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reddeddy's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, Medical content, Grief, Abandonment, Dysphoria, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Self harm, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Car accident, Death of parent, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Fire/Fire injury, and Gaslighting
Minor: Chronic illness, Drug use, Genocide, Gore, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Slavery, Torture, Forced institutionalization, Trafficking, Medical trauma, Murder, Colonisation, and War
sofiya's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
Not sure how I feel about the storyline as a whole- it just seems like a lot? I guess that at the end of the day, it's about the hostile relationship between Earth and the Lunar people, but there's a lot put into it that made it difficult for me to grasp. Saying that, I'm not really a sci-fi enthusiastic, but I think that people who are could really like this book.
My biggest critique is that I'm not a fan of the big "plot twist" of a book being obvious to the readers and not to the MC- which happens with a few different things. I was getting frustrated with Cinder for not realizing what was right in front of her, while also acknowledging that we see a lot more than she does. Still, I'm excited to continue with the series and see where it goes.
Graphic: Terminal illness
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Slavery, Violence, and War
christinastuart26's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Terminal illness
Moderate: Child death, Death, Gun violence, Physical abuse, Slavery, Violence, Blood, and Grief
Minor: War
maria_pell's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Terminal illness, Xenophobia, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Death, Gun violence, Hate crime, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Slavery, Torture, Toxic relationship, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Medical content, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Excrement
kthedestroyer's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
It's not that I don't like it because I really do (I mean, 4 stars is still a lot) but there is just something about it that I don't get as emersed as I should have.
It honestly might be the pacing. I feel like it's too fast and too slow at the same time. Everything happens so fast so you can't get to know the characters well enough but then again it seems like some scenes take forever.
Maybe it's something about the fact that Cinder's 16. Look, I have nothing against 16-year-olds but there's just no way that I wouldn't break under pressure 2 years ago if I was in her place. When I look at those kids now, I feel like it would be even worse.
I also think that Peony's death came too soon. I mean, she was in the book for like 50 pages and Meyer was just like: "Okay, time to die biatch." I feel like this is why I didn't really care about her death. Sure, Cinder's reaction was devastating but then again, we kinda forget about it right after that scene is finished.
I also miss my girl Iko for the majority of the book. Adri, I hate you for what you did. It's your fault that our fairy godmother is absent. You shall suffer (this is what we call foreshadowing).
It's getting a bit too negative in here, don't you think?
I thought so.
Okay, I know. The romance between Kai and Cinder is very convenient but I crave it. This whole book could have been just a back and forth conversation between them and I would love it. It's a sugar bomb and anyone who knows me would probably question if it was really me who wrote this review when I told them that this is the main reason why I like the book.
Sorry, I lied. It's not the romance... it's the SASS and Iko's hilarious comments.
Firstly, we have Cinder's sass which is not visible that often but when we get her snarky comments, my day instantly gets better.
Secondly, Iko is hilarious. I love her and her obsession with shoes and dresses and Prince Kai. I would love to see more of her in this book (I, again, blame Adri).
And of course, the star of the book... Prince Kai. That man is playing with his life. Levana is a ruthless queen who shows no mercy and this idiot of a man still shoots some very ironic or sarcastic comments even though she would probably want to cut his head off.
Pure gold.
Also... the ending is heartbreaking. I kinda want to kill Kai for the words he said to Cinder. The sass saved him this time but still. This is why I still prefer Thorne over Kai.
Marissa Meyer is most definitely one of my top 3 favorite authors but it shows that this is her first (I think) published book. Fortunately, it only gets better from here.
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Slavery, Toxic relationship, and Fire/Fire injury
empathephant's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Terminal illness, Blood, Medical content, and Medical trauma
Moderate: Child death, Panic attacks/disorders, Self harm, Xenophobia, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Child abuse, Confinement, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Slavery, Violence, Excrement, Vomit, Dementia, and Car accident
A pandemic that causes nearly death threatens the world. The plot takes place under the looming threat of war, centering on trying to prevent the war. Main character is an orphan, living in an abusive adoptive family.nxclx's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
I didn't get the feeling of sadness for Peony and her sickness and death, and Cinder seemed way more concerned with the Prince and the romantics kind of took over there. Also... we get it. The prince is hot. He's attractive. Woo.
Cinder for me could've been such a bad ass character, but she came across as brash and impulsive - which I get it, she's a teenager, but still. She' s grown up in this abusive household and her actions from the beginning don't show that. It would've been more appropriate to me to see that growth. Kai comes across the same way to me: out of character. I know that's a weird phrasing since he is the character but hear me out. He's grown up a prince and has presumably been taught his entire life how to run a country, how to act, proper diplomatic moves to make... and yet here he is, impulsive and not acting like a prince, but more of a regular teenager/young adult.
I feel like I've read this story before many times over in YA Fantasy that came out around this time, and maybe I need to stop reading books like that, but they all start to blend together and sound completely unoriginal...
I did like that they weren't together at the end of the book, that works more for me than forcing the ending to wrap up quickly and rush things. I don't know if I'll be continuing on with the series, but it's been on my TBR the longest, and I'm glad to have gotten it out of the way so I'll stop wondering about it.
Moderate: Ableism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Slavery, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Xenophobia, and Medical content
Minor: Gun violence and Sexual assault
Clarifications: (partial spoilers, nothing major) - Body Shaming: for being a Cyborg and not human, not related to weight - Medical Content: medical examination and blood draws - Suicide: not actual suicide, but attempted forced suicide (twice.) - Terminal Illness: there's a deadly plague. sound familiar? - Xenophobia: aliens/cyborgs, not modern xenophobia - Gun Violence: again, attempted forced suicide (with a gun) - Sexual Assault: SPOILER she kisses him against his will and he does not reciprocate