Marissa Meyer

Catherine may be one of the most desired girls in Wonderland and a favorite of the unmarried King, but her interests lie elsewhere. A talented baker, she wants to open a shop and create delectable pastries. But for her mother, such a goal is unthinkable for a woman who could be a queen. At a royal ball where Cath is expected to receive the King's marriage proposal, she meets handsome and mysterious Jest. 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 a secret courtship. Cath is determined to choose her own destiny. But in a land thriving with magic, madness, and monsters, fate has other plans.

Heartless

Jest is out here trying to save her life, she’s lying injured with her broken ankle with a Jabberwock trying to kill her, yet still manages to laugh at a silly though! I love this girl.😂

Selina 

It was like being at the circus. Cath could see it all in her pain-filled delirium. 

For our next act, please welcome Jest and the Jubilant Jabberwock, best acrobatic team in all of Hearts!

‘It’s silly, I know. But you’re always dreaming of roses and lemon trees, and the marquess has such a grand imagination when it comes to stories he tells, and even Cheshire is passionate over tuna and cream. Whereas, to me, life is all numbers and logic. Profit and loss. Practical and safe. I thought it might be nice to let myself just… dream. For once.’

Finally a realistic laugh! This is definitely my favourite way to describe a laugh now.

‘But what I was really thinking was that you talk about him like… like you talk about a decadent piece of chocolate cake.’  A honk of a laugh escaped Cath before she could help it. ‘He is not a piece of cake!’

How can beautiful ever be a comment compared to this?! I felt myself blushing for Cath!!

‘I understand why he’s so drawn to you. You aren’t only talented, but… do you know, you’re extra beautiful when you talk about baking. You know you’re good at it and that knowledge lights you up.’

Catch’s defences shivered and she had to look away, flattered and flustered and…

The King was so jovial, practically skipping beside her. She wanted to put her hands on his shoulders and order him to calm down, but she did her best to be amused by his enthusiasm instead.

 right implies an impossible phase. We hope for 

Ajda Perko

"Dear Catherine. I wanted to kiss you from the moment you awoke in that rose garden" 

She curled her fingers over his. "Kiss me, then" 

amelia <3

Cath blinked. “You must be wrong, Jest." He looked up at her, surprised, and she swooped her arm over the wildflowers. "We can't be standing at the doorway to Chess. Were sitting, after all."

Sara Vasilescu

'You have my heart, Jest. I don't know if you deserve it or not. I can't tell if you're a hero or a villain, but it doesn't seem to matter. Either way, my heart is yours.'

Lina <3

“Tell me, Sir Rook, did you behave this way with all the ladies in Chess too?”

“Which behavior are you referring to? My good manners, my charming witticisms, my beguiling charisma—”

“I was referring to your determination to make me blush, for no other purpose than to laugh at me later.”

Idk Cath is getting on my nerve, just throw the king in the sea it’s not that hard

“She was sure all the world would have noticed the longing in her face, except all the world was focused on her hand locked inside the crook of the King’s elbow.

They reached the dual lines of sea creatures, already partnered with their lobsters. The King was far too exuberant to notice how distracted Cath was.

What would have happened if she had asked Jest to dance instead?

“I have a trick for that too, Lady Catherine.”

He chuckled. “My hat isn’t the only magical thing about me.”

Noticing her, Jest perked up and slid the cards back into some secret pocket.

“Are you ready?” he asked, his whole face lighting up in a way that filled her with warmth and sugar.

CRYING SCREAMING THROWING UP I LOVE FORBIDDEN ROMANCE 

She stiffened, bewildered. “Why would you ask me that?”

“I thought maybe that’s why you’re opposed to the King. I thought you might have already given your heart away to someone else, but maybe … maybe it’s someone your parents wouldn’t be so quick to approve of.”

She started to shake her head. “No, there isn’t anyone else.”

Ellie 

“She spoke without feeling, unburdened by love or dreams or the pain of a broken heart. It was a new day in Hearts, and she was the Queen.“

“A beating heart was skewered on its tip. It was broken, cut almost clean in half by a blackened fissure that was filled with dust and ash.“

“why is a raven like a writing desk?[…] They are both so full of poetry, you see. Darkness and whimsy, nightmares and song.’

