Bookish Thoughts: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

The screw through Cinder's ankle had rusted, the engraved cross marks worn to a mangled circle. ~ Opening of Cinder

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer

Feiwel & Friends, 2012

Science Fiction (YA); 400 pgs

Goodreads 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.

I have wanted to read Cinder for awhile now and knew this year would be the year. Thanks to all of you who voted for it in my September TBR poll! I knew Cinder was a cyborg and that it was a loose re-telling of Cinderella when I began reading it, but, for the most part, I went into the novel with little idea of what to expect.

The novel kicks right off with Cinder at her booth in the market and a poorly disguised Prince Kai appearing at her stall seeking the mechanic's help. The two hit it off well right from the start, although their conversation is brief. Soon after he leaves, a woman in the market shows signs of a fatal and highly contagious plague that is threatening the kingdom, and all hell breaks loose.

The novel took a while to really get off the ground for me. The author takes her time setting up Cinder's situation, which is definitely not a good one. She lives with her guardian and the guardian's two daughters. Only one of the girls is nice to Cinder, someone she might call a friend even. The guardian is particularly nasty. I never really got a feel for the other daughter, other than her sharing in some of her mother's animosity toward Cinder.

I think it was the moment when Cinder first meets Dr. Erland that I became completely invested in the novel. Things started falling into place quickly after that and the tension began building at a steadier pace. I wasn't entirely surprised at the direction Cinder took, although I wanted to see how everything would evolve.

I loved that the novel is set in New Beijing. Although there is not a strong sense of place other than your generic kingdom, the greater political picture caught my interest--the coalition between the governments, the fear of the Lunars, the people from the moon. The Lunar Queen in particular seems to be a force to be reckoned with--ruling her own people and others with manipulation and fear.

I worried initially that the characters would lack much in the way of development, but as the book went on, they became more defined and interesting. Kai isn't just the love sick young man and Cinder is also more than she seems on the surface as well.

I confess it was Scarlet that first drew my attention to the Lunar Chronicles. I haven't yet read it because I knew I needed to start with Cinder. While I liked Cinder, I didn't fall in love with it the way I hoped. Still, I am looking forward to seeing what Scarlet holds for me as I've heard it is even better than Cinder, and I want to know what happens next!

To learn more about Marissa Meyer and her work, please visit the author on the author's website. 

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