For fans of Wicked: Don't miss this #1 New York Times –bestselling romantasy of Wonderland's most notorious villain: the Queen of Hearts. 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 Heartless , her first stand-alone novel, the New York Times -bestselling author dazzles us with a prequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. Gr 8 Up—The author's best fantasy yet. In her inspired reimagining of Lewis Carroll's inimitable adventures in Wonderland, Meyer has explored the world that existed before Alice fell down the rabbit hole. All Lady Catherine wants to do is open her own bakery with the help of her maid. She has no wish to wear beautiful dresses or go to balls, and she certainly has no desire whatsoever to marry the good-natured, bumbling, childlike king. But that seems to be her fate until she meets the king's handsome and mysterious new joker, Jest. Although his mission is to steal Lady Catherine's heart and take it to the White Queen, who would use it to overcome the enemies of her realm, he falls in love with her instead. Employing all the best aspects of Carroll's book—the White Rabbit, croquet with hedgehogs and flamingos, suits of cards, and the Jabberwocky—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. VERDICT If you only read one fractured fairy tale this year, make it Heartless. A must-have title.—Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Public Library, AK #1 NEW YORK TIMES Bestseller! A Publishers Weekly Bestseller! "In Heartless, the nonsense that is Wonderland gets a reverential makeover, full of heart and its own idiosyncratic character."--Gregory Maguire, 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 "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 Marissa Meyer is the #1 New York Times –bestselling author of The Lunar Chronicles series, the Renegades trilogy, the Gilded Duology, the Wires and Nerve graphic novels, and The Lunar Chronicles Coloring Book. Her first standalone novel, Heartless , was also a #1 New York Times –bestseller, and she has also written two standalone rom-coms, Instant Karma and With a Little Luck . Her first middle-grade novel is Let It Glow , written with Joanne Levy. Marissa hosted a popular podcast, "The Happy Writer," and her book of the same name shares her writing tips and experiences. She lives in Tacoma, Washington, with her husband and their two daughters. marissameyer.com Heartless By Marissa Meyer Feiwel and Friends Copyright © 2016 Rampion Books All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-250-04465-5 CHAPTER 1 Three luscious lemon tarts glistened up at Catherine. She reached her towel-wrapped hands into the oven, ignoring the heat that enveloped her arms and pressed against her cheeks, and lifted the tray from the hearth. The tarts' sunshine filling quivered, as if glad to be freed from the stone chamber. 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 be