‘“But hoping,’ he said, ‘is how the impossible can be possible after all.’“

“I wish for you all the joy this darkened world can employ”

‘“You have my heart, Jest. I don’t know if you deserve it or not. I can’t tell if you’re a hero or a villain, but it doesn’t seem to matter. Either way, my heart is yours.’”

“Her words caught, the confession strangling her. She loved him. Or, she had loved him. She wanted to love him still, though now she wasn’t sure if it had all been riddles and tricks.”

“He would already have her heart if he had only asked for it. She would have been too willing to give it to him.”

‘“The easiest way to steal something,’ Jest murmured, ‘is for it to be given willingly.’”

‘“Good.’ This single, simple word was full of an ocean’s worth of relief.”

Greer Andersson

** spoiler alert **
           4.5 ⭐️
God this book tore my heart out. If anyone is heartless, it’s me. Marissa Meyer’s writing in this book is just so whimsical and magical, it’s so easy to picture scenery and events happening in the book.
She wrote Cath’s descent into madness so well, and although I knew that this book ended in a way that left everyone sobbing their eyes out, I didn’t know how exactly. I don’t think I’ll ever recover.

Camille Osborn-Clark

Hanna Rybchynska

Mary Rose Gibson

Riley Bell

** spoiler alert **
           I really liked Cath off the bat and that she had a special hobby and was more than just another royal gossiper, though she was one. Most people seem to think she’s not worth much more but we see very much that she is through her personal thoughts related to trivial royal things and her defiant attitude against the Jabberwock, although the king doesn’t really see any of this. I only wish we knew more about WHY the king was so infatuated with her and why he didn’t even bother with other girls of the land of Hearts. At least one other girl had some interesting hobby that would amuse the king right? 

I did love how all the favorites of the traditional Wonderland were added in with unique twists. Others said they liked that there wasn’t too much time spent on describing the world we’re all pretty familiar with but I noticed some differences that just felt glossed over. For one, the two lands of the White and Red Queens (the Red Queen obviously is NOT the Queen or Hearts but HOW??) which is a different part of the Looking Glass and a different part of time, and apparently much MORE magical. Back in the land of Hearts, we hear a tidbit from somebody from ~Clubs~ (I don’t remember exactly) and I wish we knew a bit more of the dynamic of the royal lands between the 4 suits. Other than that there was just the perfect amount of magic and amusement and whimsy without doing too much since we’ve seen most of it already in other adaptations. 

We all know that it’s meant to end with the traditional, horrifying and violent Queen of Hearts and I was eager to find out how we were going to get there. The ending did feel a bit rushed but I think it still makes sense. Cath had all of her dreams coming true available at her fingertips but gone in an instant. Instead of dealing with the turmoil and loss she let it fester into hate and disgust. She allowed these emotions to overcome her fairly quickly which does show some type of weakness despite how strong her heart was supposed to be. But I guess that is the worst scenario for anybody that experiences loss and that’s just exactly what happened to our beloved Queen of Hearts. 

I certainly hoped for a happy ending anyway because the idea of being with Jest and having her bakery and ending a war was quite interesting and would have made a thrilling story by itself. But unfortunately that’s not what we were given in the best of ways. So if a happy ending is what you’re looking for you won’t get it here. If you’re looking for a read that will twist your heart with hope and despair fueled by magic in the wonderful world of Wonderland then this book is just for you!

ouch, no voy a ver mas alicia en el pais de las maravillas, tipo la reina de corazones de ahi esta necia y siento q me voy a olvidar de su backstory y solo ver lo malo de ella. Hest te amo y te odio peter. Cuervo te re banco. Y PORQUE MDA CATH TENIAS Q CRUZAR ESA PUERTA

Piliii

Nabila Azahra

ok this is only the first week of january 2018 and i already read 2 books with stupid main character



1. first half of the book was so freaking slow
2. this catherine bih didn't want to speak up for herself and that made me angry. like just say no and run the hell out of town with your boyfriend or something?! instead she kept whining and didn't do anything about it. 
3. to mary anne, i completely understand your desicion, you're such a good RATIONAL friend ily catherine was just being stupid
4. and catherine's parents.... whatever they're just shitty parents
(view spoiler)[5. my dearest gay pal, hatter i like you ok i thought you're pretty cool
6. literally what irks me the most is: that catherine bitch became a pyscho because jest's death. like i get it you love him so much and it kills you but wtf you. barely. knew. him.
7. i pity the king tbh (hide spoiler)]

overall, if you're looking for a book that involves insta-love and a HOT guy, congrats this book is for you!

