Review: Cinder

Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Luna Chronicles
Page Count: 387
Format: Hardback

Source: Book Outlet

Publisher: Feiwel and Friends

Rating:*****/5

Summary: 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.  -Goodreads

Well it seems that I got bite by the Luna Chronicles bug that seems to have gotten to everyone. And am okay with that. Cinder is my first fairy tale re-telling and am glad that I started with the Luna Chronicles series. Marissa Meyers shows how to take a tale that everyone who grew up watching Cinderella with a new twist. Like how its not a regular girl but a cyborg, or that its not in a fairyland but in a futurist New Beijing. Also it's not about girl meets guy and falls in love, but have real problems.

The Story: In Commonwealth the people are suffering from a plague that is killing them faster then they can figure out where its coming from or how to cure it. Its interesting that Meyer Marissa made New Beijing into a futurist world where technology pretty much rule everything. There is some similarities in the both stories but even those have a difference in it. Case in point there is still the stepmother and sisters. However in this spin Cinder became a legal guardian to the father after a trip to Africa. Or that the youngest sister Peony is actual nice to Cinder. Its things like that that makes the story different and not the same.

The Characters: One thing I enjoyed is that we saw the prince more in this book then we every did in the Cinderella. Not only that but you see things in his point of view. Prince Kia has so much things to deal with at such a young age, but he's all for the people like he should be. I enjoyed Cinder and how she doesn't fall right for Prince Kia. It was a lot like a cat and mouse chase between them more her than him. But Cinder also showed her insecure about being part cyborg and tries to hide it. Loved Iko the android who has one of the best  personalities I've read a book in awhile. She wasn't programed like other androids and so like to speck her mind. Which could be both troublesome and funny at the same time. Plus Iko was a great friend to Cinder even if it sometimes can embarrass Cinder. 

Villain: Of course goes to Queen Lavanna because no one can top her in craziness. I love how she was so proud that on the moon none of her people does raids. Will no crap you can control them to think anything you want. How scary is that plus the fact you don't know what her face looks like thanks to glamours. She one crazy bitch with a capital B and she just calls it politics.

I fell like I've gushed enough and its time to start Scarlet to see what happened after a ending like that.

REVIEW: Defiance

Author: R.J. Redwine
Series: Defiance
Pages: 403
Format: Paperback
Rating: 5/5
Summary:All Rachel Adams wanted to do was to leave her city state Baalboden to go find her father in the wasteland even if that meant facing the Curse One. When she get's to go into the wasteland its to go find a package that her father kept hidden from there Commander, and accompany by her new Protector Logan McEntire. However things don't go the way it's supposed to and both Rachel and Logan battle with something way bigger than they both thought.

My thoughts:
    This story is told in a duel point of view of the orphan, inventor, and apprentice to becoming a courier like her father Logan. Then there is Rachel the one who was taught how to fight and is spunky as hell thanks to her dad. I really like them both together because they help each other in what the other lacks. Like Logan is the thinker all though the book he would have a best and worst scenario and have multiply ways out of them. Rachel on the other hand shows her red hair spunky self and acts before she really acts. Logan was also the rock that Rachel needed as she kept getting knocked down by things that kept happening to her, and made sure that she didn't go into a dark place because of it.

    The villian is not really the Curse One which was described as a blind dragon without wings. It could sense though movement and sound and leaves a lot of destruction in its wake.  No the real evil is the leader of Baalboden and that's the Commander, He is a smart twisted man and seems to always be two steps ahead of Logan and Rachel or is just good at planning on the spot. The first 200 pages before they even leave the city state to go into the wasteland we see the Commanders control and how evil he can be. And he loves it especially when he outwits Logan it seems he gets a major high from it.

  This story was really gripping and keep me interested all through the story. I loved Logan and Rachel, raged at unnecessary deaths, and wished the death of the Commander. I can't wait until I can get the next book, and have them try to figure out the mystery that was at the end of this book.

Rebel Belle Review

By: Rachel Hawkins 

Publisher: Penguin 

Page #: 352

Rating: 3/5

Summary: Harper Price, peerless Southern belle, was born ready for a Homecoming tiara. But after a strange run-in at the dance imbues her with incredible abilities, Harper's destiny takes a turn for the seriously weird. She becomes a Paladin, one of an ancient line of guardians with agility, super strength and lethal fighting instincts.

Just when life can't get any more disastrously crazy, Harper finds out who she's charged to protect: David Stark, school reporter, subject of a mysterious prophecy and possibly Harper's least favorite person. But things get complicated when Harper starts falling for him--and discovers that David's own fate could very well be to destroy Earth.

With snappy banter, cotillion dresses, non-stop action and a touch of magic, this new young adult series from bestseller Rachel Hawkins is going to make y'all beg for more.

              -Goodreads

My Thoughts: I was really looking forward to this book when I first read the summary. However once I started I couldn't just wait until it was done. I think the biggest problem was that it was to girly for me. I couldn't relate to Harper and I just wanted to shake her half the time. She was trying so hard to being prefect that she couldn't see things when there happening right in front of her. I did enjoy Mary Beth though I liked how she was more of a normal character to me. The aunts we're also three characters that I liked for their humor alone. I also liked David he went to his own beat and I respect him for that. 

It wasn't just the characters that made me not like the story so much the plot itself wasn't there. It just dragged on for me with little bits of action mixed in. There seemed to be more about teenage drama then anything. The only  part I loved was the last three chapters. I got all the action I want a good twist then it ended. I don't think I will be buying the rest of the series when it comes out. More likely burrowing them from the library if I really want to continue on.