Reader: Sophie D.
Age: 16
Title: Cinder
Author: Marissa Meyer
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends
Pub Date: 2012
Galley: No
Top 25: Yes
Convince us to read the book: The setting of this book was absolutely fantastic. It is the first futuristic teen novel that I have read for a really long time that was actually believable. Though there were androids and cyborgs and moon people and new countries, the futuristic elements were not overdone, and not so overdeveloped that it was not plausible. The way that the society was explained was nice too, there wasn't just a big paragraph in the first chapter that summarized what had happened to Earth. Bits and pieces were explained throughout the book, and even at the end the reader is left wondering about one or two things, which is a very classy way of assuring that people will read the next book. The characters were wonderful too: not to deep, but just the right amount of originality to make them sympathetic.
Memorable or Forgettable: Cyborgs are a really interesting concept, and pretty easy to screw up. However, they were explained with elegance and style in this book. Cinder's life was not completely consumed by her cyborg-ness, yet it was something about her that was always present. The concept of cyborgs actually makes perfect logical sense in the context of this society, which was cool.
Cover: The cover is nice, though a bit too girly looking. I don't think that this book had to try to be a Cinderella stoy, I think the plot would have been fine on its own. Also, there's nothing about a red shoe in the book, but there is a lot about cyborg feet, so maybe a pair of mismatched feet would be a better cover, if they want to go that route.
Age Range: 12-17
Quality: 4Q Better than most
Popularity: 4P Broad general teen appeal

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