Review: Cress - Marissa Meyer

The third book in the Lunar Chronicles was so, so good. I got so into this again, even though I hadn't read Scarlet in a really long time and could barely remember Thorne and Wolf. I am now completely desperate for Winter, which is going to be amazing, I can tell.

As always, Meyer has created a sophisticated plot brought beautifully to life with her easy to read writing style and impeccable description. If you thought Cinder and Scarlet, were well done, just wait til you read Cress.

Firstly, Cress is a wonderful character. She is totally cut off from the world and not quite normal, but she is a sweet and very clever girl. She does need to learn a few things, but as we go through the book you can see that she is learning. The character development with Cress and Thorne was lovely and I liked the way that they weaved into being the characters in the fairytales. I finally understood why Thorne is called Thorne, and I loved that Cress isn't actually her name, but it goes so well for the Rapunzel story (those of you who don't know, Rapunzel is named after the Rampion plant, and it's leaves and root are both edible). I thought that some of the development of other character was slightly lacking in terms of Cinder, Scarlet and Wolf. I still adore Iko, who doesn't?

The one thing that really struck me after reading this book was the example that these main characters set. These strong, clever and emotional female characters are amazing role models and the book delivers some great messages in always telling the truth, to fight for yourself and to have some self-belief.

It's nice to see some original Grimm fairytale elements coming through in this book. I won't ruin it for you, but the turn of events is brilliant and the link to the original story has been done flawlessly inside the context, giving magical elements a much more scientific and futuristic base. I mean, even the settings are pretty perfect.

I thought that the space/ desert setting was really cool and quite unexpected. I loved seeing how everything comes together towards the finale. Everything and everyone are so much more interlinked than I realised. This sets up for one heck of a finale, with a full-on war, and we get to see what happens with Winter. Has her fairytale come to pass yet I wonder? I personally think it has but it ended rather differently. Might she want the crown? I can see a way out, but it's going to be a rocky ride.

Wow is all in can say.

Kyra_x

Wednesday Wishlist #2

Hello and welcome to my second wishlist! I'm carrying on with my unfinished series today, so we shall kick-start it off with;

Hero - Alethea Kontis


I absolutely adored Enchanted, with the way that the fairy-tales were so cleverly intertwined and the brilliant heroine. This time we take a trip aboard a pirate ship with Saturday, whose exploits we only had a glimpse of in the first book. I'm looking forward to some swashbuckling adventures in this one (er, sorry for the cliche but sometimes it can't be helped). Also, I'm beginning to notice that most of the items on my wishlists have an awful lot of pretty detailing and pretty dresses. I do apologise to those who are against such girlieness.

Cress - Marissa Meyer

Who doesn't love the Lunar Chronicles? Cinder and Scarlett are captivating, and the way that Meyer has invented a detailed futuristic setting for each of her fairy-tale characters is incredible. The series is a wonderful invention and it really make me want to start writing my own fairy-tale retelling. I can't wait to meet Cress properly and hear more about her story. Oh and check out the stunning cover design.


Bitterblue - Kristin Cashore

I read Graceling utterly years ago, and I loved it, but really it was Fire that set my heart alight. Fire was everything a book should be, and she was the protagonist I loved the most (at the time anyway). I think I'll need to re-read the first two for Bitterblue, but I've been told very,very good things about it.


Have you read them yet? What did you think? Please let me know in the comments section.

Cinder/Scarlet - Marissa Meyer

Welcome to the world, hundreds of years into the future. It has seen World Wars 3 and 4, it has introduced androids into the mainstream, it has discovered another race that is living on the moon and for the last 15 years it has seen a deadly plague wipe out thousands of people.

Cinder is a mechanic and a cyborg; a second-class citizen looked at with disdain, but she is the best mechanic in New Beijing. One day, Cinder is working in her stall when she receives an unexpected guest; the crown prince, Kai, venturing out of the palace to find someone to fix the royal android. No more spoilers! What happens next is an awe-inspiring and in places heart-breaking adventure for Cinder, culminating in a tense finale where the truth finally comes out. Did I guess it? Yeah, but not too far ahead of time.

In book number two we meet Scarlet, a girl living in the south of France with her grandmother. That is, until her grandmother is kidnapped by a vicious gang. A mysterious street-fighter named Wolf soon comes into the picture, and it turns out he is more involved than Scarlet first thought. Although she doesn't trust him, she enlists his help when she realises he'll be of some use. This book is even bigger than the last, with new revelations about the Lunars and their disturbing abilities, a few new characters to add more depth to the story, and some explanation as to Cinder's back-story, the first clue having been found out in the last few pages of Cinder.

Considering Cinder was written in just a month, Meyer has a really well developed sense of both her characters and her plots, building the back-story well in advance of the other characters coming into play in their own books. She began with a simple idea; a sci-fi fairy-tale, but has built it into a full-on save-the-world type story that entirely transcends the original fairy tales. With each book you read, the story seems to get bigger and more intriguing - answering your questions but in turn giving you new ideas to think on.

The characters are all likable, and they are all very well built, with their own specific traits, habits and flaws. I love the fact that Cinder isn't perfect or particularly beautiful, unlike her fairy-tale counterpart, and Scarlet's determination to find her grandmother, no matter how terrifying her situation is, is inspiring. Yes, the second book, Scarlet, is more hard-core, and the bad guys get even scarier.

These two books have it all; romance, action, complexity, futuristic settings and a hint of the other-worldly. Cress, the next Lunar chronicle out in 2014, is surely going to be even better!

9.5 out of 10