[ENG&RU] Lunar chronicles #3.1: "Fairest" by Marissa Mayer. Book review

English

Hello, friends! Although I don't often read the various supplements, short story collections, prequels, sequels and spin-offs to book series I couldn't get past the prequel to the already beloved Lunar Chronicles series. I read it after the main books, but it's better to read it before the final part, "Winter".

All books with links to my other reviews:
1 Cinder
2 Scarlet
3 Cress
3.1 Fairest: Levana's Story
4 Winter
4.1 Stars Above

General information

Year of publication: 2015
Country: USA
Original language: English
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy, Retelling, Science Fiction, Romance
Age Range: 12 and up
Pages: 222

Photo source

Plot

This time the author tells us the story of the main antagonist, Queen Levana, who is 15 years old at the start of the book. The plot begins with the death of the protagonist's parents and the coronation of her older sister Channary. Over the course of the narrative, the author recounts Levana's difficult childhood, her relationship with her sister, her first love, and her marriage. In addition, the background to some of the important events that take place already in the main series are described in detail in this book. In the pages of the book, we also meet the characters of Lunar Chronicles we are already familiar with at a young age.

Characters

While reading the main books of "Lunar Chronicles" series. Queen Levana seemed evil and insidious, but faceless. Reading "Fairest" helped to form a more holistic view of the character and motivations of the ruler of the Moon. Levana's story is the story of a person who was abused as a child and, due to a lack of love and understanding, never recovered. Growing up, the heroine becomes selfish, fixated on appearances and power, jealous and envious. For the sake of her own goals, she is prepared to commit deception, manipulation and murder. For every wrong-doing Levana always finds an excuse, although most of the actions she commits are impossible to justify.
The rest of the characters in the book play rather episodic roles, helping to better reveal the character of the protagonist.

My impressions

Since I wasn't expecting much from a story about the main antagonist of "Lunar Chronicles", I was pleasantly surprised by the book. Marissa Mayer managed to create an interesting image of the evil, crazy and selfish queen and reveal her story. Moreover, this book helps to connect the whole series into a single puzzle and close all the gaps in the story.
The biggest drawback of this book is that about 200 pages of information is quite useful - not enough for a complete book. Therefore, in my opinion, it would be logical to put this information in parts in the books of the main series or to release it in a collection of stories called "Stars Above".

My rating - 9/10.