gülefşan 

bu kitapta emeği geçen herkesin amk beni bu kadar üzmeye hakkınız yok

liana

Annalissa Powner 

“murder, martyr, monarch, mad"

well that... that was a whirlwind of a books!
i was never a giant fan or alice in wonderland, and byt that i mean i liked it but it wasn't a book i ever fangirled over so when i saw heartless i thought "eh" plus i'll admit the size turned me off.
THANK GOODNESS I CHANGED MY MIND!
this was beautifully done, i mean it was so perfect for an alice in wonderland themed story i felt as if they were written by the same mind, it flowed so well and the tone fit perfectly.
because i had never really intended to read this story i didn't read the back and went in more or less completely blind, that made the story so much better.
i feel like this is one of those books the less you know going in the better, you get to watch so much character development that if you don't know what you're looking for it makes it all feel more real.

all in all i loved this book and would highly recommend it. i also recommend tissues when reading it.

Katelyn B

** spoiler alert **
           I loved this backstory into the history of the Queen of Hearts before she was Queen before she gave away her heart. It is a story of forbidden love. Before she was a Queen she was a beautiful girl who loved sweets, wanted to open a bakery with her best friend and had no interest in being Queen. Catherine Pinkerton had the eye of the king and her parents wanted nothing more than to see her married to him. But then she met Jest and fell in love. Which was the start of changing her forever.

chloe rae

*2018 re-read:

Man, that ending gets me every time.
I didn’t enjoy the writing as much this time around. And I feel like the book felt too long. It takes a while for the story to really get started.
But JEST. I LOVE HIM. Still one of my favorite male characters ever. He’s the best part of this book. 


Original review: 

I loved this! I didn't know I'd love this as much as I did!
I didn't like the ending, but I believe that's just me being me. Going in, you pretty much know the outcome (at least I did) but I was still pretty bummed.
The characters were stellar. Catherine, the lead character, got on my nerves a couple times but I think she was supposed to. She's not perfect and she's flawed but she's also brave and passionate and I really enjoyed her journey.
Ok, but lets talk about The Joker. He was the best character EVER. I'm in love with him and he may be one of my favorite male characters of all time. I feel like I understood him and he was just so well written. He's THE BEST. UGH.
I'm not sure why, but I feel like the world could've been a bit more fleshed out. Her descriptions didn't take me away as they did in the Lunar Chronicles. I wanted more.
This was great; I couldn't put it down! It read quick and I just love Marissa Meyer. Glad I finally picked this up!

This book broke me. The fact that Cath was just a girl who wanted to open and bakery with her best friend and be with the love of her life is heartbreaking after that ending. And other than the ending the writing style is magical and it's very creative with creating backstories for the character I genuinely love this book with all my heart and 100% recommend it

Salma

marissa meyer is a genius for her writing actually making people (me) believe this would be a hea.. 

romi

ending spoiler //!

marissa meyer is a genius for her writing actually making people (me) believe this would be a hea.. 

destiny

** spoiler alert **
           maybe like 3.5? anyways i love a good hero to villain pipeline but rip jest you will forever be missed and i wish what happened with catherine wasn’t at the cost of your life.

Ally

The beginning was horrendous. From the start to around page 300 was around 2 stars, I was just NOT feeling the book. From then on it became a 4 star book and the last 30 pages was 5 stars. It was a quick read but I would not recommend it. I liked how everything connected in the end and loved how stone-cold Cath became. I think if I read Alice in Wonderland before this I would like it more.

aliza

** spoiler alert **
           i dont think im ever going to recover from the damage this book has single handedly caused me.
why did my poor baby have to die ? i get WHY. BUT ALSO WHYYYY ?!!!
i kept hoping till the end that somehow from somewhere he’ll come back, alive.
 
& my poor catherine :( she was finally happy, finally had a choice even if for a little while and Jest dying took that away from her i want to give her a hug so bad. Im taken with these characters way too much at this point i felt for the raven, jest, cath & even the annoying hatta.

i loved it.

