Review: Winter by Marissa Meyer

From Goodreads: 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?

My Rating: Somewhere between 3.5 and 4 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Marissa Meyer’s Winter was a book that I had been looking forward to reading for forever! Unfortunately, it turned out to be my least favourite of all the books in The Lunar Chronicles.

Don’t get me wrong; I still liked Winter. I loved that the setting was on Luna, for example, and seeing how Meyer incorporated the dwarves and apple scene into her story. I also enjoyed having all the characters interact with each other, and finally getting to witness Winter and Jacin’s interactions. They’re officially my favourite couple in the series, with Scarlet and Wolf a close second!

However, I was disappointed because I didn’t feel as if I got to spend as much time with Winter as I did with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress in their respective stories. I also wasn’t too thrilled that Cress’ issues about Thorne as a womanizer weren’t legitimately addressed. I hate the reasoning that so-and-so changes their ways simply because a guy/girl is “different!” Finally, I was annoyed by how things with Levana were resolved. I refuse to believe that Levana would be so discombobulated by her appearance being revealed – and was that really the best way for Cinder to get her throne back? – that it becomes hard for her to manipulate others’ biolelectricity.

A book that I wish had an epilogue, Winter was released by Feiwel and Friends in November 2015. 

Comments About the Cover: This is my favourite from the covers in the series. I love how the apple is glowing and looks so tempting.

Review: Fairest by Marissa Meyer

From Goodreads: 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. 

My Rating: 4 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: When I first found out that the release of the final book in Marissa Meyer’s The Lunar Chronicles, Winter, would be delayed by almost a year, I groaned and wondered why I was being tortured. Thankfully, to ease the wait for Winter, Meyer wrote Fairest. 

A novel that tells the backstory of Queen Levana, Fairest enables the reader to see Meyer’s villain in a new light. No longer do you just see Levana as some power hungry ruler trying to conquer Earth through biological warfare, but as a more complex character who started with good intentions of wanting to ensure that her home and people prosper. However, years of neglect by her parents, psychological abuse from her sister Channary, and unrequited love eventually cause Levana to resort to any method possible to gain affection. It’s impossible to not pity her by the end of the novel!

A highly recommended read if you’re a fan of The Lunar Chronicles, Fairest was released in January 2015 by Feiwel & Friends. 

Comments About the Cover: The cover does a great job of making you wonder what Levana’s face looks like under her veil.

Review: Cress by Marissa Meyer (and Giveaway)

From Inside Jacket: 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 hope the world has. 

My Rating: 4.5 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: After loving both Cinder and Scarlet, I couldn’t wait to see what Marissa Meyer had up her sleeve with Cress. Originally, I found Cress to be a bit slow, but eventually the plot picked up and I ended up drawn into the story.

Unlike Cinder and Scarlet who were strong heroines right off the bat, Cress starts off very much as a damsel in distress. Having been socially isolated for years, she also made me laugh at her naivete. I found it so cute how she built up this fantasy of Thorne in her head and decided she was in love with him even before meeting him.

I thought Thorne therefore was the perfect romantic interest for Cress because of how he complemented her. Whereas Cress is socially awkward, Thorne is charming and was able to deal with Cress’ crush without coming off like a jerk. In this manner, Meyer also successfully avoided a case of insta-love, which was awesome.

Of course, Cinder's and Scarlet’s storylines are marvelously interwoven; and it’s obvious that the world and characters that Meyer has created aren’t too big for her to handle. Aside from being reunited with everybody, readers will also meet the very intriguing Jacin and get a glimpse into the complex mind of Winter.

With the way things ended in Cress, Winter definitely tops my list of must-reads for 2015!

Cress was released by Feiwel & Friends in February 2014. 

Comments About the Cover: I love that the cover matches that of the other books in the series and clearly tells you that Cress is a retelling of Rapunzel.
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Marissa makes an appearance

While I wasn't able to meet Marissa last year, I was lucky enough to meet her this year when she decided to come to Toronto in February as part of her Cress Tour. While waiting for Marissa to arrive at Chapters Yorkdale, I hung out with Aylee from Recovering Potter Addict and Shelly from Read. Sleep. Repeat. and got a chance to chat with Liz from Midnight Bloom Reads. 

