Let's appreciate that beautiful cover. Goodness.
I can't imagine a prettier, more eye-catching stiletto/cyborg leg if I
tried LOL. The curling-silver font is
perfection as well. Good job designers! This one's a winner :-).
Cinder is Marissa
Meyer's take on Cinderella. Now, I'm not
much for retellings. Lots of bloggers
are all about them, but whenever one comes out, I'm like, "Meh. I already know the basic story. How good can it be?"
The
answer in this case, folks, is pretty darn
good.
I
was pleasantly surprised by my first foray into retellings. This is Cinderella with an edge, a spark if
you will (pun intended since Cinder herself is both a mechanic and
part-cyborg). The kick a** heroine and
her steampunk-y goodness made this a must-read for me. But I had no idea I'd like it as much as I
did.
Sixteen-year-old
Cinder is the best mechanic in New Beijing.
But she's also cyborg, 36.28% not human to be exact, which makes her
life not as valuable as that of the other citizens. When Prince Kai shows up at her market stall,
asking her to fix an important android, Cinder does her best to shield her
metal parts and her heart. But Kai's charismatic
and charming personality don't make it easy.
Here's
a little excerpt that I loved from
their first meeting:
"Instead
of answering, the prince bent down, craning his neck so that she had no choice
but to meet his eyes, and dashed a grin at her.
Her heart winced."--page 8
Wow. Cinder's heart "winced"? I could imagine exactly how that felt. Kudos to Meyer because I've never heard it
described quite like that. Loved the word
choice and all the subsequent meetings with Kai. The chemistry was undeniable. Cinder
was fierce, smart, brave, and loyal to her loved ones (both human and not).
And
if I wasn't already sold, Cinder's backstory--which she knew nothing about--sealed
the deal.
There were several mysteries in this book, and I think I figured most of them
out before the big reveal. BUT that
didn't really matter because, back in the day, I was a huge Sailor Moon fan J
If
someone would've told me this was a retelling of Serena and her lunarly ways, I
would've been down even sooner. Awesome!
Two main evil forces threaten the lives of everyone in New Beijing: Letumosis (the plague) and the Lunars. Once one contracts Letumosis, they'll be dead in days. This plague has killed thousands--and yet there's still no cure. The Lunars are another race that hails from the moon and can manipulate anyone into seeing, feeling, or doing whatever they want. Someone who can take away your free will? If that's not scary, I don't know what is. *Shivers* And the Queen of the Lunars has her eye on Prince Kai.
Cinder
was a great read. The only thing that could've made it better imo was if it was a standalone. Things I loved: Cinder,
the gutsy heroine/cyborg, Iko, Cinder's android best friend who had a thing for
fashion, Prince Kai, the guy who won our heroine's heart and mine, Peony,
Cinder's younger step-sister and only human friend. A great steampunk story made even better
by the Sailor Moon slant. Looking forward to Book 2!
Happy
reading,
Ninja
Girl
