The cover of these novels have intrigued me since the day I saw them in Wal-Mart a couple years ago. It’s always the covers that get you right? I just knew from looking at them that they would be good novels, and I wasn’t wrong. I hope the covers encourage you to read the wild tales that are held inside. A great series by a great author, Marissa Meyer.

Book One 

Cinder: The first book in the Lunar Chronicles. Here we meet our main character Cinder, who is not only nobody, but a cyborg. Later she realizes that not only is she part machine, she’s a Lunar, from the moon. It’s a twist on our classic Cinderella story. The prince shows an interest in girl, but the girl can’t be with the human prince, but the prince still has feelings for the girl. All the while a deadly disease is killing off all the humans, which the disease is coming from the Lunars. It’s your classic tale gone wrong. The plotline is very fresh, the story is set way into the future, and not only is it a twist on a classic, and it’s a good twist. The ending throws the reader through a loop, and the next book is sure to be just as great. It’s definitely a must read.

Book Two 

Scarlet: The second book in the Lunar Chronicles. We start the second book by meeting some new characters, and redefining a new story. We meet Scarlet whose grandmother has been kidnapped and it’s up to Scarlet to find her, only when she does is it too late? Scarlet’s story is a remake of the classic Little Red Riding Hood, where she’s Red and Lunar wolves are after her. Then we have Cinder, our main character from the first book, plotline that interweaves with Scarlet’s. Cinder has escaped from jail after finding out she is Princess Selena, and the Queen is after her, only Scarlet’s grandmother can help her. Two plotlines that come together in the end, it’s not bad, it can get confusing at times, but overall quite nicely put together. The novel’s end has a conclusion, but you can tell that there is more to come. They’ve won the battle, and are now looking to win the war. It’s a very active novel, and just as good as the first, if not better. The reader can’t wait to see what’s in store next.

Book Three 

Cress: The third book in the Lunar Chronicles. It seems that we meet a new character with a different fairy tale attached in each book; in this novel it’s Cress who is like Rapunzel. She’s the third girl involved in the story; who fits in just nicely. She’s been stuck on a satellite for seven years and works for the Queen, Queen Levana. Queen Levana plans to attack Earth and it’s up to all three girls, Cress, Scarlet and Cinder to stop her. But obviously the Queen steps in and all three of them get separated. It’s a very long novel, but it was long for a reason; everything had to be set up just right so that the story could unfold. Once the story unfolded it was actually a pretty good story. The reader could put two and two together for some things, and it was a great novel to watch the characters grow. The cute romantic subplots the author added in for dramatic effect really played well into the whole plot. The novel gets a little tedious through the middle, but once you reach the end you crave to find out what will happen, and if their plan to overthrow Queen Levana will work.

Book 3.0 

Fairest: Part of the Lunar Chronicles comes the side story of Levana, the Queen of Lunar. The reader gets a glimpse into the life she has led from girlhood, to Queen. All the reader has gotten so far from previous novels is that she’s evil, but we come to learn why she’s evil, and where things went wrong. From her hateful older sister, to the man she loves not loving her, to getting rid of future queens so she can be queen, life was not easy for her. The novel was short and sweet, very straight to the point. The novel jumped years a lot and there would be very big gaps between years to get the plot of her life moving faster. It’s like the novel tried to tell her story as fast as possible. The characters were annoying; there was never a time when the reader thought okay I understand, your actions are justified, nope, just really bad characters, but it helps move story lines around. Overall, it was a nice treat to read a little bonus materiel before the final novel. Definitely worth reading if you’ve already read novels one through three in the Lunar Chronicles.

Winter by: Marissa Meyer: The final chapter in the Lunar Chronicles. This novel focuses around Winter, Queen Levana’s stepdaughter. This story takes on the tale of Snow White, where Winter is the Snow White. Fighting to take over her stepmother’s throne, it’s the final battle to try and win. As much as this novel focuses on Winter, this novel brings all the characters from the past three together, and they each get a part in the story to bring Queen Levana down. It was clever the way the author brought everyone back for their own plot. Plots intertwined with each other, which made it entertaining to read. The writing was really well done, and the character developments were well written. Although all the characters found love, and the romantic plotlines, some felt a little forced, while others truly felt real. Overall, it was a good, yet predictably happy ending, to an incredibly creative, and original series.

Stars Above by: Marissa Meyer: Part of her Lunar Chronicles series comes a collection of short stories about the characters the reader has come to love. There are back stories into Scarlet and Wolf, which ties into a beautifully crafted love story at the end. There is backstory on Winter, and of course Cinder and Kai. Meyer did a good job of giving a little more to her readers, by showing off where characters started. Some of the stories really tie into each other, which makes for a wonderful reading experience. This novel was the ending for all these characters, and it was well written and well thought out; nothing was left out, and everything had its own perfect spot in the story. Overall, it’s an added bonus that brings the reader into the world one last time.