Review: Winter

Winter (The Lunar Chronicles #4)
by Marissa Meyer
YA Science Fiction
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot Summary:

Princess Winter is admired by the Lunar people for her grace and kindness, and despite the scars that mar her face, her beauty is said to be even more breathtaking than that of her stepmother, Queen Levana.

Winter despises her stepmother, and knows Levana won’t approve of her feelings for her childhood friend—the handsome palace guard, Jacin. But Winter isn’t as weak as Levana believes her to be and she’s been undermining her stepmother’s wishes for years. Together with the cyborg mechanic, Cinder, and her allies, Winter might even have the power to launch a revolution and win a war that’s been raging for far too long.

Can Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter defeat Levana and find their happily ever afters?

Review:

This is such a massive story, but there were a lot of dramas and character arcs the author had to wrap up.  And overall, this was a beautifully told and completely satisfying conclusion to a fantastic science fiction series.

Even though the story is called Winter, all the characters are equally important to the story.  But because of the title, I'll start talking about Winter and her storyline.  As always, I loved how Marissa Meyer integrated the Snow White fairy tale with Winter's story, and all the little references made me smile.  Winter is unique in this series because she's so damaged and fragile, yet she has an inner strength that was beautiful to see.  I'm not sure how I feel about her romance with Jacin though.  It seems a little superficial, even though they have been through a lot.  It's very sweet though, and Jacin is a wonderful character to get to know.  His devotion to Winter is heart-warming, and he's smart and tough.  Even if I wasn't completely sold on their connection, I liked them together - especially because Winter was so cute around him.

Scarlet was a character, I kind of overlooked in the past - I really liked her, but I was more interested in Cinder and Cress, but in this book, I loved how Scarlet took charge and how strong and resilient and fiery she was in some very trying circumstances.  She became a very admirable character in this book, and I'm happy that she came into her own more.  Her romance with Wolf is another romance I'm a bit iffy on, but it's wonderful how much of a connection she has with him, and how devoted they are to each other.  I couldn't help feeling all the love!

Kai came out a much stronger and admirable character in this book as well.  He has to make tough decisions and seeing his interactions with Levana showed how strong of a leader he was.  It's too bad he was mostly powerless, but when he could act, it was very satisfying how quickly he made the right decisions.  Cinder and Kai seem like a perfect pair, and I think of all the romances in this series and seeing how they developed, I love theirs the most.  There is something so beautiful about how they look out for each other while also being true to their duties to their people.

Cress and Thorne though take the award for most adorable.  I just love them together and it was sweet, if prolonged, how unsure they were about each other's feelings.  Thorne is always the most entertaining character too, so I thoroughly enjoyed their interactions.

I have mostly talked about the romances of the characters in this story, but the plot is so important in this book.  There's so much going on - so many threads that it was a struggle to read this book because I wanted to know what would happen immediately.  Consequently I felt like the story dragged a little, and the pacing was sometimes slow, but I'm not sure if that was just because of my impatience.  I think the author did a tremendous job of fleshing out every character and concluding their arc though, while also maintaining believably how difficult it would be for the characters to wrest control away from Levana.  Levana was a true "nut-basket" too, and after reading the prequel novella about Levana's story it was fascinating to see and understand just how out of control she had become while Queen.  Even though I had some sympathy with her after reading about her story in the novella, I was all about seeing her defeated in this book.

The consequences of all the characters' actions felt real, and the characters had fitting endings which made this a satisfying read.  It had a lot of drama and suspense as well, which kept me engaged, and very impatient to get to the end.  I'm sorry that the Lunar Chronicles series is over, but I'm happy for how it ended.

Review: Fairest

Fairest (Lunar Chronicles #3.5)
by Marissa Meyer
YA Fantasy
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot Summary:

In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.

Review:

As much as I wanted to read Winter right after I finished Cress, reading about Levana's backstory was very interesting, and did help flesh out the world of the Lunar Chronicles much more.  It's hard to think that Levana from what we have come to know about her in the previous three books, could be in any way sympathetic, but the author does give that to her in Fairest.  But, it's still true to the character we have seen now, because Levana is not a complete innocent, and her skewed morality becomes increasingly off-kilter as the story proceeds.  It's a fascinating character study, and a completely believable origin story for a villain.

Fairest also introduces a character I absolutely loved - Evret Hayle.  Of course Levana also loved him, and that love was not conducive to his health at all.  I thought that slow downward spiral into which Levana's obsession takes her life as well as his, was just so well written, and ultimately tragic because it did seem that Levana and Evret had good intentions.  It just went so wrong.  Evret was a wonderful character though - so honorable, noble and kind.  Despite what Levana puts him through.

This is a short story, but so much detail was packed into it - finding out more about Levana's family, about what happened that led to Cinder's story in the first book, and about how Winter must have grown up, just made this series richer, and I'm sure will make the last book an even better reading experience.

Review: Cress

Cress (The Lunar Chronicles #3)
by Marissa Meyer
YA Fairy Tale/ Science Fiction
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot Summary:

Rapunzel’s tower is a satellite. She can’t let down her hair—or her guard.

In this third book in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles series, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.

Their best hope lies with Cress, who has been trapped on a satellite since childhood with only her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker—unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing stop her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only ones who can.

