Scarlet (Lunar Chronicles, #2)

by Marissa Meyer

The second book in The Lunar Chronicles series by Marissa Meyer.

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 . . .

***Red Riding Hood-meets-Percy Jackson in a thrilling new spin on Grimm by Marissa Meyer, the author of Cinder.***

• ISBN10: 1250007216
• ISBN13: 9781250007216
• Publish Date: 4 February 2014 (first published 1 February 2013)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 2 July 2021
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Square Fish
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 512
• Language: English

Reviews

[ibeforem]

I picked this up rather quickly after finishing Cinder, because I enjoyed Cinder so much. Unfortunately, I didn’t think Scarlet was as strong of a story.

I think the main thing Scarlet has going against it is that there are two focuses to the story. First, you have the further adventures of Cinder and Kai, moving the overarching plot forward. Second, you have the new story, centered around Scarlet and Wolf (as in Little Red Riding Hood).

Scarlet is a farmer who lives with her grandmother in the French countryside. But unfortunately, her grandmother has gone missing and no one seems to want to do anything about it. So Scarlet takes matters into her own hands, helped by the mysterious Wolf.

Of course, Scarlet’s story ends up intertwining with Cinder’s. We learn some things that I had already guessed, but it was nice to have them confirmed. I think my main issue was that I just didn’t get enough time to know Scarlet before I was thrown into the action and expected to root for her.

[ellieroth]

MY BABIES, MY CHILDREN MY ;_;

[Nessa Luna]

Read this review, and many more on my blog October Tune!

Though the previous book in this series was a bit predictable, I wanted to continue this series. I loved the idea behind the story, modern (or actually futuristic) version of well known fairy tales (Cinderella, Red Riding Hood); I have always found fairy tales interesting, and I just love modern retellings of my favourites (I am still looking for a retelling of Sleeping Beauty, so if you know a good one, let me know!).

Scarlet is just as awesome as Cinder, though a lot less predictable in my opinion. There were some tiny parts that might be a bit predictable, but I just decided to not let that get to me anymore, otherwise I probably wouldn’t have enjoyed the story.

In this book, we meet Scarlet, a French girl whose grandmother has been abducted (at least, that’s what she thinks). She meets Wolf (what a nice name) and together they try to find the bad guys, and get her grandmother back. Of course, the main character from the previous book is not forgotten. We follow Cinder as she breaks out of prison, and becomes the most wanted fugitive on the planet.
Obviously that means that the book is told from multiple point of views, and you all know how much I dislike that. But I ended up liking it in this book anyway (I think I might be getting used to multiple POV’s, help!), but I found the chapters from Kai’s POV, and the tiny part from Levana’s POV a bit unnecassary.

The other thing that I didn’t really like was the good-guy-who-turned-out-to-be-the-bad-guy-who-then-becomes-a-proper-good-guy thing. (I think y’all know who/what I am talking about right now?). It’s basically like this, the main character meets the guy (or girl). They go to the bad guys to rescue MC’s loved ones/get the secret formula/kick the bad guy’s backside, etc. Good guy tries to stop MC from going, but MC’s a stubborn person and goes anyway. They fall in love, they kiss. They get to their destination, and good guy turns out to be working for the bad guy. Or being the bad guy himself. MC is captured, and hates the ‘good’ guy. ‘Good’ guy ends up saving the MC from getting killed, or w/e, they flee and live happily ever after (okay maybe not that).

One day, I hope to read a book where the ‘good’ guy ends up being the bad guy and STAYS the bad guy.
Anyway, I really like Marissa Meyer’s writing, it’s easy to read and though I took my time finishing the book (I had three other books I was reading at the same time, oops), the times that I was reading this book I was reading through it quickly. I can’t wait for Cress, which comes out in February 2014, and I hope I will enjoy it as much as the previous two books.

[ladygrey]

I enjoyed Scarlet more than [b:Cinder|11235712|Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles, #1)|Marissa Meyer|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1470056948l/11235712._SY75_.jpg|15545385]. I think the dual plot helped keep the energy high and the story moving. It was (almost) as predictable as Cinder and, oddly enough, I figured it all out on page 41 which was very nearly the same page I figured it all out in Cinder (maybe 44 in Cinder). The thing is the characters and the story build quickly enough that predictable isn't that bad.

At first Scarlet was an incredibly annoying character. For like the first maybe third of the book. Mostly because she was so quick to jump to conclusions and rash in acting on it. Which is a bit ironic because later in the book she has a whole conversation about how she doesn't like to rush to judgement without all the facts. whatever.

The upside is that she evolves pretty quickly, the more she interacts with Wolf (though she remains a bit naive particularly on the train and in the connected scene after). Wolf is compelling and keeps the story moving well.

The dual storyline with Cinder and Thorne would seem to be slow because not much really happens - except that seeing sort of a new version of Cinder as she's growing and coming to terms with the events of the last book is enough.

I've heard so much about Thorne from around the book blogging community but I wasn't that impressed. He seemed all swagger with nothing to substantiate it. But I've been told he gets better in later books. I think the first time I liked him was when he was telling Iko she was beautiful.

