 |
| Welcome to A Week of Wonderland in celebration of the maddest world of all... not to mention the launch of Marissa Meyer's HEARTLESS! Join our tea party daily, whether it's your birthday or your unbirthday! Check out our daily schedule of events! Stop back all week long for fun guest posts, exciting giveaways, reviews, and more! Twitter | Pinterest |
O P E N I N G L I N E:
Cath held the tray with the same reverence one might reserve for the King's crown. She refused to take her eyes from the tarts as she padded across the kitchen floor until the tray's edge landed on the baker's table with a satisfying thump. The tarts trembled for a moment more before falling still, flawless and gleaming.
Setting the towels aside, she picked through the curled, sugared lemon peels laid out on parchment and arranged them like rose blossoms on the tarts, settling each strip into the still-warm center. The aromas of sweet citrus and buttery, flaky crust curled beneath her nose.
She stepped back to admire her work.
(pg. 1, US ARC edition)
“Hoping is how the impossible can be possible after all.”
~Cheshire, HEARTLESS
If the opening hook of this novel didn't already tell you otherwise, YOU WILL BE SO HUNGRY WHEN YOU READ HEARTLESS!!! Cath is a baker, and she makes the most delectable treats in all of Hearts. Her dream is to open her own bakery...but her father is a Marquess, and her job is to marry well. The King of Hearts intends to marry her, much to her mother's job and her own chagrin. How can she open a bakery and live a simple, fulfilling life if she must do as her family expects?
HEARTLESS is the backstory revealing how Cath grows up to become the terrifying Queen of Hearts. Since it's the story of how a sweet, innocent girl becomes am evil, heartless queen, it is, of course, more of a tragedy. Don't go into this expecting Happily Ever After because you won't get it. Cath evolved so much throughout the book, and you'll want only the best for her.... and be horrified at what she's forced to become.
Fair warning: You're going to want to re-watch the animated Disney movie when you finish reading this. AND the live-action version--especially the sequel. I really liked the way Marissa Meyer brought Wonderland to life. She took so many bits and bobbles from the books and brought them to life or mentioned them in asides in a way that fully built her world. From musical flowers to drinks that make you grow small to nattering flamingos to the legendary Vorpal Sword, this book has it all. I especially love all the allusions to Time (Also a reason I enjoyed the new live-action movie so much! Both create a character out of a single sentence!!) There is just the right amount of zany and whimsy in HEARTLESS; it truly feels like we're in Wonderland!
All of the characters are deliciously fleshed out, too, from Hatta the not-yet Mad Hatter to dark, mysterious Jest to the poor, silly King of Hearts, to the future Queen of Hearts herself. Everyone has a story and existed before Alice found Wonderland, and learning their histories makes you want to return to Alice's Wonderland and see everything through new eyes.
HEARTLESS is a standalone, but I hope Meyer comes up with a zany way to bring readers back, be it with Alice or even further forward in Time. I want to see all of these characters again now that they've embraced their destinies!!!
~*~
C O N T E N T R A T I N G S
Content Ratings: highlight between ( ) for details
Romance: PG ( Kissing )
Language: G ( Cath is sometimes called a Strumpet )
Violence: PG ( There is a bit of a bloody scene at the end. Cath dreams about a tree with bleeding hearts for rosebuds. She often thinks, "Off with their heads! )
Violence: PG ( There is a bit of a bloody scene at the end. Cath dreams about a tree with bleeding hearts for rosebuds. She often thinks, "Off with their heads! )
Other: --
~*~
C O V E R D E S I G N:
But basically...I'm in LOVE!!!!
(You ALSO get a special peek at the gorgeous UK cover!)
O F F I C I A L I N F O:
Title: HEARTLESS
Author: Marissa Meyer
Release Date: Nov. 8, 2016
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends // Macmillan
SUMMARY:
Long before she was the terror of Wonderland—the infamous Queen of Hearts—she was just a girl who wanted to fall in love.
Long
before she was the terror of Wonderland, she was just a girl who wanted
to fall in love. Catherine may be one of the most desired girls in
Wonderland, and a favorite of the unmarried King of Hearts, but her
interests lie elsewhere. A talented baker, all she wants is to open a
shop with her best friend. But according to her mother, such a goal is
unthinkable for the young woman who could be the next queen.
Then
Cath meets Jest, the handsome and mysterious court joker. For the first
time, she feels the pull of true attraction. At the risk of offending
the king and infuriating her parents, she and Jest enter into an
intense, secret courtship. Cath is determined to define her own destiny
and fall in love on her terms. But in a land thriving with magic,
madness, and monsters, fate has other plans.
In her first stand-alone teen novel, the New York Times-bestselling author dazzles us with a prequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.
~*~
****Giveaway*****
Enter now!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
During A Week of Wonderland,
We're giving away a book of YOUR CHOICE
from the event!
It could be HEARTLESS!
We're giving away a book of YOUR CHOICE
from the event!
It could be HEARTLESS!
This giveaway is INTERNATIONAL to any country that Book Depository ships to. You can also claim an e-book as a prize; it doesn't have to be a physical copy!
You must be at least 13 years old to enter or have a parent's permission!
Enter now!
Comments
Post a Comment
Thanks for taking the time to stop and comment! I appreciate it more than I can say. I try to respond to each one!