Book Review: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

Pages: 452

Genre: YA Sci-Fi

Pub. Date: February 5, 2013

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Source: Personal Copy

Other Books by Author: Cinder

My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

Goodreads says, "Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She’s trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she’ll be the Commonwealth’s most wanted fugitive.  Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit’s grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn’t know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother’s whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner." 

Scarlet's grandmother has been missing for over a week now and she is beside herself as there are no leads or clues as to her whereabouts. That is until she meets street fighter Wolf who may know what happened to her grandmother.  As it turns out, there's many secrets that her grandmother kept from Scarlet and this is just the beginning.  Meanwhile, there is still the situation of Cinder; she is stuck in jail and Queen Levana plans on executing her.  So, Cinder plans to breakout with fellow prisoner, Thorne, but can she actually evade Queen Levana, who isn't going to let her go easily?  Marissa Meyer's second book in The Lunar Chronicles series, Scarlet, is an exciting science fiction retelling of Little Red Riding Hood. 

Scarlet is as much of a fun protagonist as Cinder was.  She's feisty, determined, and loyal. She won't give up on her grandmother and will do whatever it takes to find her as she is her only family.  Once she meets Wolf though, things start to get complicated. He could have the answers that she has been looking for, but can he be trusted? 

I was so happy to revisit the story of Cinder and see what she was up to in Scarlet.  I felt drawn to her story a bit more than Scarlet's and was rooting for her from the beginning.  Cinder has a lot going on in this book. She has her new Lunar abilities to deal with; plus, the fact that Queen Levana is on the hunt for her along with Prince Kai's people.  Her fugitive adventure definitely kept me on the edge of my seat.

Although I wasn't exactly feeling the romance in Scarlet as much as I hoped, I still enjoyed the many many ups and downs between Wolf and Scarlet.  It was a rather tumultuous relationship that kept me guessing. I also thoroughly enjoyed newcomer, Thorne, and his witty banter with Cinder. Thorne ended up being one of my favorite secondary characters. 

I loved how Meyer included Cinder's story in Scarlet and seamlessly blended the two plot lines along with some tidbits from Prince Kai.  It felt like a sequel, but it felt fresh and new at times, thanks to the new plot of Scarlet and her grandmother's disappearance. 

I can't wait to read Cress, book three in The Lunar Chronicles series, and see how Meyer expertly incorporates the retelling of Rapunzel.  I have never been a fan of re-tellings until I read The Lunar Chronicles. Meyer knows how to do it well and I highly recommend this series to anyone who enjoys sci-fi with a twist.