Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Yes, this is a sci-fi twist on Cinderella! And yes, I'm reading a fairy tale! (Well, kind of!) Cinder's more like a creepy cyborg novel with a bit of Cinderella than a Cinderella with a bit of creepiness. Since I'm all for the creepy, I definitely liked this book. 4 out of 5 stars.

Cinder by Marissa Meyer
4 out of 5 stars
Published in 2012
Summary from Goodreads: 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.


Today's rant, or rather, review, is called "In Which Valerie Is Crazily Obsessed With A Girl Named Cinder." In short, Cinder is epically epic! I like Cinder. She's kind of insecure, kind of strong, kind of smart and kind of average, except for the fact that she's this amazing mechanic and cyborg. However, by the end of the book, she's a bit stronger and definitely twice as awesome! I like how she can actually talk to Kai without getting too shy at the end of the book. I also like how the author was not afraid to make the main character a cyborg. That's a huge risk, and if you ask me, it paid off.

Yes, this is kind of a retelling of Cinderella, but it's also so much more exciting. You see, there's also a lot of other side plots that revolve around the ball and around cyborgs and this species known as Lunars. Not only is included, but there's also a lot about the this epidemic that has spread like crazy throughout the world, adding to the long list of chaos! It's crazily scarily exciting with tons of action! However, the reason why I had to take away a point is because I could guess the most important twist. Most people probably won't be able to, but I did. I guess that just makes me an obsessed reader or a very critical reviewer.

I absolutely love the supporting characters. You have Iko, this bubbly, amazing android! I love how positive and opitimistic she is! She is so happy and inspiring and helpful and loyal to Cinder. You have Kai, the prince and our love interest. He happens to be pretty charming and handsome and swoon-inducing, at least for Cinder. I like how friendly he is! I am surprised with Peony. I like how nice she is, especially for a stepsister! You don't normally find nice stepsisters! (Not in the Disney Cinderella, at least.) I love how Cinder's side characters are just as cool as our main character and how I can relate with all of them. They never, ever break character! I can kind of predict them, and that's what I LOVE about this book. You think you can predict a character, but then something happens and your thoughts change again! Exploding diagrams, people! It's crazily crazy and totally amazing!

As for the cover, let's just say the whole shoe thing has made me crazy. I've stuck this book under my cover-lust shelf, and I've got to say that I'm so not regretting it. This cover is just as amazing as the book itself, which, if you ask me, is pretty hard to do. It's even harder to drool over this book, but I did it anyways! SWOON, SWOON, SWOON!