[wyvernfriend]

What Cinder has done has repercussions and Queen Levana is using her as an excellent excuse. Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing and she trusts Wold to help her, but he has secrets that could break the relationship and when Scarlet and Cinder get together they will have to deal with a lot of opposition.

And I just realised that a lot of the story of little Red Riding Hood is contained here.

Not a bad read but suffers a bit from being a bridging novel.

[reveriesociety_]

I love Wolf!!!

[Liz (Bent Bookworm)]

So glad I kept reading this series! I am now totally invested in the story. I love the new characters introduced in this one, and it just felt like the world was a lot more fleshed out. Scarlet and Wolf are of course awesome. The other characters grow and develop as well. Totally enjoying my brain candy read. :)

[Jo]

Originally posted on Once Upon a Bookcase.

Having absolutely adored Cinder, I was really excited to read the sequel in Marissa Meyer's Lunar Chronicles, which takes on the fairy tale Little Read Riding Hood. And I'm so pleased to say Scarlet is even more incredible!

Scarlet's grandmother has gone missing. The police have been investigating, but due to a lack of evidence point towards her not leaving of her own accord, they've closed the case. But Scarlet knows her grandmother, and knows this is not like her. When her neglectful, drunken father turns up at her home, ransacking the place, terrified and not making much sense, Scarlet finally has some idea of what happened to her grandma; she was kidnapped because of something the kidnappers believe she has, and they tortured her father in the hopes of trying to get the information from her. Scarlet is determined to find her and rescue her herself if she has to, but she ends up getting help from Wolf, a street fighter, who has a tattoo very similar to those of her father and grandma's kidnappers. The kidnappers are a gang Wolf used to belong to, and as he knows where they are, he's promised to help her. But Scarlet has seen how vicious Wolf can be when he's angry, how dangerous he is. Can she trust in his help?
Meanwhile, Cinder, now equipped with the swanky new hand with inbuilt toolkit from Dr Erland, is trying to escape from prison. She knows within days Queen Levana will take her to Lunar to execute her, and knows the real reason why: she's Princess Selene, the rightful heir to the Lunar throne. Reeling from this information, the only way she can cope is by trying to figure out a way of escaping without being caught. Cinder is slowly learning how to control her Lunar gift of manipulating bioelectricity, and comes across fellow prisoner, Captain Carswell Thorne, who just so happens to have a spaceship hidden. The two plan to make their getaway, but then what? Cinder is supposed to meet Dr Erland in Africa, but doesn't know if she wants to be a Princess and go against Queen Levana. She just wants to be free. Instead, she tries to find someone who may have more information about her past, so she can work out just how she came to Earth and ended up as a cyborg.

Oh my god, I loved this book! There's so much more of an adventure feel to it, what with Scarlett going off in search of her grandmother. But it's also a much more emotional read. There was the sorrow of Peony's death in the first book, and the despair over Cinder's life because of the treatment from Adri, but in this book, there is so much on the line! Scarlet saw what the gang did to her father, the burn marks from a poker in rows all over his arm, and she's terrified about what they have been doing to her grandma, Michelle, for the past three weeks. She has no idea what they could want from her, what they think she could possibly have - she runs a farm on the outskirts of a small, quiet French town - but knows her life is in terrible danger, and she and Wolf will be walking into it.

And with Cinder, there is so much fear of being discovered! So many close shaves! It's only down to her Lunar gift that she and Thorne get out of the scrapes they find themselves in, but she is so conflicted about using it. She doesn't want to be like Queen Levana, abusing this power and manipulating people to get what she wants, but without she would be dead. She and Thorne are wanted fugitives, and she has to do all she can to evade capture.

I love the new characters we meet in this book. Scarlett is brave and determined, and she cannot leave Michelle to these thugs who have her, when the police will do nothing. The only person who even cares is her; what chance does Michelle have without her? She's scared, but mostly for Michelle than for herself. She has got to free Michelle, because nobody else will. Wolf is a really intriguing and fascinating character. I found him to be a really sweet guy; he's strong and can very much handle himself in a fight, but as a person, he seems unsure and nervous. You can tell he's conflicted about helping Scarlet - going back to the gang really isn't something he wants to do, but at the same time, he knows what danger Michelle is in. He also really struggles with the mounting attraction between him and Scarlet, and doesn't really know what to do with it. For Scarlett, Wolf has her feeling so many different emotions; distrust, fear, anger, attraction, hope, frustration. Their relationship is a complicated one, but really interesting to watch develop.

Thorne! Oh my god, how I love Thorne! He's not exactly the smartest guy going, but he's full of self-assurance and arrogance. This makes him sound like a really irritating character, but he's such a flirt and always making light of things, or taking small things too seriously, he's hilarious! The things he comes out with, oh my god, I just love him. He is seriously one of the highlights of the book for me, and I do so hope we get to see so much more of him in future, because he is just so brilliant! He's the kind of guy I'd love to hang out with, but being the thief that he is, that probably wouldn't be wise.

