CINDER by Marissa Meyer Audiobook Review
Series: Lunar Chronicles, #1
Publication Date: January 3rd 2012 by Feiwel & Friends
Rating: 
– Exceeds Expectations | 
Book Summary: Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl. . . .
Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.
Cinder by Marissa Meyer Audiobook Review Overview:
- One of the best audiobooks I’ve ever listened to. Rebecca Soler is an awesome narrator!
- You can’t help but cheer for Cinder
- Prince Kai is absolutely swoon-worthy
Too many good reviews on other blogs make me wary of picking a book up. But since I was craving some ear candy, I finally decided to pick up CINDER by Marissa Meyer. While it was hard to assimilate to listening instead of reading at first, when I finally got into the CINDER by Marissa Meyer audiobook, I could not stop. CINDER by Marissa Meyer is made of pure awesome.
First of all, Rebecca Soler is a fantastic narrator. Soler can fool you into thinking that the audiobook is done by more than one person because she is that good of a voice actress. Furthermore, she can do accents quite well. I really enjoyed listening to her voice, and I will definitely check out if she’s done any other audiobooks.
But of course, we have to give credit to Marissa Meyer who created this world. At first, I didn’t want to let go of the Cinderella story I know and love because this one was just too different. But I quickly warmed up to the science fiction elements. I thought that the integration of cyborgs and androids among humans to be fascinating.
Cinder is one character you can’t help but root for. She’s the kind of character who was dealt with the worst hand of cards, but still manages to make the best of everything. If something bad can go wrong, it will happen to Cinder. You cannot help but cheer for her and to finally see something good happen to her.
Readers are totally going fan-girly all over Prince Kai. While I am amused that a character has the same name as my dad, I hardly ever believe it when other readers say that a character is swoon-worthy. But I was wrong. Oh my gosh, Prince Kai is definitely a prince charming. He knows how to melt a girl’s heart. Furthermore I love that his character is flawed. Even though he is royalty, Marissa Meyer does not make him invincible in CINDER. The emperor, Prince Kai’s father, is also sick with the disease and it is so heart-breaking to read about Kai’s struggling with the news of his dad’s health.
The romance in CINDER by Marissa Meyer is absolutely heart-melting. Some scenes between Prince Kai and Cinder are just so awkward, you can’t help but give an awkward giggle. Sometimes, I wanted to just smack Cinder and say, Oh my god, how could you do that?! Marissa Meyer keeps readers on their toes when it comes to the romance.
Lastly, I did find the biggest plot twist to be a bit predictable. I honestly saw it coming in the first quarter of the book, which is a bit unfortunate. However, CINDER by Marissa Meyer as a whole still had a ton of shocking twists and turns that literally had me gasping out loud.
CINDER by Marissa Meyer is definitely worth the hype. Meyer takes a classic fairy tale and adds a spin to it that makes it ten times better. Pick up the audiobook if you can because it is honestly one of the best I’ve listened to. If not, I’m sure the book itself will be just as good.
I highly recommend CINDER by Marissa Meyer to fans of fairytale retellings, such as those by Alex Finn, science fiction, and novels with strong female protagonists.
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About the AuthorMarissa Meyer lives in Tacoma, Washington, with her fiancé and their two cats. In addition to her slight obsession with books and writing, she is big on road-tripping, wine-tasting, and hunting for antiques. Meyer is represented by Jill Grinberg. |
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Book Review, Four Stars - Audience: Young Adult, Author: Marissa Meyer, Book: Cinder, Genre: Retelling, Genre: Romance, Genre: Science Fiction, Masterful World-Building, Must Buy, Page-Turner, Publisher: Feiwel & Friends, Romantic Read, Series: Lunar Chronicles | 
1262 words
PERFECT YOU by Elizabeth Scott Book Review
Publication Date: September 21st 2010 by Simon Pulse
Rating: – Acceptable | 
Book Summary: Kate Brown’s life has gone downhill fast.
Her father has quit his job to sell vitamins at the mall, and Kate is forced to work with him. Her best friend has become popular, and now she acts like Kate’s invisible.
And then there’s Will. Gorgeous, unattainable Will, whom Kate acts like she can’t stand even though she can’t stop thinking about him. When Will starts acting interested, Kate hates herself for wanting him when she’s sure she’s just his latest conquest.
Kate figures that the only way things will ever stop hurting so much is if she keeps to herself and stops caring about anyone or anything. What she doesn’t realize is that while life may not always be perfect, good things can happen — but only if she lets them…
Book Review Overview:
- Fantastic chemistry between Will and Kate; I love love/hate relationships
- Kate was a little tough to like at first, but her character grew so much throughout the book
- Teens will be able to relate with Kate and her family’s financial problems especially in today’s economy
You know, sometimes I end up finishing a book with no idea whatsoever how the title is related to the story. PERFECT YOU by Elizabeth Scott is not one of those books. Immediately from the first few chapters we learn that Perfect You is destroying Kate’s life. Kate’s dad gave up his job to sell Perfect You vitamins at the mall, but the business isn’t doing so great. To make matters worse, Kate has to help her dad sell the vitamins.
I had a love/hate relationship with Kate. I could easily relate to her insecurities when it came to Will, but at the same time I wanted to pull my hair out on how obvious everything was. From my perspective, there was no second-guessing Will’s intentions. He made it pretty clear to everyone but Kate. But needless to say, Will and Kate had a ton of chemistry. Their relationship really started out as a bit physical (kissing only, PERFECT YOU is PG-13!) if you don’t count the excessive bantering that goes on between the two of them at school.
“And what do you mean, you used to say stuff to get me to look at you? You were a pain in the ass on purpose?”
“Oh, please. For you and me, it was flirting. Besides, it was the only way I could get you to talk to me.”
