The Lunar Chronicles, continued

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer.  Feiwel and Friends, 2013.  452 pages.  Age/interest level: 14-up.   

As a sequel, Scarlet picks up right where Cinder ended.  Linh Cinder, now a fugitive fleeing New Bejiing, is struggling to accept the reality she has only just learned.

. . . she wasn’t just a cyborg anymore.  She was Lunar now.  She could make people see things that weren’t there. Feel things they shouldn’t feel.  Do things they didn’t mean to do . . . the thought both sickened and frightened her . . .”

Not only is she Lunar, Cinder is also the long-lost heir to the Lunar throne.  And as if that is not enough, her evil aunt, Queen Levana, knows of her existence and is determined to destroy her at all costs.

Enter Scarlet Benoit, the 18-year-old red hoodie-wearing namesake of this second book in The Lunar Chronicles.  With flaming red hair that prompts her nickname and a temper to match it, Scarlet is in a predicament.  Her grandmother has disappeared, yet no one seems to share her conviction that this disappearance reeks of foul-play.  No one, except for a mysterious street-fighter with a rather interesting name: Wolf.

Aided by Wolf, Scarlet begins a quest that will lead her from her small French farm to Paris.  Along the way, she finds that there is much more to her grandmother’s disappearance than she initially suspected:

The Lunar heir was a myth, a conspiracy, a legend . . . how could her diligent, proud grandmother, living in small-town Rieux, possibly be involved?  But she couldn’t be entirely sure of anything anymore . . .

There is more romance in Scarlet, than in Cinder, and there is also more violence.  The reason for the lupine connotations of Wolf and his mysterious “pack” are not exactly pretty, as readers will discover near the end of the book.  As in Cinder, mild language is used only once.

While discerning readers will be quick to piece together and predict much of the story, especially in regards to Wolf, Scarlet remains a very enjoyable YA read. Like Cinder, it ends on a note that will send readers hurrying for Cress, the third book in The Lunar Chronicles.  When it comes to a continuing series, this is one that is sure to be enjoyed by teenage fantasy, dystopia, and science fiction lovers.

Worldview/Moral Value 3.5 (out of 5)

Literary/Artistic Value 3.5 (out of 5)