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Series: The Lunar Chronicles (Book 3)
Genre: YA Science-Fiction
Publisher: Square Fish; Reprint edition (January 27, 2015)
Page Count: 592 pages
I really enjoyed Cinder and Scarlet, so of course, I had to give Cress a shot! After Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets took too long to come in on my hold list I went ahead and got Cress.
The Plot: The plot has definitely warmed up. I love how intricately Marissa Meyer wove the plot. She foreshadowed so much in her previous books and now much of it has come to fruition. I like how she introduced elements even from the first book that come into prominent play in the third book. It’s really great storytelling. This book also tackles a lot of point of views, but they flow together and don’t detract from one another. The plot kept me engaged from the beginning to the end.
The Characters: In addition to Cinder and Scarlet now we have Cress. Cress is very different from the previous two protagonists, but I love how each of them are so unique. Cress is girlier than the other two and loves singing and acting yet she also has a talent for hacking. She’s dreamy and a bit naive, but I feel like this suits her personality. I also love the depth that Thorne gains in this book. He rises to prominence in this book and has a neat journey that skirts around the original fairy tale.
The Setting: This book brings new settings, but then also takes us back to an old and familiar setting. A good portion of the book is set in Africa particularly in the Sahara and small towns. We also finally get some hands-on experience on Luna, even though it’s frightening. Then we return to China. I love the variety of settings this book has.
Epic Things: I love it when Iko is the ship that the ship expresses her emotions like heating up when she’s embarrassed or letting out a puff of air when she’s sighing. I also really like the glamor that the Lunars have. More details are revealed about it in this book.
The Theme: I think a big theme is not letting your relatives or the people who raised you completely define you. Cinder compares herself to Queen Levana and fears becoming her and Cress constantly recalls the trauma she endured with Mistress Sybil.
Content Cautions: This book was pretty darn clean. No swearing that I could remember. It was implied that part of someone’s finger was chopped off.
What We Can Take Away For Our Writing:
1.) A Main Character Who Isn’t Completely Hardcore and/or Tomboyish – I’ve heard some people didn’t like Cress as much and I think that’s because Cress didn’t fit the popular hardcore tomboyish character that’s trending right now. There’s nothing wrong with being a girly girl. I have several friends who are very girly and don’t have a smidgen of tomboy in them and there’s nothing wrong with that. Those people exist and they’re also some of the sweetest people I know. I’m glad Marissa Meyer decided to create a character like Cress. Good on her.
How this can be applied to writing: You can have girly characters in your books that’s okay. Let them be proud to be a girl! Girly girls are just as strong as tomboyish girls.
2.) A Blind Point of View – One character becomes blinded in the story. It’s not too hard to figure out who if you’ve read any Grimm’s fairy tales, so I don’t really consider it a super spoiler if you somehow deduce it from this. Several times the author goes into his point of view and it’s very interesting to not see things. It really immerses you. Only having sound, touch, taste, and smell can be really unique. It’s difficult because the average joe processes things through sight, but it can be really interesting in a story.
How this can be applied to writing: Have you tried doing a point of view with a character who lacks a sense like a blind or deaf character?
Conclusion: I really liked Cress. It was good and it definitely pulled at my heartstrings in parts. Can’t wait for the next book!
About the Author:
Marissa Meyer lives in Tacoma, Washington, with her husband and three cats. She’s a fan of most things geeky (Sailor Moon, Firefly, color-coordinating her bookshelf …), and has been in love with fairy tales since she was a kid, something she doesn’t intend to ever grow out of. She may or may not be a cyborg. Cinder, her first novel, debuted on the New York Times bestseller list. Visit Marissa at her website, Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.