By Ava Shaffer
Warning: Spoiler alert!
Although Heartless was a little slow getting into the story, I absolutely fell in love with it after Jest was introduced.
The characterization of Jest felt so real, and it was easy to picture a goofy grinning black-haired jester sitting next to me as I read the book. Who could blame Cath for acting as stupidly as she did for such an amazing character.
While speaking of Cath, she is one of the main reasons this book got an 8 out of 10 instead of a perfect 10. Although I absolutely love and appreciate her downfall that lead to what readers recognize as the truly heartless queen of hearts, many of Cath’s actions were just so annoying that it tainted the compelling story line. The fact she followed every order of her parents despite the claim she “didn’t care about her reputation”, and opening the door and running into the pumpkin field irked me so badly. It was one of those moments where you wanted to jump through the book, grab the main character by the shoulders, and shake them, asking why they are making such horrible mistakes.
Despite my annoyance with the main character, I loved absolutely everything else about this book. The chills I got from the description of Lady Peter, the riddles told, and the imagery of the sweets Cath baked all brought the book to life in a way I can only describe as wonderful. Perhaps my favorite part of the book was the connections to the original story of Alice In Wonderland.
As Meyer describes in her author’s note, the introduction of Jest with the “why is a raven like a writing desk”, came directly from Lewis Carroll’s novel. Other such allusions, such as the actions of the hatter, dialogue of the Cheshire Cat, and eventual fate of Cath, the queen of hearts, made the story so enjoyable. I was to the point of being giddy while reading, hanging on to the edge of my seat as I followed the characters through their treacherous journeys and heart-aching tragedies.
After finishing this book, I had to close it and take a deep breath. In a good way. This book left me speechless. Although the ending made me sad, and I wished more than anything that the Sisters could have brought Jest back from the dead, I was pleased with the ending. I’ve read many books that ended happily, but this book was not one of them. In fact, I believe that the sorrowful and heart-aching ending is what made this book so impactful and memorable for me. After all, not all good books end with a happily ever after, sometimes they end with an, “off with his head!”
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