Review Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer

Review Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer

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.

Rating: 5+/5 Stars
Must read! Must have! Must buy! Must fall in love with!

Genres: Young Adult Romance, Dystopian, Science Fiction, Fantasy

Recommeded for: fans of Cinderella (obviously), retellings, good dystopian stories, Shadow & Bone, A Million Suns, Under The Never Sky

Other books in the series:

ADD TO GOODREADS

My opinion:

I really feel the need to fangirl. Over Cinder. Over Marissa Meyer. Over every single thing about this book! I knew it was supposed to be amazing from all the reviews and I had high expectations. But, oh my God, it surpassed them all! Cinder is an exquisite opening book to a series that promises a-hell-of-a-ride.

“She was a cyborg, and she would never go to a ball.”

Cinder, the main character, is a 17 years old cyborg that works as a mechanic. She's known to be the best in town and when Prince Kaito's android doesn't function, he brings it to her. When her youngest stepsister gets Letumosis, an illness that has no cure and that decimated the population in the last years, Cinder's legal guardian Adri accuses her of bringing the plague to their home. She then volunteers Cinder against her will to participate in some tests that have the goal to find a cure to Letumosis. That means she pretty much sentenced Cinder to a painful and slow death, because no one survived the medical procedures. Until now.

“I don't know. I don't actually remember anything from before the surgery."
His eyebrows rose, his blue eyes sucking in all the light of the room. "The cybernetic operation?"
"No, the sex change."
The doctor's smile faltered.
"I'm joking.”

I loved Cinder! She's brave, smart, strong, funny and kind -- of course, to the people that deserve her kindness. And she's selfless. My heart died a couple of times because of how heartbroken she felt and, sometimes, of mortification. Seriously, this girl is as tough as nails! Not only she sacrifices herself for the safety of others, but she doesn't let embarrassment get to her. I, on the other hand, would've died on the spot. *shudders*

“I'm sure I'll feel much more grateful when I find a guy who thinks complex wiring in a girl is a turn-on.”

Prince Kaito is one of those book boyfriends that just make you sigh. Why? Well, first of all, he's a goddamn prince; second of all, he's handsome, charming and sexy, but he's also sweet, honorable and honest. Kai cares for his people and he would do anything to save his country and those facts alone make him even more perfect!

“You could move to Europe."
"You know, I've actually been considering that lately."
Kai laughed again, the warmth returning to the sound. "If that's not a vote of confidence, I don't know what is.”

The romantic aspect of this book is not an element the author insists on. There's no insta-love, so the relationship gradually evolves. We have two characters who clearly like each other, but I got the feeling from the alternative POVs that Cinder is more smitten about Kai than vice versa. I hope I'm not right, because I'd love them as a couple and I'm sure that at some point in the series they will get together, but I kept waiting for that moment to happen while reading Cinder. Unfortunately, it did not. But we still have the chemistry and the hot tension between those two, so I guess that should compensate for the lack of "action" aka many many kissy scenes. For now.

“Maybe her programming was overwhelmed by Prince Kai’s uncanny hotness.”
Cinder flinched. “Can we please not talk about the prince?”
“I don’t think that will be possible. You’re working on his android, after all. Just think about the things she knows, the things she’s seen and—” Iko’s voice sputtered. “Do you think she’s seen him in the nude?”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake.” Cinder yanked off her gloves and tossed them onto the table. “You’re not helping.”
“I’m just making conversation.”

Iko is probably my favorite character. You see, she's an android and Cinder's friend, but unlike other robots, she has a personality chip with issues. Meaning she isn't a heartless machine. She has feelings, thoughts and opinions. Sarcastic and hilarious opinions.

“Iko rolled to her side, clasping her metal grippers over her chest. “Prince Kai! Check my fan, I think I’m overheating.”

Another person I loved was Peony, although we didn't get much time with her. She's a kind, sweet, curious and innocent young girl and I could see that she really loved Cinder.

Unlike Peony, Adri (Cinder's stepmother) and Pearl (Cinder’s oldest stepsister) were bad to the bone! I hated them! They were manipulative, selfish and down-wright mean. I wanted a hover to drop them in some river from far, far away.

“My only mistake was in waiting too long to be rid of you", Adri said, running the washcloth between her fingers. "Believe me, Cinder. You are a sacrifice I will never regret.”

The world-building is pure awesomeness! I mean, come on! We have cyborgs, androids, monarchy and people living on the freaking moon (those are the Lunars) all in the same world! The action is set in New Beijing, the capital of Eastern Commonwealth, one of the six countries that rule the world since the World War IV.

Queen Levana was a character I loved to hate. Simply put, she's awful. Now that I think about it, Adri has nothing on Levana. The Lunar queen is a true villain: she's vicious, evil and only cares for her well-being. The interest for her people? Bullocks. Levana's like a viper ready to attack at any second and she makes sure the other characters know she's the one who has the real power.

Dr. Erland was an interesting character. I don't know if he's the masculine equivalent of the fairy Godmother, but he earned my trust by protecting Cinder and that gives him a thumbs up from me. He's crazy-smart, ambitious and a bit lunatic, but he's on the good team :)

The plot was very complex! We have the intergalactic war between the Lunars and the Earthen looming on the horizon, the Letumosis issue and Cinder's plan to escape town and live her life in New Beijing behind. All these weave flawlessly into a gorgeous and very strong storyline with the help of a few twists and turns.

The pace was great! I pulled an all-nighter with Cinder, because I couldn't let go of the story and characters. I kept looking at the page count, dreading the moment I'll finish reading, because there were so many things that needed to happen and not enough time! The mixture of political intrigue, dystopian vibe, romantic fairy tale, action and sarcasm kept me at the edge of my seat.

“He wouldn't even dance with Levana at the stupid ball if he could help it- to hell with diplomacy.”

Okay, time to talk about the major twist in the book. Well, I saw it coming. Like miles before it actually happened. I kept hoping that my theory will come true. And it did! After my "Ha! I knew it" moment, I was so excited to see how the new information will affect the characters, because it sure changed things. *happy dance* So I can say that, from my perspective, the plot was a bit predictable, but that fact didn't stop me from falling in love with the story at all.

The ending to Cinder is a hell-of-a-cliffhanger. I feel like bragging about it. I don't think I'll start Scarlet, the sequel to this amazing debut, anytime soon. The thought that Cress, the third volume, will be out in February makes me cringe, complain and demand an ARC so I can get my greedy hands on all of them and read them back to back. Don't even start me on Winter, which will be released in 2015. A time machine, anyone? Please?? *puppy eyes*

Marissa Meyer showed me with this book that she has an imaginative mind and off-the-charts great writing skills. She escalated quickly to a "one of my favorite authors" status. I can't believe I didn't read Cinder sooner, because the hype around it should've convinced me already that this book is beyond amazing.

I'm still living in the fascinating and unique world that Marissa Meyer created. I'm still dreaming about Prince Kai with my eyes wide open. I'm still imagining different scenarios about Cinder's fate. I'm still mentally murdering Queen Levana. This being said, I cannot recommend this book enough. It's an incredible retelling of the Cinderella story and the futuristic setting makes it even more awe-inspiring. Put your hands on this book NOW or just wait for all the installments to get published since they're so addictive (it'll be a while, the last one will be out in 2015). Nonetheless, this series is a MUST-READ!