Reader Confessions: I Didn’t Love Heartless by Marissa Meyer

Welcome to Reader Confessions, where I spill my unfiltered, bookish thoughts — and sometimes, those thoughts might ruffle a few pages. Today’s confession? I didn’t love Heartless by Marissa Meyer.

This book is beloved by so many readers. It’s hyped as a lush, whimsical prequel to Alice in Wonderland, telling the tragic backstory of the infamous Queen of Hearts. It’s supposed to be full of magic, romance, and that perfect mix of whimsy and darkness… but for me? It just didn’t hit the mark.

Here's why

• It was slooooow. Painfully slow. The first half felt like trudging through molasses in ankle-deep boots — every scene stretched just a little too long, every interaction dragged its feet. I kept waiting for the momentum to kick in, but it never truly caught its stride until far too late. There were days I’d set it down “for a quick break” and somehow find myself doing literally anything else — laundry, reorganizing my spice rack, staring at the ceiling — before I felt motivated enough to pick it back up again.

• The romance felt… flat. And that’s the real heartbreak here, because I wanted to swoon. I wanted fireworks, stolen glances that made my chest ache, and banter that left me grinning like an idiot. Instead, Cath and Jest’s dynamic felt polite. Nice. Safe. Like two people who would exchange Christmas cards rather than risk ruining their friendship. There were moments that could have been electric, but the spark fizzled before it ever caught fire.

• And the predictability? Brutal. From the halfway mark, I could see the ending looming like a road sign a mile away. Every twist was more of a gentle curve, every “big reveal” something I had already braced for. When the climax finally hit, I didn’t gasp — I just sighed, because I’d been standing there with my umbrella open the whole time, waiting for the rain I knew was coming.

What I did like:

• Meyer’s descriptions are gorgeous — the kind of prose that makes you feel like you’ve stepped into a living painting. You can see every shade of the whimsical world, taste the sugar-dusted pastries, hear the hum of the market stalls. Her Wonderland isn’t just a setting; it’s a feast for the senses, and she serves it up in decadent spoonfuls.

• And then there’s Jest. Oh, Jest. If characters were constellations, he’d be the brightest star in the night sky. He was everything you want in a mysterious stranger — charming, quick-witted, carrying secrets you need to unravel. He breathed life into every scene he touched. Honestly, every time he left the page, I felt like the air had been sucked out of the room. He had the potential to be an all-time favorite, the kind of character who lingers in your head long after the last chapter.

Final thoughts

Look, I get it — Heartless is beloved by a lot of people. And maybe in another universe, I would be sipping tea with the Cheshire Cat, nodding along with the hype. But in this universe? I’m side-eyeing every single person who told me, “Oh, you’re going to LOVE this.” No, I didn’t love it. I suffered. I clawed my way through pages of pretty prose that led me straight into a plot I could see coming from chapter three. And when that ending hit? Instead of sobbing into my pillow like I was apparently supposed to, I closed the book, stared into the void, and whispered, “That’s it?”

Sometimes the hype machine wins. Sometimes it crashes and burns in a glorious explosion of disappointment. Heartless for me was the latter — and I’ll die on this hill, crown crooked, frosting smeared, heart very much intact.