Cinder, by Marissa Meyer (BOOK REVIEW)

 

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

In a world where humans and androids alike crowd the streets of New Beijing, a deadly plague swoops through bringing the population down in numbers every single second. From outer-space a group of people known as lunar, watch and wait for the right time to make their move of attack....

Sixteen-year-old Cinder is a gifted mechanic but more importantly, a cyborg. She's a second-class citizen, shunned by her community and under the guardianship of her step-mother. But her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai in one turn-of-events. She suddenly finds herself invited to go to the ball with Prince Kai, fighting for her sister and in a lab with a mysterious doctor. As she slowly uncovers secrets about her past, the plot thickens and Cinder fights to hold onto her life. 

"Does your kind even know what love is? Can you feel anything at all, or is it just...programmed?

This book is one-of-a-kind. It was so unique and refreshing yet, classic and nostalgic. I couldn't put it down. If you can't tell already, this is a fairy tale re-telling of Cinderella and is set in New Beijing. Crazy, right? There are androids and hovers. It reminds me of The Hunger Games where everything is very high-tech. The clash of futuristic and classic is so imaginative and crazy! The little nods to Cinderella weren't overdone. Noticeable, but not preachy to the fairy tale. The step-mother and the step-sisters were in there which was awesome. It's crazy that Meyer could accomplish such a complex story and make it easy to read. Just, wow. From the first page I was entranced into another world that I became invested in. Meyer really has a talent of capturing your attention from the first sentence. The characters were alright, I'm glad that there are more books so that I can see more development. Cinder (the main character) lives a very different, futuristic life and even though her character had a lot of differences from me, I did relate to a lot of her thoughts. Prince Kai was sweet and I could understand where he was coming from in most of his decisions or thought process. Some of the things he said made me cringe a little, but it was a cute romance. The only thing about this book that I didn't like was how predictable it is. After a while I could predict most of the plot twists and I never see that as a pro. Overall it was quite clean which I greatly appreciated. I didn't think I would like a fairy-tale re-telling mixed with sci-fi, it seemed a bit girly at first, but trust me you should give it a try!

I give this book a 9 out of 10 and recommend it for ages 13+

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Happy Reading! -Ariana :)