Cinderella is Dead by Kalynn Bayron is a dystopian take on the classic fairy tale. Set 200 years after the fairy tale happened, sixteen-year-old girls are now required to go to an annual ball, where a suitor will select a girl to marry. If after three balls, a girl isn’t selected they are never heard from again.
The main character, Sophia, would much rather marry her childhood best friend Erin than some random man that chooses her, attempts to flee the ball. She manages to flee without being caught and finds herself in the late Cinderella’s mausoleum. At Cinderella’s mausoleum, she meets Constance the last (known) descendant of Cinderella and her stepsisters. Together, Cinderella and Constance work together to overthrow the patriarchy and help make the society more equal. But, they learn secrets about their society that they never knew existed.
Cinderella is Dead is a good dystopian take on the story of Cinderella. It makes you question the story you know and has many unexpected elements. The protagonist is unapologetically herself, and that is part of what makes this book so great. This book was written by the same author as This Poison Heart, which I have not read but have heard good things about.
Overall, I would give this book 4 stars, because even though it was a great book with a great plot, for some reason it wasn’t my favorite. It may have been because of the plot or because of the genre, I like dystopian but for some reason, not all dystopian books are enjoyable for me. But, I would recommend it if you like that genre.