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- Title: Scarlet
- Author: Marissa Meyer
- Narrator: Rebecca Soler
- Length: 11:00:00
- Version: Abridged
- Release Date: 05/02/2013
- Publisher: Macmillan Audio
- Genre: Teen, Fairy Tales & Folklore
- ISBN13: 9.78E+12
The first time I heard Rebecca Soler’s voice bring Scarlet to life, I was driving through the winding roads of rural France, where the red-tiled roofs and sunflower fields created the perfect backdrop for this futuristic reimagining of Little Red Riding Hood. Much like the grandmother’s stories I’d heard in Oaxaca, Soler’s narration carries that same magical quality of making you lean closer, as if you might miss some crucial whisper of the tale.
Marissa Meyer’s Scarlet is a revelation in the Lunar Chronicles series, blending sci-fi elements with fairy tale foundations in a way that feels both fresh and comfortingly familiar. As someone who’s spent years studying how stories travel across cultures, I’m fascinated by how Meyer transplants the essence of these European folk tales into a futuristic landscape where androids and lunar politics exist alongside the primal themes of trust, danger, and self-discovery.
Soler’s performance is nothing short of masterful. She gives Scarlet Benoit this wonderful combination of rural French stubbornness and youthful vulnerability that makes you believe in her instantly. When Scarlet argues with the mysterious street fighter Wolf (whose voice Soler renders with just the right balance of danger and allure), you can practically smell the diesel and sweat of their Parisian underbelly setting. The way Soler shifts between Scarlet’s determined tones and Wolf’s growling intensity reminds me of those perfect moments in oral storytelling where the teller becomes all characters at once.
What struck me most about this listening experience was how Meyer and Soler together create such vivid sense memories. There’s a scene where Scarlet remembers her grandmother’s vegetable stew that had me pulling over to find the nearest French bistro. The description of the steam rising from the bowl as Scarlet sits at her grandmother’s table is so tactile in Soler’s delivery that I could feel the warmth of my own abuela’s kitchen in Mexico City.
The audio production shines particularly in the action sequences. During Cinder’s prison break (yes, our cyborg heroine returns with vengeance), the pacing of Soler’s narration matches the heart-pounding urgency of the escape. I found myself gripping my steering wheel tighter during these passages, the sound design creating an almost cinematic experience that would be lost on the printed page.
As a travel writer, I particularly appreciated how Meyer and Soler build this future Europe. The French countryside isn’t just background – it breathes with its own personality, from the creaking floorboards of the Benoit farmhouse to the electric hum of Rieux’s hover traffic. It’s worldbuilding that reminds me of crossing borders where ancient and modern exist side by side, much like the blend of fairy tale and sci-fi here.
If I had one critique, it’s that some of the political machinations of the Lunar court occasionally slow the momentum. While Soler does her best with Queen Levana’s scenes, there were moments when I wished we could return to Scarlet and Wolf’s more immediate, earthy storyline. That said, these sections pay off in the larger series arc, and Soler’s icy portrayal of Levana is chillingly effective.
For listeners who enjoy retellings with teeth (pun intended), this stands alongside Naomi Novik’s Uprooted or Neil Gaiman’s The Sleeper and the Spindle. But Meyer’s particular blend of sci-fi and fairy tale, enhanced by Soler’s dynamic narration, creates something uniquely compelling. The romance between Scarlet and Wolf develops with just the right amount of tension – Soler makes you feel every hesitant glance and accidental touch.
What makes this audiobook special is how it honors the oral tradition at the heart of all fairy tales while propelling the story into new territory. There’s a moment when Scarlet remembers her grandmother telling the original Little Red Riding Hood story, and Soler’s voice takes on this haunting, fireside quality that transported me back to those Oaxacan evenings. It’s a beautiful nod to how these stories survive through telling and retelling.
May your listening journeys be as rich as the stories that inspire them,
Marcus Rivera