“You’re making me sound like a freak.”
I could also understand how upset Kate must feel about her life at home, but I couldn’t relate to the way she would burst out yelling at her parents. I know she’s upset, but it doesn’t help to blame her parents – especially her mom. But I have to give her a break since I know that it must be really hard for her seeing her home life crumble due to financial situations despite doing her best to help out. But it did bother me that Kate rarely thinks about others’ feelings – especially when she says something mean. It’s pointed out several times in the book that this is her biggest flaw – she has a tendency to think the worst of people. However, despite her flaws, Kate grows so much as a character and I loved her by the end of the book.
Kate’s Grandma was probably my favorite character in PERFECT YOU. This lady’s still got style. Kate must be crazy not to appreciate a grandma who’s willing to take her shopping. And those purple boots? Is Kate crazy? I’d love to have a pair like that! (Oh wait, I already do.) Yeah, Grandma is a little materialistic, but at the end of the day, Grandma still wants the best for Kate and her family.
PERFECT YOU by Elizabeth Scott is more than just a fun teen romance novel. Elizabeth Scott explores other problems such as the loss of the best friend and family financial situations. Especially with today’s economy, I feel that many teens will be able to resonate with Kate and the other characters in PERFECT YOU by Elizabeth Scott.
Other Book Reviews:
Coffee Table Reviews
Paperback Treasures
About the Author
All right, and she can’t leave without buying at least one book. Usually two. (Or more!) |
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Elizabeth Scott writes young adult novels. She lives just outside Washington DC with her husband and dog, and is unable to pass a bookstore without stopping and going inside.
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Book Review, Three Stars - Audience: Young Adult, Author: Elizabeth Scott, Book: Perfect You, Borrow It, Genre: Contemporary, Genre: Romance, Publisher: Simon Pulse | 1093 words
WATCH ME by Lauren Barnholdt Book Review (Previously published as Reality Chick)
Publication Date: June 20th 2006 by Simon Pulse
Rating: – Acceptable |
Book Summary: She thinks she has nothing to hide…
Ally has everything under control. She’s about to move into a house full of strangers and have her life broadcast to the world, but as long as she still has her long-distance boyfriend, Corey, nothing can go wrong. Nothing, that is, until Ally starts spending time with her housemate Drew, the hot and sensitive guy who always seems to be around when she needs someone the most.
As suspicions and lies start pulling Ally and Corey apart, she’s not sure if she can trust anyone, not even herself. Ally is about to learn the hard way that life is what happens when everyone is looking, and it doesn’t always capture her good side….
Book Review Overview:
- Love that WATCH ME features college-aged teens
- If you take out the cameras, WATCH ME is a realistic portrayal of a long-distance college relationship
- Ending was sweet and satisfying, but it isn’t my favorite Barnholdt
WATCH ME by Lauren Barnholdt is a quick, fun contemporary read. I’ve had WATCH ME sitting on my shelves for a while, and I finally picked it up when I decided I needed a good Lauren Barnholdt fix.
On a side note, title changes are confusing. WATCH ME by Lauren Barnholdt was originally published under the title Reality Chick with a different cover. I had a difficult time finding it on GoodReads at first since WATCH ME is still under its original title.
Minus the fact that Ally is on a reality television show, I think that the premise of WATCH ME is pretty realistic. I think from the very first page of the novel, readers can guess that Ally and Corey’s relationship is going to go downhill. It’s inevitable. Ally experiences a ton of insecurities about her relationship with Corey despite the fact that they’ve been together for almost two years. The distance is a problem, plus the fact that college is an overwhelming experience that changes you. I think that at the end, Ally was very mature about the way she handled her relationship with Corey.
Like a good reality television show, WATCH ME is full of fun and interesting characters:
- Jasmine: the sexy, flirty girl who doesn’t want to be tied down by a boyfriend
- Simone: the soft-spoken virgin
- Ally: the girl with the long-distance boyfriend
- James: the ghetto guy who claims he’s a player
- Drew: the hot, Abercrombie type
As far as first impressions go, I didn’t like Jasmine. She’s just the kind of girl that I don’t see myself being friends with. But as the novel progressed, I grew to like her. She’s fun, comfortable with her body, and she’s extremely loyal to her friends. She was definitely my favorite secondary character.
I thought that the ending of WATCH ME was sweet and satisfying. However, I don’t think that WATCH ME comes even close to the level of my favorite Barnholdt novel, Two-Way Street. There was chemistry among the characters, but WATCH ME lacked romantic tension because Ally was in a relationship for almost the entire book.
Despite the fact that I thought WATCH ME was just okay, this is not stopping me from reading the rest of Barnholdt’s novels. I’m determined to read the rest of her books until I find another one that I love just as much as Two-Way Street.
I would definitely recommend WATCH ME by Lauren Barnholdt to those who are fans of contemporary romance, reality television, and juicy gossip. Read WATCH ME if you like books by Elizabeth Scott or Jennifer Echols. And of course, if you are a Lauren Barnholdt fan, you should definitely still check this one out.
Why I’m Biased: I’m a big Lauren Barnholdt fan ever since I read Two-Way Street.
Other Book Reviews:
Escaping Through Books
Paranormal Indulgence
Reading Lark
About the AuthorLauren Barnholdt is also the author of Two-Way Street, The Secret Identity of Devon Delaney, Four Truths and a Lie, and One Night That Changes Everything. She lives in Waltham, Massachusetts. |
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Book Review, Three Stars - Audience: Young Adult, Author: Lauren Barnholdt, Book: Watch Me, Borrow It, Genre: Contemporary, Genre: Romance, Publisher: Simon Pulse | 1131 words
- Action Packed
- Hahaha Funny
- Heartwarmer
- Makes You Think
- Poetic Prose
- Tear-Jerker