The action is really cranked up in this book, both in regards to trying to escape and evade capture for Cinder and Thorne, and in the journey to Michelle for Scarlet and Wolf, but also in regards to... fighting. That's not exactly correct, but I can't explain further without spoiling this book. But oh my god, this book gets close to the point of terrifying towards the end. It's disturbing and wrong, and so, so scary. Lives are very much at steak in this book, on a massive scale. I don't think I've ever read a book that made me physically feel like I'd had such a work out as Scarlet did reading those last several chapters. I was sitting at the edge of my seat, my heart was hammering, and I was so tense there was a tightness in my chest. The emotions I went through towards the end! This is one of those books where you cannot see a way out of a terrible situation, and I was literally terrified for these characters. The ending is so cinematic, I could see it all, and I was feeling the fear for the characters like I do when watching a horror movie. Those last few chapters are epic! Seriously! And this is just the second book in the series!

If you hadn't guessed, I absolutely loved this book, and my excitement for the rest of the series huge! But I also have such super high expectations now, and I'm a little worried that they might be too high? But oh my gooood, I am so, so, so excited for Cress, the third book in the series! I'm now actually so glad it took me so long to read this series, because I don't have to wait too long for the next books. I'm trying to make this series last, so I'll read a few other books before getting to Cress, but I really don't know how long I can wait, because that ending was just incredible! I will absolutely read anything Meyer writes in the future, she has solidified a place amongst my favourite authors with these two books, and I am so excited for everything she will ever write.

Thank you to Puffin for the review copy.

Second read: December 30, 2015

Just as good the second time around.

First finished April 1, 2013

As with most sequels, I went into this book quite nervous. Sure, tons of people said it was just as great (if not better!) than Cinder. But honestly, how could that happen? It's the dreaded "filler" book. There was absolutely no way it could live up to Cinder.

Well...it did. And I freaking love Marissa Meyer for it!

Enter Scarlet. Fiesty and fiery Scarlet. Oh, how I love her. And she's stubborn to boot! While Cinder's story took place in New Beijing, the story of Scarlet is chronicled in the beautiful countryside of France. Although Scarlet is inspired by Little Red Riding Hood, don't mistake her for being easily fooled. Maybe she didn't always make the best decisions, but she's got heart and wanted to do whatever she could to protect her grandmother. That's loyalty.

And Wolf! I really came to adore him! Don't let his shy and secretive nature fool you (completely at odds with his looks by the way). No, this guy can kick butt like no other. He's called "Wolf" for a reason. And even though I kind of guessed his "secret" early on, I still looked forward to learning more about it and him.

But, by far, my favorite new addition was Captain Thorne. Oh, you scoundrel, you. Thorne added a bout of comedic relief and was a welcome addition to the cast. Who doesn't love a sarcastic, arrogant thief?

I think that one reason this book turned away from the stereotypical second book was because this book had a completely new plot and set of characters. It was a complex new story that tied together with the first book, yet it was still uniquely its own. I loved going on this journey with Scarlet and Wolf and it became even better when Cinder entered the picture. This book was an absolute non-stop thrill ride of action, surprises and tension! Can't wait for book 3! No, seriously guys, I need book 3 now. Wanna hook me up Meyers? ;)

Overall:
Go pick it up. Now. You don't have to worry about it being a filler book, because it's not. Now breathe a sigh of relief and head to the bookstore. You won't regret it.

All the best ♥
Mackenzie @ Oh, For the Love of Books!

[Amanda]

December 2015 reread: Must continue with Cress now! Love this series something fierce.

4.5

There is no second book slump syndrome for Marissa Meyer and the Lunar Chronicles series. Wow. Like Cinder, Scarlet was the kind of book that makes you panic when the pages start dwindling because you don’t want the story to end. I cannot get enough of this story, these characters, and this world. 2014 is too long to wait for the next story!

In Scarlet, we’re introduced to Scarlet (shocking!) and Wolf. Scarlet is a very loosely retold version of Red Riding Hood–complete with red hoodie. What I love about both Lunar Chronicle books is that while being a retelling, these books are so much more. With Cinder’s story arc still continuing into this book, we get to see the world expand and grow in ways that are unique and exciting. So many THINGS HAPPEN!

Though we don’t get to spend as much time with Cinder this time around, we do get introduced to more characters and more, er, stuff. (Sorry. Vagueness needed to ensure no spoilers.) This is Scarlet and Wolf’s story and what a fun one it is. (No, really. It was a “grip the book in your fingers and fly through the words because that scene was so incredibly SWOONY” type story.) I loved the push and pull between Scarlet and Wolf. Their story is different from Cinder and Kai’s, but at the same time it involves a lot of the same elements. (No, I won’t say which.)

And I don’t think I can write this review without mentioning Captain Thorne. He just tickled me silly. Thorne also does a very good job of highlighting the subtle humor that is pervasive throughout the Lunar Chronicles. It’s good fun–the kind of humor that occasionally catches you off guard, but you find yourself cackling at. I want more of Thorne and his “heavy American accent” and I seriously hope he’ll make an appearance in future books. (And Scarlet and Wolf. I want more of them, too. I want ALL THE CHARACTERS.)

Reread: Thorne. Wolf and Scarlet. This book.