This is a much better story than some of the novels for several reasons, but suffers from some of the same old weaknesses too. First plus: Cinder stays on Luna. It turns out watching her try to learn politics is much better than her trying to save the day as an action heroine. Iko is more interesting and relatable in that role. On the other hand, the gang does not get back together; instead, we see bits of each of them, some not enough. The […]
There’s gotta be a Game of Thrones joke here somewhere
This is a pretty good story, but somehow I didn’t like a lot about it. The final fairy tale ends up being Snow White, and while Winter fits the general outline, her Prince Charming Jacin doesn’t quite make sense. His attachment to Winter and hers to him just doesn’t seem to have much of a foundation other than they kind of grew up together and he’s been around her entire life. The other thing I didn’t really like is how the heroes spent so much […]
A fairy tale about salad as heroine
I have to admit, the title got me a little. I figured ‘Cress’ was short for something, but I would not have guessed “Crescent”; I was thinking something along the lines of ‘watercress’, which made no sense given that the model fairy tale this time is supposed to be Rapunzel. The other books have heroines whose names have some clear connection to the base story, so why this doesn’t is beyond me. In terms of enjoyment, Cress falls in between Cinder and Scarlet. 3.5 stars. […]
Red Really is My Color
First reaction: much better than book 1. Second reaction: a lot like book 1 really. Scarlet is book 2 of the Lunar Chronicles series, and this installment is patterned supposedly on Little Red Riding Hood. The connection to Cinderella in Cinder was quite a bit more recognizable in terms of plot and character than the fairy tale connection is here. Maybe that’s why this one is a little better, especially in terms of character because ti doesn’t have to rely on the requirements of the […]
Re-imagined Fairy Tales Are My Catnip
This is a review of all four Lunar Chronicles books: Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter. When I saw Cinder, the first book in the Lunar Chronicles, I was turned off by the cover and description. I hadn’t yet delved into fantasy YA and so I didn’t buy the series. I had a “what the heck was I thinking” moment about a month ago and bought the book. And I inhaled it, and then bought the next book and so forth until I had rapidly inhaled […]
If only I’d read this right after the others
Winter is the conclusion to Marissa Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles and neatly wraps up the story in a tidy little bow, maybe a bit too tidy if I’m honest. I’m not exactly sure what happened here, but I did not enjoy this entry as much as the previous books in this series. I blew through the Lunar Chronicles sometime last year and thought they were excellent YA, but I had been putting of reading this one and ended up skimming through most if it and outright skipping […]