I may not have mentioned this in any of my blogs before, but I love the book series The Lunar Chronicles. The series was written by Marissa Meyer, and her science fiction twist on classic fairy tales is unprecedented.
So, who is Queen Levana, you may be asking because you read the title of this blog and are curious to know who I’m talking about. To tell you that, I will provide a visual and give you a quick summary of the stories for you.
In the Lunar Chronicles, there is a race of people that live on the moon called Lunars. They developed special powers that made them able to make others perceive their appearance differently. Because of this, beauty was a huge part of their culture, and those who didn’t have beauty often fabricated it for themselves.
Levana was the youngest of the two daughters of the king and queen. Her sister, Channary, was vain and shallow, and often flirted with the guards of the palace and often courted many of the men of the court. When their parents died, Channary became queen, and it was quickly shown how much she sucked at being queen. She didn’t care for politics or the economy; she just wanted to throw extravagent parties and have affairs with people.
Levana, however, had more of an aptitude for political and economical choices. However, she was often ignored by the court. She had a deep hatred for her sister, and Channary often treated her with loathing.
We find out that when the two were little, Channary coaxed Levana into the fireplace and burned her face severely, leaving her face permanently disfigured. She used her glamor (what they call their powers) to give herself a more beautiful appearance. Even then, she was not more beautiful than Channary. And she hated her for it.
Levana soon develops an infatuation for one of the guards of the palace, and tries to court him. She finds out that he has a wife, who is pregnant with their first child. However, the wife dies during childbirth, and Levana uses his grief to make him fall for her. They marry each other and Levana takes in his child, whose name is Winter.
Channary gives birth to a child as well, who she names Selene. Levana, out of jealousy, plots to kill Channary, and uses her powers to manipulate a guard into doing it. The same night, she also uses him to manipulate her husband, so that he doesn’t come to power. Levana still cannot become queen, however: Selene is still alive. She decides to set her nursery on fire, positive that the fire kills her (it doesn’t, but that involves spoilers so I won’t get too much into it). Becuase Selene is dead, Levana becomes queen of Luna.
Quickly, she uses her newfound place of power to begin plotting against earth. She constructs an army of supersoldiers who are half wolf and creates a bioweapon to cause sickness on Earth. Her plan is to take over the entire Earth and rule as the queen.
Levana is a ruthless character, and we are made certain of that. She was raised in such a way that she does not know what it is like to show true kindness to anyone. She is manipulative, and clever. She has a resentment for her own sister because of the accident which caused her disfiguring. And not once are we given a chance to sympathize for her, which just makes her even better as a villain, in my mind.
Overall, Levana is an amazing characer. 10/10 for great characterization of a villain, Mrs. Meyers.
I haven’t finished reading the Lunar Chronicles yet, but I love that series. Thank you making this blog post!