Artemis
Written on Jan 4, 2016
https://artemisreads.wordpress.com/2016/02/03/review-fairest-by-marissa-meyer/
Prepare to see the New York Times-bestselling series like you've never seen it before, now with new cover art!
A standalone prequel to the #1 New York Times- and USA Today-Bestselling Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer! Find out what made the evil space queen from the beloved series so wicked.
An interesting mash up of fairy tales and science fiction . . . a cross between Cinderella, Terminator, and Star Wars. --Entertainment Weekly
Prince Charming among the cyborgs. --The Wall Street Journal
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.Don't miss these other books from #1 New York Times- and USA Today-Bestselling author Marissa Meyer:
The Lunar Chronicles:
Cinder
Scarlet
Cress
Winter
Stars Above
Fairest
The Lunar Chronicles Coloring BookWires and Nerve: Vol. 1
Wires and Nerve: Vol. 2
Renegades:
Renegades: Book One
Archenemies: Book Two
Supernova: Book Three
Heartless
- ISBN13 9781250060556
- Publish Date 27 January 2015
- Publish Status Active
- Publish Country US
- Imprint St Martin's Press
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 272
- Language English
Reviews
https://artemisreads.wordpress.com/2016/02/03/review-fairest-by-marissa-meyer/
liz089
Written on Dec 26, 2015
Katie King
Written on Dec 21, 2015
Let me just say - I really enjoyed this! I loved getting all of Levana's backstory because let's face it - she's a crazy bitch but she wasn't born that way. I had been curious about her since her first appearance in Cinder, but I never realized how badly I needed to know more about her until reading Fairest. I actually wish I could get even more about her because now I'm pretty much obsessed with her. Everything about it was great except her romance. That really struggled in my eyes and even though she was clearly forcing it, I felt like nobody is that dumb or forces things for that long. You would think she would get tired of him not loving her and break it off, but she still felt the same way after all that time? Nah.
Amanda
Written on Dec 12, 2015
Levana may not be likeable, but she certainly is readable.
In fact, I had trouble putting Fairest down. A chance to learn how the villain of The Lunar Chronicles series came to be? Sign me up. It's possible I have a soft spot for villain back stories -- the best villains are relateable and human-ish, after all -- but truly, Marissa Meyer just writes a good book.
Though Fairest is a prequel to the series, it's likely best read as it was released: the book in between Cress and Winter. What we've learned in the first three books gives Levana's story greater context.
Would it still be good on its own? Probably. Is it even better within the context of the series? Heck yes. If you've loved this series, you need to read Fairest. It's really that simple.
And so subtle you barely notice it -- yet so profound you can't help absorbing it -- is the worldbuilding. We haven't been introduced to life on Luna, until now. It's brilliantly worked into the narrative, giving us glimpses of earth from the moon. I kinda want more now.
I loved, loved the brief look we got at Winter and the beginning of her story. It makes me that much more excited to get her story.
jesstheaudiobookworm
Written on Dec 2, 2015
cornerfolds
Written on Dec 1, 2015
Although I purchased Fairest way back when it was first released, I put off reading it because I just wasn't in a Lunar Chronicles mood. After finishing Winter, however, I was in dire need of more of this world! And although I hated Levana with a passion, I was really curious to discover what made her so very evil. I'd heard around from several people that I might come to sympathize with Levana. I'm not sure I feel sympathy for her, but it's definitely complicated.
Having read Winter before Fairest, I already knew some of Levana's backstory, but getting the full story was a much more emotional experience. I did feel for her, my heart breaking a tiny bit while reading about her need and constant search for love. At the same time, I found myself extremely uncomfortable on multiple occasions, which I suspect is what Marissa Meyer was going for with this story. The romance between Levana and one of the palace guards was downright creepy.
I mean, okay. I haven't seen this in any other review for Fairest and I'm wondering if no one else really put it together or it's just that no one wants to say it. Levana was essentially raping Evret, her one true love. She was forcing him to be intimate with her against his will. I felt pretty gross just reading about it. I understand that Levana had some insane desire to feel loved to the point where she forced a marriage with a recently widowed man, but ugh. *shudder*
The conflicting emotions that I felt for Levana are similar to what I experienced with Winter's character. Meyer definitely has a lot of skill when it comes to developing complex characters.
I loved getting to dive back into the world of The Lunar Chronicles for a couple hundred more pages, although I'm really sad it's really (almost) over this time. I also really enjoyed the little tidbits about Cress, Jacin, and their families. In this regard, I feel like reading Winter first actually helped me because I was able to pick up on adorable clues that I might not have noticed otherwise. It was interesting to read about all of the truly terrible women in Cinder's family. How lucky that she ended up on earth...
Levana is a difficult character to read about, but I definitely recommend Fairest for every single fan of this series! I think it goes a long way toward explaining her often disturbing actions.
Chelsea
Written on Nov 15, 2015
1. This book made a lot of people feel really bad for Levana but it just made me hate her more.
2. If Levana was a strong enough person, she could have turned out to be a good ruler and that makes me sad.
3. I HATED the whole part about her husband. Not the story itself but her. It made me feel really bad for him and I was expecting Winter to turn out horrible because of Levana's influence.
4. I'm kind of glad that Cinder's mother wasn't the greatest either. It made the family feel more realistic.
5. I don't know if I could reread this book. I hate Levana way too much. She has a horrible upbringing sure, but she didn't choose the right way to overcome it.
Berls
Written on May 26, 2015
I'm super excited to see how Winter will pick up the story - will we start where Cress left off or will there be a connection to Fairest's earlier time line? I technically could have found out since there's a sneak peak at the end of Fairest, but I really didn't want to get started and not be able to continue. So I'm waiting till the fall...
Oh and, as always, Rebecca Soler knocked her performance out of the park. I'm so glad she narrated this, even though it was only a novella and not a full length novel. Reading it just would be the same!
jnikkir
Written on May 3, 2015
I had no intention of reading this novella, originally; but when I saw it was available from my library as an audiobook, and having loved the narrator for the original three books, I decided to give it a chance. And it was okay! It was good backstory for Levana, but I didn't enjoy it overly much. Levana isn't a terribly compelling character, to me, so her story just wasn't really my thing. Still a pretty good read, and I'd definitely recommend it as an audiobook if you like those.
stefu1
Written on Apr 6, 2015