A More than Modern Take on a More than Well-Known Tale

Hello, readers!

Today’s post will be dedicated to Marissa Meyer's Cinder. This is the first book in what will be deemed Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles, and it is also Meyer’s first to be published book. Congrats to her on her debut!

Meyer’s Cinder, as it may sound and as the cover slightly hints, go figure, is a retelling of one of the biggest fairy tales out there— Cinderella. However, retelling though it may be, that’s pretty much where the similarities stop.

Cinder, the story’s Cinderella, lives in a very much future-world where there are people living on Earth, Earthens, and people living on the moon, Lunars. The world has been through many wars, nuclear and destructive. It has rebuilt itself, and this shows through where Cinder resides herself: in the large metropolis of New Beijing. Androids, netscreens, and advanced technology run rampant through all the world. But even if technology has advanced, there is still a war that the Earthens are striving to end: disease.

When the crown prince’s father becomes sick with a plague that is killing off billions, the prince, Kai, is faced with the decision of whether or not to ally with the cutthroat Lunars of the moon. At the same time, when Cinder finds one of her stepsister’s and only friends has become sick with the same plague and she may hold the key to curing it, she is faced with the decision of helping cure her world or escaping the confines of her home in which she is more of a prisoner than a resident. All these problems must be faced with the burden of an upcoming royal ball weighing on everyone in the background. 

Cinder, the story's main protagonist, is an outcast. Mechanic with constantly oil-stained cargos, no one expects much but an easy fix of their portscreen from her. However, when it becomes apparent she is more than the best mechanic in New Beijing and may be able to solve the missing link to the cure of the plague due to her immunity to it, she becomes an important figure. Sneaking around her stepmother’s back and even the prince’s, should he get his hopes up, Cinder with the help of a man, Dr. Erland, seeks to find a cure before Cinder's sister and Earthens all over are taken by the illness.

Not only does Cinder keep the secret of her immunity from her suspicious ball-obsessed stepmother and very much healthy and jealous second stepsister, but she also keeps the secret that her and the prince have been corresponding. Their correspondence, of course professional, at least at first, results from the mechanic fixing a royal android. However, it seems Cinder has a lot of secrets. Perhaps the biggest one, however, is not the secret that she is vital to finding a cure. Perhaps it lies in the fact that she’s one of the most detested races known to man, a cyborg, and she’s kind of falling for someone she never should have fathomed falling for in all the world, Prince Kai, and he's kind of falling for her, too.

Whoo! Sound like a lot of plot? Uh. Yeah. It is. And I couldn’t even tell you half of it, because I’d ruin the story with spoilers!

In short: not the Cinderella story you guys are used to. Not the Cinderella story ANYBODY is used to. Yet it works. Promise. The retelling elements are all there, blinking and clear. :)

Cinder was refreshing. I’d never read a sci-fi Cinderella retelling before. The idea of it sounded ludicrous, but look where we are. The story itself is phenomenal. Great characterization. I usually hate Cinderella as a character, but Cinder was vocal and daring and not afraid to speak her mind. I want to say so much more about her in this, but I guess I’ll just write an essay on it or something to appease myself, because I don’t want to give anything away. In essence: Cinder is a badass. I loved her and believed everything she did, never questioning her along the way. Kai is charming, but he’s also logical and not too romantic or annoyingly irrational, a nice change from the Disney prince who just goes for the hot chick in the dress. A lot of the story is told from his side, which is nice on the political/war side of the story. I know what you're thinking. "Politics and war? Sounds a wee bit boring." It's not. It's thrilling and brilliant.

This story is not campy. When I started reading it, I kind of figured it would be, but it wasn’t at all. It’s dark. You will be mad when certain things happen. Bad things WILL happen. There is no “happily ever after,” at least not yet. This is the first book in a series—remember? ;P

That said, I kind of loved it. I thought it was a clever portrayal. None of the language got overtly sci-fi, which can happen in sci-fi; trust me. There was a nice balance. I even like how Meyer breaks the story up into 4 different parts. The action in the book is amazing and imaginable. I was there. I could see everything, even the new technology described, perfectly.

Marissa Meyer, I’d say you’ve gotten our attention. I’ll be awaiting the next publication. ;)

Rating?

   

  

Fiction or Literature?

85% Fiction, 15% Literature

Good or Bad?

95% Good

This book, sci-fi, obviously may not be a book for everyone. I am a fan of sci-fi, and, if you are, I suggest you pick it up and give it a whirl. I think the books to come definitely promise even better. This book was fun!

Till next time,

Alex