Fairest by Marissa Meyer

Fairy Tale. 222 Pages. 4 Stars

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.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.

My Review:

It was wonderful to step into the Lunar world once more, even if for so short a time. I enjoyed seeing Levana’s life unfold and the events referred to in the novels click into place. It was intriguing to view the events through Levana’s perspective, to see what she was truly guilty of and what she was not and how she justified her choices. I especially enjoyed seeing Winter’s mother and her father’s genuine, true love for both his wife and his daughter. The last pages almost made me pity Levana, despite her deep wish to avoid pity. She knew what she had done. I only wonder if she ever felt regret. A lovely addition to the series, though I would not recommend reading it before at least the first three books if not all four. 

More:

Book 1 in the Lunar Chronicles is Cinder (5 Stars)More: 

Book 2 is Scarlet (5 Stars)

Book 3 is Cress (5 Stars)

Book 4 is Winter (5 Stars)

Book 4.5 Stars Above (5 Stars) is a collection of short stories which includes: 

• The Little Android 0.6 (5 Stars)
• Glitches 0.5 (5 Stars)
• The Queen’s Army 1.5 (5 Stars)
• Carswell’s Guide to Being Lucky 3.1 (4 Stars)
• The Keeper 
• After Sunshine Passes By 
• The Princess and the Guard 
• The Mechanic 
• Something Old, Something New 

*Note: The first four short stories are listed separately on Goodreads in addition to Stars Above. The last five were new material and are only available as a part of Stars Above. There are individual mini-reviews for the first four short stories.

I have reviewed each of the above on Goodreads. Follow the links to find more info on the books and then scroll down to see the reviews. Mine is among them.

The main four books should be read in order. I wouldn’t read any of the shorts until at least after Cinder, Book 1. You could read them all in order, regardless of length, but it isn’t necessary to read the shorts or even Fairest (although, I think reading Fairest between books 3 and 4 made me appreciate book 4 more). The Little Android is the only story that is not related to the others at all and can be read at any point.

On GraceBought

If you missed it, check out my thoughts on the previous books here and stay tuned next week for the review of the next book in the series!

Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress