by Marissa Meyer
464 pages
Middle School+
Cinder is a cyborg. She is also a Lunar, despised by the people of earth that she grew up with. And on top of all that, she is now a fugitive from the law. Breaking out of prison with Captain Thorne, they fly off in his spaceship in order to avoid capture or worse. Cinder must find time to process the fact that not only is she Lunar, but she is the lost Lunar princess, and rightful heir to the throne.
Meanwhile, in small town France, Scarlet Benoit is trying to live her normal life. It's hard though when her grandmother has been missing for the last two weeks. When the police cease their investigation, due to lack of evidence, Scarlet is furious and determined to find out the truth. As she delivers fruit to a local restaurant, she meets Wolf, a fighter that defends her in a brawl. Not quite trusting him, she declines his company home.
After finishing all her deliveries, Scarlet heads home, only to find her long lost father there, tearing the house apart. He is frantically searching for something, not knowing exactly what. Looking closer at him, Scarlet notices wounds and burns on him. After he admits to being tortured by the same people that have her grandmother, Scarlet is more determined than ever to find out who took her grandmother and what these strangers want. Her only clue is a tattoo that her father saw, the same type of tattoo that she saw on Wolf's arm.
So, I heard some people say they weren't as satisfied with this book as they were with Cinder, but I liked it just fine! The adventure is continuous, the plot twists and turns plenty, plus there is tons of foreshadowing and hints at what may come. I'm very excited to see Cinder grow and change in the next book. This book occurred over such a short time frame (about a week) that characters faced struggles, overcame them, but the longer growth wasn't as visible. I want to see how Cinder is going to balance her new powers with staying true to herself and her own values. I also want to see Cinder and Prince Kai connecting again...
I really like both Cinder and Scarlet for the way they retell the fairy tales. Who would have thought of a cyborg and Lunar Cinderella! I love that while she has used the tales for inspiration, Meyer is not afraid to go outside the traditional story and really makes the story her own. I can't wait for Cress in 2014, and see what she does with that story!
Overall, great story, great series! I can see mostly girls liking this, but boys I think would get a kick out of the cyborg part of the story. Recommended for middle school kids and up, mostly for the length. Later elementary readers could probably take it on if they are interested and love to read. Go out, read this series! Definitely read Cinder first, otherwise you would be very lost in reading Scarlet.
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