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Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles, #1)

Marissa Meyer

Start date: September 1, 2021

Finish date: September 30, 2021

Discussion: Book of the Month

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What Members Thought

Jul 26, 2017 Ari ☾ rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, fantasy-romance, fantasy, owned, 2018-reads, science-fiction, paranormal, dystopian, rebellion

"It was not her fault he had liked her.
It was not her fault she was cyborg.
She would not apologize."

Four Stars!

Cinder starts out with Cinder pulling her freaking foot off. What a way to start a book? We are then quickly introduced to Prince Kai, and then shortly after that are introduced to Cinder's shitty family. (Peony was aight, her name sucks though.)

But then stuff goes down hill cause oops nice sister gets plague.
Cinder is then forcibly 'volunteered' for testing for the cure for le pla "It was not her fault he had liked her.
It was not her fault she was cyborg.
She would not apologize."

Four Stars!

Cinder starts out with Cinder pulling her freaking foot off. What a way to start a book? We are then quickly introduced to Prince Kai, and then shortly after that are introduced to Cinder's shitty family. (Peony was aight, her name sucks though.)

But then stuff goes down hill cause oops nice sister gets plague.
Cinder is then forcibly 'volunteered' for testing for the cure for le plague. (since they want cyborgs and all.)

After Cinder gets taken, we get a PoV shfit! And it was good! The book continues to have really good PoV shifts. Mostly shifting from Cinder to Kai and back and forth.
We learn a bunch of stuff about Cinder that was pretty predictable. Actually this book was predictable. But it was very well done despite that. The only reason why I knocked off a star was for its predictablity. Cinder was a quick read, and I felt super attached to Cinder (the character). She felt so real to me.
Her stepmother and stepsister were a terror to her. And she reacted to every situation to how I would think a 16 year old would act. She is okay with everything going on around. She just doesn't accept what's she told, but she isn't stupid. (Well mostly)
Meyer did an amazing job conveying emotion in this book as well. I really loved seeing Cinder slowy develop throughout this book to gain more confidence. The quote I used at the start this review was my favorite from the whole book. I was so excited, I was like "Yes!! Cinder own it!" and I felt myself cheering for her. That's something amazing in itself. To feel that connected to a character, to feel such joy when something little as that happens to her. Or to feel such sadness or anger when she is treated poorly. Cinder (character) was written well. Actually the book was written well too!

Honestly, I hope Cinder's development continues on within the next book, becasue even though it is a start accepting who she is (view spoiler).
I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves retellings, science fiction, and fantasy. ...more

21 likes · Like · see review

Sep 28, 2015 Mandiann rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I truly believe this series is one of the best fairy tale retellings I have ever read.

I love that Marissa Meyer takes the basic plot elements of the original fairy tale (mean step mother, charming prince, female MC who is forced to work to support family) but then makes the story itself completely different and unique (futuristic society with lunar threat). I love everything about this series and feel it is well done.

9 likes · Like · see review

Nov 16, 2019 Eunice rated it liked it

Shelves: sci-fi, romance, ya, retelling, to-reread

This is my second time reading this, almost two years after my first read-through. Maybe because it had been my first time reading Cinder back then and was completely caught up with its fast pace, but this time, I realized how this book was more show rather than tell. Like how every bombshell/revelation that was dropped in the story was simply told to Cinder. From Dr. Erland and that girl in that Lunar ambassador's care. She's the main character, but I feel that she was generally passive in her ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Jan 01, 2017 Eunice rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: sci-fi, ya

It was good. I liked it and enjoyed reading Cinder because for me, the whole thing was quite easy to read.

It was well-written in terms of prose and all similar things, which is one of the main reasons why I enjoyed this as much as I did though I did feel like the descriptions weren't enough. Like how New Beijing works and what it looks like because we've really only just seen the market. And I didn't really think that I'd get everything just from the first book but the humans didn't seem to know ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Mar 26, 2016 Linda C rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: suspense-thriller, fantasy, paranormal, futuristic, romance-futuristic, young-adult, asian, dystopia

The setting is 126 years after World War IV in New Beijing; populated by humans and androids. Cinder is a cyborg mechanic with a computer enhanced brain and a mechanical foot and hand. The story is a retelling of Cinderella in a fun and action packed dystopian plague filled world. There is an evil Lunar Queen who plots to take over Earth and uses brainwashing to control humans and hide her true nature. There is a Prince attracted to Cinder, but not aware of her cyborg side. There is a stepmother ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Sep 20, 2018 Nalz rated it it was amazing

I really liked this book - it was a reread for me but I loved the action of it, loved that Cinder is a cyborg and that their hackers, evil queens, and it was a great retelling of Cinderella. Can’t wait to go forward with this book series!

1 like · Like · see review

Jun 23, 2017 Ev rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

A metal hand and foot and two thumbs up!

LOVE x INFINITY=how much I loved this book! The ending is phenomenal, and now I feel like a cyborg, with joy buzzing through me like electricity through Cinder's veins. Marissa Meyer is a genius with coming up with a technologically savvy twist to the original fairy tale, which pales in comparison to the twists and turns and roller coaster rides my heart went through reading this novel. I am so glad I took my time with this one. Otherwise, I'd be crashing ...more

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