Marissa talking about something

The event started at 7:00 PM, with Marissa talking about how she came up with the idea of Cinder and telling us the Grimm Brothers' version of Rapunzel. She then answered some questions - which I no longer remember, sorry! - and signed books.

Since I bought a paperback copy of Scarlet, I decided to get my ARC of it signed for a giveaway. So, if you're living in the US or Canada and are over the age of 13, feel free to enter below. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

From Back Cover: 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 and 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 who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

My Rating: 4 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: In Scarlet, Marissa Meyer brings together two separate storylines into one. First, we’re introduced to a new protagonist who is trying to find her grandmother with the help of a mysterious street fighter. A few chapters in though, we rejoin Cinder as she attempts to escape from prison in order to find out more about her past from a woman named Michelle Benoit.

While Cinder won me over in Cinder because she was so different from her fairy tale counterpart, I didn’t love Scarlet as much since she was a lot more similar to hers. Thus, like Little Red Riding Hood, Scarlet is rash and willing to trust sketchy strangers. However, I also found her to be loyal, brave, determined and opinionated.

On the other hand, I actually liked Wolf more than Kai. Like Kai, Wolf’s life is complicated; but I feel as if he’s less of a pushover. Plus, Wolf is tough and very protective of Scarlet. I did find Scarlet and Wolf’s romance fast progressing though, and wish that Meyer had given it a bit more time to develop. After all, less than a week passes between the start of the novel and the end.

With the stories of Cinder and Scarlet now overlapping, I look forward to seeing how Meyer will integrate Cress in the next book. With POVs from all sorts of characters in Scarlet, I’m curious to find out whether there will be three main narratives in Cress (i.e. Cinder’s, Scarlet’s and Cress’) and whether Meyer can continue to keep her characters’ voices distinct. 

Scarlet was released on February 5, 2013 by Feiwel and Friends. 

Comments About the Cover: I love that Scarlet’s cover matches that of Cinder. The red cloak also instantly tells you which fairy tale Meyer is retelling.

In exchange for an honest review, this book was received from the publisher (Raincoast Books) for free. 

Review: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

From Goodreads: 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. 

My Rating: 4.5 hearts 

Thoughts on the Novel: Wholly unique, Marissa Meyer’s Cinder is a re-telling of Cinderella with sci-fi elements. Set in New Beijing at a time when androids and cyborgs are common, a plague known as letumosis is decimating the global population, and the leaders of Earth are more or less united against the threat of the Lunars – a race led by a devious queen (who I found really fascinating); Meyer does a good job striking a balance between describing the world in Cinder and allowing it to unfold in the reader’s imagination.

To be honest, I was never a huge fan of Disney's Cinderella because it seemed like she got everything due to her fairy godmother. That’s thankfully not the case in Cinder – Linh Cinder remains hard-working but is a much more strong-willed and independent character. I also really liked that Meyer made Cinder a mechanic, which is a career you don’t see too many females in.

Although I guessed the major twists early on, it was fun to see how Meyer made this re-telling of Cinderella truly her own. For example, Cinder meets the charismatic and attractive Prince Kai way before she actually goes to the ball; and so by the time the ball arrives, the two are already friends. Thus, there’s a gradual development of attraction and both remain aware that Kai is a prince who is responsible for running the Eastern Commonwealth.

A spellbinding story that will have you craving the next book in the series, Meyer’s debut is not to be missed!

Cinder will be released on January 3, 2012 by Feiwel & Friends. 

Comments About the Cover: I think the red shoe is really eye-catching and like how the cover subtly hints that Cinder is a cyborg. Cinder’s shoe also kind of looks like the glass slipper and so it instantly makes you think of Cinderella.

In exchange for an honest review, this ARC was received from the publisher (Macmillan Children's Publishing Group) for free via NetGalley.