5/5 Stars 
 [Review contains mild spoilers] 
 I thoroughly enjoyed this Alice in Wonderland prequel! I went into it with kind of low expectations, because although I love Marissa Meyer, I've been kind of losing faith in retellings because of how mediocre some of the newer ones have been. However, I was totally blown away by this book. I forgot how great of a writer Marissa is, and how well-developed her worlds and characters are. I absolutely loved Cath, Jest, and all of the other characters. 
 Even though I knew that this was a Queen of Hearts origin story, I found myself wishing that the book would end happily for Cath and Jest. Their relationship was so great, and the way things ended made me so sad for them (honestly from now on whenever I see anything Alice in Wonderland/Queen of Hearts related I'm gonna cry) but it was a fitting ending and origin story for the queen. The white roses and the "off with his head!" were included so well into the story, and it made me see the Queen of Hearts with completely new eyes. 
 Another part of this book that I loved was the way the many Alice in Wonderland references were incorporated without feeling forced or strange. I was apprehensive about characters like the Cheshire cat being involved because I thought it would be strange, but Marissa weaved them in so well! Other references, like the raven and the writing desk and the white roses (which will forever make me cry) were also weaved seamlessly into the story. It reminded me of just how good Marissa Meyer is at writing retellings, making them original and unexpected while also drawing from the source material in creative ways! 
 I really loved this book, and it was one of my favorites I read in 2016. I'm so excited to see what's to come from Marissa Meyer in the next year, because I will most definitely be picking it up!