Review:

What can I say really?  This is another fantastic installment of the series - I liked it more than the second book, because the action, plot and characters just came together so well.  With an ever growing cast of main characters, this story became even more urgent and suspenseful as they all had to deal with different complications.  And the characters are one reason this series is so strong.  They all have such different, vivid personalities, ones that are true to their fairy tale counterparts, but so much more expressive and dimensional in Marissa Meyer's hands.  I couldn't believe how well each character stood on their own (actually except for Wolf, I feel like he's not as well developed as everyone else).  The credibleness and the bravery of these characters is inspiring in many ways - in how inspiring it is to read such fantastic storytelling and in how they take on their challenges despite impossible odds.  There's really a sense of consequence in this book that keeps the story authentic I think.  Because the decisions made by Cinder and others are devastating, but necessary.  And that just kept me completely invested in the story.

With so many amazing characters, it would make this review way longer than it should to point out what was great about each one, but let me just focus on Cress who is the new addition to the group and who is so engaging and adorable - with a few flaws, but still desperate to live up to expectations and overcome her past.  She's so quirky and enthusiastic about many things, and I think the author should be applauded for creating such a memorable, spirited third female heroine to add to this world.

In this book I think we got to learn more about every character - they all took on more definition and shade, and I was just so impressed by how believable they are.  Kai, who was a little insipid in the second book for me, became a much stronger character in this, in a very understated way I think.  He's so selfless, and yet hopeful that reading how he was forcing himself to do what he thought was right was so heartbreaking for me.  And talk about heartbreaking - I was not expecting my emotions over Dr. Erland.  Who seemed like he would not be very significant after the first book, but I was completely wrong.  This book is just filled with fantastic, realistic characters.

But don't forget the storytelling is amazing too!  With stakes being raised higher and higher as Cinder tries to find a way to take power from Queen Levana, the suspense of the story built excruciatingly til the end.  I so wish I could read faster, because my nerves were shot with all the twists and turns, the betrayals and revelations that are made in this book.  But this book and the whole series are an amazing read.  With just one more book to go, the story has taken on such epic proportions.  The last line was chilling, satisfying and aggravating because I can't wait to know what happens next!

Review: Scarlet

Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles #2)
by Marissa Meyer
YA Fairy Tale / Science Fiction
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot Summary:

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

Review:

I was a little nervous going into the second book because I loved Cinder so much and I was not expecting it to have such an open ending when I knew the second book would introduce new main characters.  It seemed overly ambitious to build on the story by creating even more important characters.  But of course I should have relaxed because Marissa Meyer has it all in control and Scarlet is a wonderful book!

Scarlet is a fantastic update on Little Red Riding Hood.  Her feistiness and independence endeared me to her immediately and to have a mystery surrounding the disappearance of her grandmother was a great way to draw the reader immediately into her story.  I also loved how Cinder was still an important presence in the book, and her story was weaved into Scarlet's perfectly.  The romance between Wolf and Scarlet was a little over the top however.  It bordered on instalove as I didn't quite see why they had such a strong connection, and while Wolf is a great character he was very much overshadowed by Cinder's partner in crime, Thorne, as a memorable male lead.  I can't help feeling meh about Wolf when Thorne is so entertaining!

The wolf aspect of the story though is very clever - especially because I didn't immediately realize the tie to the first book in their history.  That shows really strong world-building which is another great feature of this series.  Everything feels very believable because this series perfectly balances the plot, characters and setting.  With the stakes so high, fantastic characters who really work well together and drama that is incredibly engaging, I can't imagine why anyone would not love this series!

Review: Cinder

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1)
by Marissa Meyer
YA Science Fiction/Fairy Tale
Amazon  /  Goodreads

Plot 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.

Review:

This book is just gorgeous.  Love the writing, the world and the twist on the fairy tale!  The story moves so quickly too - it's easy to get immersed in the story.

The main character, Cinder, is an unconventional take on Cinderella - she's snarky and resentful and rightfully so because her adopted family is so dismissive of her.  Having Cinder part android adds more credibility to the outcast situation Cinder finds herself in - even though she is the main financial support for her family.  Adri and Pearl were just so hateful, I couldn't stand them so they were perfectly written. It was refreshing that Cinder did have a kind adopted sister - Peony - who is adorably sweet and again works so well in the story because she gives Cinder a tie to her adopted family.

The story switches third person POV between Cinder and Prince Kai which was another great approach to the narrative so the reader can understand the Prince better and how the romance develops.  I thought it was a bit odd that Kai was so taken by Cinder so quickly but I can see her appeal to him because she is apparently such an individual amid a lot of Prince Kai fangirls.  But the romance isn't the most important part of the book!  This story is much more multi-dimensional than that!

The Commonwealth Cinder lives in is threatened by a mysterious and devastating plague and also the danger of war from the powerful Lunar colony.  I couldn't get enough of all the twists and turns in the story as Cinder and Kai each deal with these threats, and the mystery of how this plague came to the Commonwealth and what Prince Kai could possibly do to discourage the Lunar Queen's plan.  The plot is relentless and keeps building on the world and the culture as it progresses.  The richness of the plot, characters and world absolutely captivated me!  The denouement was very exciting as well - with some interesting alterations to the normal Cinderella at the Ball scene.  I very much adored this highly imaginative fairy tale revision, and eagerly look forward to picking up the sequel!