Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Cinder
Marissa Meyer:
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Release Date: January 3, 2012
Pages: 387

Rating: 4.5 stars

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.

This book was awesome! Cinderella is one of my favorite tales, and Marissa Meyer has revamped it and upgraded it to a story that is just stunning. With Cinder's futuristic element, an epic romance, and the looming threat of war, it is a tale that you will not want to miss.

The world was so cool. Though I was a bit confused at first - fully understanding the world and what was going on did take a bit, but once it did everything made perfect sense. The story also switches between being told from Kai and Cinder's lives, which is about my favorite thing an author can do.

I loved all the characters in Cinder! Iko, Peony, Dr. Erland, Kai - they were all just great. I loved Cinder as a main character - she had a bit of spunk and wasn't afraid to stand up for herself. I am really curious to see how all the characters develop over the next books, as I just loved them all. Everything about Kai was great - I was always curious to see how he'd react in different situations.

The plot was a lot of fun. I won't lie, I guessed how the book would end fairly close to the beginning. Since I was pretty sure how it would end, throughout the entirety of the book it was a lot of fun guessing if I was right or how this event would play out. I loved that Cinder was a mechanic - it was very different and made it that much more fun.

This is a absolutely brilliant debut. I loved the elements of Cinderella entwined in the futuristic world and intense story line. Marissa Meyer is definitely an author to watch, and I cannot wait to see what it next for Cinder and Kai.