Review: The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer

The Lunar Chronicles

I can't believe it took me this long to read this series!!! In my last post, I mentioned that the author, Marissa Meyer, did a book signing at my work, which was the main reason I finally picked Cinder up. People have literally been telling me since the day it came out that I should add the series to my list. But you know how sometimes there are just those books that everyone loves that you just say ...meh, it's not for me? (Mortal Instruments, bleh) DON'T say that about this series!! I really wish I had listened to everyone who told me to read this sooner so that I could have participated in the excitement over the recent release of Cress, the third (of four) titles in The Lunar Chronicles.

Since this is a review of the first three books (I read them one after the other - that's how much I liked them), I don't want to give away any plot spoilers because I want EVERYONE to read them, so I'm just going to stick to some general things I loved about these books.

For those who don't know the series, the books are based on a future version of Earth where a plague continues to weaken humans who live in fear of their Lunar neighbours, a group of humans who live on the moon and have evolved into a strange and powerful people. Cinder is just a poor cyborg mechanic who gets swept up into the search for a cure due to the secrets of her past.

There are few books that make me fall in love with all the characters as a group (The Perks of Being a Wallflower, The Fault in Our Stars, Looking for Alaska, Graceling) and make me want to be friends with all of them. This series did this effortlessly. Meyer has 7 main characters by the end of the 3rd book, and I love their interactions with each other. They are all so hilarious together and their little quips and retorts had me snorting in even the most serious scenes.

Another thing I love about this series is how everything is foreshadowed and how it all works together. Characters and events are all seamlessly interrelated and linked in ways that made me very impressed with all the planning that must have gone into this series. Meyer is very good at making everything fit. And her foreshadowing is just subtle enough that it made me excited to keep reading to see the interactions and events that I thought she was alluding to.

This series is so fast-paced. It is very hard for me to find a book (especially a YA book) that doesn't have at least a couple sections where you 'get to know' the characters while the plot stagnates. This series never had those moments, and I loved it. I had to force myself to put each book down in order to finish my papers and eat food. They completely sucked me in.

I really like Cinder as a character. I love all the female leads, but Cinder is the best because she's so anti-damsel-in-distress. And for a series based on retellings of classic fairy tales, this is really appreciated. And I don't want to give any spoilers...but there are two other characters who just made me squeal in Cress. It takes a lot for me to think two characters are the cutest things ever, but there are two in this series that do that. I'm dying for Winter in 2015. GAH!

A few words on the fairy tale aspects: I am not a fan of fairy tales, I've never like the gruesome and depressing stories. This was the main reason it took me so long to read these books. HOWEVER, don't let this deter you like it did for me! I actually really liked how the fairy tales are incorporated into this series without being the central focus. I began to appreciate the certain amount of guessing I could do about the plot because of knowing how the fairy tales went.

Okay I have to stop talking about this series now. There's just so many things I love about it. Cress is definitely my favourite of the three books so far. Just...read them. Trust me. I'm still stuck in the world Meyer creates, and I finished it yesterday. I couldn't even start another series until I had written all this out.

Speaking of another series, what should I read next? I'm caught between Incarnate by Jodi Meadows, Defiance by C. J. Redwine, or re-reading Shatter Me so I can finish that series! Help!