Review: Cinder
Quick take:
Cinder is the first book of the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. I enjoyed Cinder for what is, a fun, quick read. A lot of the characters were based off of Cinderella and a delight to read. The sci-fi setting was a nice twist. 4/5
Setting:
The story takes place in a futuristic setting where countries boundaries have altered somewhat after world wars. Yet there's still the threat of war from the Lunar Queen Levana who lives on the moon. Cinder is a sixteen year old girl who's well known as the best mechanic of New Beijing, Commonwealth. It's no surprise. Cinder is also a cyborg. Even with all her technological enhancements, being a cyborg means being viewed as less than human. It also means that your ID number may be drawn for plague research. The story starts when Prince Kai takes an android in for repair one day, leading a series of events to unfold.
Characters:
Linh Cinder is our protagonist, is based off of Cinderella, and lives under her stepmother's rule. I found her to be relatable. She has her struggles. Being a cyborg since a young age, she's faced off with being viewer her as less than human and taking advantage of power dynamics. Everyone faces their own hardships, especially those within marginalized communities, and I admired Cinder's resilience.
Prince Kai is the love interest and is our Prince Charming. As compared to Disney's prince in Cinderella, I found him more likeable and character driven. With his father dying and Queen Levana threatening marriage or war-- he a lot of problems to deal with. Although his relationship with Cinder is still only a few weeks long like a lot of fairy tale esque stories, I found their moments together fun. At least from the first book, their relationship shows that they really care about each other, but I didn't get the "oh my gods, one tru luv" vibe, which was refreshing.
Cinder has a family that she lives with and supports. Linh Adri is one the antagonists and is the evil stepmother. She's self-serving and has no problem taking advantage of Cinder's cyborg status. Despite not having powers like the other antagonist, she got her way regardless. Peony and Pearl are the stepsisters. However, Peony is a darling while Pearl is the meaner one. If we compare this family to Disney's Cinderella, I found this family more fleshed out. Despite disliking most of them as people, I enjoyed them as characters.
Iko is Cinder's android sidekick. She has unique, bubbly programming and often gushes over her dramas and Prince Kai. I found her to be really entertaining.
I view Dr. E as Cinder's really shady fairy godmother. He always seems to know more than he
lets on, especially when it comes to Cinder. He bequeaths certain gifts to Cinder through the series, both knowledge and actual objects near the end. My first impression of him was a pervert, but my view of him improved as more is revealed of what's really going on.
Lastly there's the evil queen that every story needs. I found Queen Levana of the Lunar Republic to be a delight to read. She's still a bit two-dimensional in Cinder, but I'm going to assume her story and character will be fleshed out as the series progresses.
What it did good:
World building
Pacing
Fun characters
Character relationships
What it could improve:
Fairly predictable
Queen Levana needs fleshing out
Last thoughts:
I recommend it as a fun, quick read with a likeable protagonist that you want to root for. For those interested in analyzing it further, I'd suggest comparing it to other Cinderella tales. I also noticed it to have similar themes of the "good young women" and "bad older women" dynamics that's prevalent in various media forms.
