't love her like she really wanted? I don't know. I just felt that I couldn't really feel the dramatic impulses Levana had while enduring the journey of ruler because I already knew that she was going to be a crazy ruler. And with Meyer's writing style, it felt more like she wasn't allowing us to visualize Levana's downfall, just the major events that were occurring around her; while saving the world of the Lunars for the final book.

All in all though, I did like this book along with the other books I've read from Marissa Meyer. The concept was really strong, the other characters were fresh and stuck to the 'fairy tale' aspect to their roles, and Levana's character is more relatable rather than a giant bitch with a power to hide within her shallow beauty. The writing was well done minus the fact I did lose focus on the visuals of some events. I am going to continue this series by reading the shorts and Cress so I can caught up in time to read the last installment of the Lunar Chronicles with everyone.

Tell me your thoughts of Fairest and Marissa Meyer's other books in general down in the comments below and I'll see you guys tomorrow with another post. Happy Howling!