Review: Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles, #3.5)

Author: Marissa Meyer
Started reading: October 17th 2018
Finished the book: October 22nd 2018
Pages: 222
Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction
Published: January 27th 2015
Source: Bought the book
Goodreads score: 4.02
My score:

Synopsis
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.

My thoughts

I reviewed all of the Lunar Chronicles books here on my blog. I remember naming Queen Levana as a pro in most of the reviews. She's so evil and I love it, so I was very excited to read this book, which is about her life before the Lunar Chronicles series.

I do recommend to read this as a #3.5 book. So after Cress and before Winter, so you already know Levana, but know her even better while reading the last book.

Pros

• Cruel: Oh my lord. Levana is a messed up person but her sister Channery is even worse! It's amazing to have a look in the brain of someone so evil and both these sisters truly remind me of the evil queen from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, which was what Marissa Meyer tried to do. She succeeded!
• Inisghtful: It's so cool to learn more about Levana and the choices she makes. I had a lot of questions about her while reading The Lunar Chronicles and she is one of my favorite evil characters of all times. I loved this book, just about her and her past.
• Couldn't put it away: I'm sure that if I had a day off I would've finished this book in one sitting. It's so appealing and I just want to keep reading and get to know what happens next, and next, and next. This person is so messed up and so NOT like me, that it made me very curious.
• Look behind the words: I love how there is, for me, a message behind the words. The book is about outer beauty, and how people will love you if you're pretty. The one close to Levana tries to teach her that it's about inner beauty as well and that the choices you make can also make people love you or hate you. I'm not going to tell you what she did with the message, but I could appreciate the way the author makes you look behind the words.

Cons

• Don't be stubborn: This is not a con for the book, but for all of us stubborn people out here. This really is the 3.5 book. If I could do it differently I would DEFINITELY read this after Cress. The book ads such an extra layer to the book Winter, if you read Fairest first...

Overall

If you loved The Lunar Chronicles you will LOVE this novella. It's such a great addition to the books and a lovely insight in the mind of our wicked Queen Levana. She still is my favorite evil character and I didn't even think there were other characters out there even worse... But, oh boy, you will find them in this book!

Memorable quotes from this book

"She cries for the girl who had never belonged. A girl who tried so hard, harder than anyone else, and still never had anything to show for it."

"Levana had not seen the bodies, but she had seen the bedrooms the next morning, and her first thought was that all that blood would make for a very pretty rouge on her lips."

Thanks for reading!

I'd love to talk books, so let me know what you think about this book/review.