Addy

Expected this book to shatter my heart but was disappointed that it didn't. 
The writing style also didn't sit well with me but I love the aesthetic and the wonderland atmosphere of this book.

she just wanted to open a bakery with her best friend and be with jest :(((

Long before she was the Queen of Hearts, Catherine Pinkerton 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.From New York Times bestselling author of The Lunar Chronicles, Marissa Meyer, comes a vision of Wonderland like none you've seen before, telling the untold story of the girl who would the notorious Queen of Hearts.

💌

I LOVED IT
ahhh what a great book! Got me out of the reading slump super quickly and I was really immersed in the universe!! holy shit i love Marissa Meyers writing

garnet

reread it! hoped for a little more character depth for Jest but the world-building was so amazing that i can overlook it lol. remember it being much more impactful, but still wonderful!

From Marissa Meyer, the #1 New York Times–bestselling story of Wonderland's most notorious villain: the Queen of Hearts. Long before she was the terror of Wonderland—the infamous Queen of Hearts—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 of the Lunar Chronicles dazzles us with a prequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Praise for Heartless: “In Heartless, the nonsense that is Wonderland gets a reverential makeover, full of heart and its own idiosyncratic character.” —Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked and After Alice “What Gregory Maguire did for the Wicked Witch, Meyer does for Lewis Carroll’s Queen of Hearts, tracing her arc from a teen with dreams of owning a bakery into a murderous madwoman.” —People magazine “Will make readers grin like the Cheshire Cat.” —Common Sense Media "Jest and Catherine have a playfully clandestine relationship. . . . Meyer’s worldbuilding is extensive and impressive." —Publishers Weekly “The author’s best fantasy yet. . . . Meyer has woven all the elements of darkness and light, fate and free will, and love and hatred into an unforgettable story of the evolution of the Red Queen from a young girl who dreamed of true love and freedom to a madwoman best remembered for the phrase 'Off with his head.' If you only read one fractured fairy tale this year, make it Heartless. A must-have title.” —School Library Journal, starred review Praise for Marissa Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles series: #1 New York Times Bestselling Series, USA Today Bestseller, Publishers Weekly Bestseller, National Indie Bestseller “Marissa Meyer rocks the fractured fairy tale genre.” —The Seattle Times “Prince Charming among the cyborgs.” —The Wall Street Journal Don't miss more from Marissa Meyer: The Lunar Chronicles: Cinder Scarlet Cress Winter Stars Above Fairest The Wires and Nerve series: Wires and Nerve: Volume 1 Wires and Nerve: Volume 2 Renegades

praline

i actually dnf’d this book, i only marked it as read because i was 73% in and the hours i spent reading it can never be gotten back. this book was a drag and painful to read, i wasn’t excited to flip to the next page or to know what happened next. i have genuine, deep seated beef with the entire book because the premise was cute but it fell so flat and i resorted to skimming through the pages when i was halfway but struggled to even do that. the world building was sorely lacking and i’m sure the plot line didn’t know what it was let alone the reader. the main character had next to no personality and didn’t stand out in anyway. i felt no attachment to the characters like i usually would when i’m immersed in a good book, they were all forgettable. this book was boring, that’s what it was, boring.

The romance and chemistry between Cath and Jest was definitely there and I just loved how Jest actually showed emotion and feeling. In a lot of romance books I’ve read the guy love interest is really “mysterious” and doesn’t show any emotion of feeling at all. But Jest does, which makes him lovable and realistic. 

I am in love with the way Marissa Meyer writes her books and will ABSOLUTELY be reading more from her.

The ending of this book practically broke me, it’s going to take me so long to recover from this read.

WOAH

This was a lot better than I expected it to be!

The romance and chemistry between Cath and Jest was definitely there and I just loved how Jest actually showed emotion and feeling. In a lot of romance books I’ve read the guy love interest is really “mysterious” and doesn’t show any emotion of feeling at all. But Jest does, which makes him lovable and realistic. 

I am in love with the way Marissa Meyer writes her books and will ABSOLUTELY be reading more from her.

The ending of this book practically broke me, it’s going to take me so long to recover from this read.

Would 100% recommend! 4.5⭐️

Heartless

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