review: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

pub date: January 3, 2012
publisher: Feiwel and Friends
pages: 387
source: NetGalley
appeals: scifi, fairy tale retelling, Cinderella, future, romance, techy stuff
content: nothing that could be offensive

thoughts:
I enjoyed this book a lot. It is supposedly a retelling of Cinderella, but only loosely. The world and characters and plot were so original and exciting and fun, that if I hadn't known it was supposed to be Cinderella, I don't know if I would've thought so just by reading it. But since I did know it was Cinderella, it was fun to pick out the similarities (I especially loved the foot), and I LOVED how it was scifi. Lots of fairy tale fantasys, but this is the only fairy tale science fiction that I know about. So cool!

I really liked this world that Meyer created. There was such depth, so much that was going on outside of the Cinderella-ish plot thread. It was done really well.

I am a sap for romance in my books, and this one did not disappoint. I really enjoyed the romance between Cinder, the cyborg, and Kai, the emperor of New Beijing's son.

And Cinder herself is a very sympathetic character. She's brave and humble and compassionate and strong and a dreamer. I could empathize with her plight and hated her step-mom.

A really enjoyable read.

However, I am noticing a trend in YA, and it's liable to drive me crazy. What is with not finishing a story?!?!? I get that it's a series, but please, give me an ending! Tie off some of the plot threads! It's like Meyer wrote a novel that was 1600 pages long (goodreads says there will be four books in the series) and randomly chopped it where it felt like a nice break in the ongoing plot. Lots of authors are doing this, and it's infuriating. I expect a conclusion when I begin a book and feel cheated when I don't get one. Especially if I won't ever get one until the fourth book comes out. Arg.

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, Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.