Glitches & Cinder [Double Book Review]

Stats:
Glitches:

Lunar Chronicles #0.5

Kindle Edition, 32 pages

Published January 18th 2012 by Tor Books (first published December 5th 2011)

ASIN: B006OLOUTG

Cinder:
Lunar Chronicles #1

Hardcover, 1st Edition, 387 pages

Published January 3rd 2012 by Feiwel & Friends

ISBN: 0312641893


Synopsis:
Glitches:
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. In Glitches, a short prequel story to Cinder, we see the results of that illness play out, and the emotional toll that takes on Cinder. Something that may, or may not, be a glitch...

Cinder:
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 Thoughts:
Glitches isn't essential to read, however, it adds a layer to the Cinder story. Meyer has an amazing talent and she makes this 32 pages worth far more than a mere 32 pages. It's packed with emotion and backstory.

I really wish that I would have gotten around to reading Cinder sooner than I did. I tracked it until it released, I read reviews, and I STILL didn't read it immediately like I should have.

Cinder was such an incredible read - definitely a beyond-five star book for me in 2013. The story follows Cinder, a cyborg who was adopted by a man who has since passed away. She belongs to Adri (the evil "stepmother") who has two daughters, Pearl and Peony. The story opens with Cinder performing mechanical work on androids at her booth at the market with her android friend, Iko. Prince Kaito visits to drop off an android to be repaired and shortly thereafter, another booth owner succumbs to The Plague (the same one that killed Cinder's "father") and is taken off in a hover. Rumors are flying around that Prince Kaito/Kai will be holding a ball to find a bride. But there are also rumors that the Lunar (a colony of violent and greedy people that live on the moon) queen, Queen Levana, will sink her metaphorical claws into Prince Kai and take over Earth.

Cinder was an extremely unique retelling of Cinderella. Cinder is just the most BA heroine. Prince Kai is very swoonworthy and charming. Both Adri and Queen Levana are DESPICABLE, horrible, and just plain evil.

If you haven't read this book, GET IT NAO!!! Marissa Meyer is a fantastic author. I cannot wait for Scarlet. According to this week's TTT, it's a really great sequel :) 
 

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