Title: Cinder [The Lunar Chronicles 1]
Author: Marissa Meyer
Genre: Young Adult, Science Fiction, Fairytale Retelling
Length: 390
Rating: 5 Star
Series Review: Novelas, 1, 2, 3, 4
Description/Synopsis:
Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.
Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.
Review – MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS
I love love loved this book. I am glad people didn’t shove this down my throat or I might never have picked it up!
The plot of this book is a retelling of Cinderella, in a new science fiction kind of light. There is even some Anastasia in there too, though I don’t know if that part was intentional. I avoided this book for ages because who on earth would want to read about cyborgs? Not me. I am not a big cyborg/science fiction person. I will have to let go of this kind of thinking because this book made me so happy! It doesn’t completely follow Cinderella, but the basic plot points are there. Evil stepmother, the handsome prince who doesn’t know her full story, a ball she can’t attend, and loosing a ‘shoe.’ The we have a plague ravaging the land, cyborgs, and people who live on the moon called Lunars. Its all very exciting.
I thought all the characters in the book were really well developed and had depth, even if they were only in there for a moment. For example we meet a woman briefly in the market were Cinder works and she catches the plague, and even though we know nothing of her I thought her telling everyone to run and telling her son to stay away was touching. Everyone acts like this when they get the plague, so concerned for each other. They scatter like ants.
I think Cinder is one of my favorite characters ever, she is just so cool in a way that she doesn’t even try. She is just herself and that’s good enough for her. The fact that she also pretty much has google inside her head was awesome. I thought her relationship with the very dreamy Kai was just so sweet. He is so kind to her despite her very flustered state pretty much everytime he is around and their love just grew throughout the story. The part were he was asking her why she had been ignoring all his coms was just so funny and so was their first meeting and she has grease all over her face. Iko was just so hysterical and really had the biggest personality out of everyone in the story. I hated her stepmother with a passion, and hated one sister and loved the other.
Now this is the end of the spoiler free section of this posts so move on if you haven’t read it. All you need to know that this was a great book and a great starting book for big things that are to come.
Now, into more spoiler related things.
One thing that annoyed me was that I picked up on the fact that Cinder was the missing princess just way too quickly. The very first time it was mentioned I got it. I think it was like page 41 or something. Thats just a bit too early to be working this stuff out I think. Another thing that really annoyed me was the fact that Cinder hated Lunars so much. Yes I get that they are in a war and they have scary powers and all that junk but I mean come on. If anyone understands what its like to be treated and looked at different because you are not quite the same as everyone else Cinder does, and I think that was just wrong of her.
I was so so so so sad when Iko was destroyed and Cinder was just cradling her little personality chip. If her stepmother doesn’t eventually die a painful death I will be so so so mad.
But the sadness doesn’t stop there for her, oh no. The sister dies and she was so damn close! I was so angry for her. Make that two sad chips of sadness. I thougt Cinder was finally going to get a happy moment after all the death and bitch mother scenes with Kai. I thought he knew who and what she was and was still treating her the same and I was so happy for her in that brief moment. It doesn’t last long though. When he picks up her foot and looks at her like she is dirt I just about died. NO KAI! LOVE HER DESPITE EVERYTHING!!!
I have to say I am very excited to see how she gets out of jail and what she can do with her new hand and foot.
I think thats everything that needs to be talked about just now. What did you guys think of the book? DId you love it as much as me? If you haven’t read it yet you really really really should. I highly recommend this even to those who don’t really like scifi!
Till Next Time…