Alyssa is a skateboarding artist who makes murals out of dead bugs she captures herself. She hears the voices of flowers. She is also the descendant of Alice Liddell, the little girl who inspired Lewis Carroll’s original Alice in Wonderland. A curse has followed the female descendants of the original Alice, which manifests as mental illness. Alyssa’s mother is so disturbed she is often not lucid and appears to be a danger to herself, and her father has finally signed off on giving her electroshock therapy. In order to save her mom from that fate, Alyssa follows a few clues left by a strange moth through the looking glass in an attempt to right the wrongs Alice left in Wonderland and reverse the curse on her family. Jeb, the boy-next-door she’s crushing on, follows her, and crazy Wonderland antics ensue.

And this trip to Wonderland is crazy. And bizarre. And downright mad.  Alyssa has a series of trials she must get through in order to save Wonderland — draining the sea of tears, waking up the sleeping guests of the Mad Hatter’s tea party, and other familiar scenes from the original, now with a new, dark twist. She has her fellow skater to help her, not to mention that moth, who turns out to be Morpheus, a strange and sexy Wonderland creature also vying for Alyssa’s affection. In fact, though Jeb and her are determined to make it out of Wonderland, Morpheus may want her to stay and Alyssa’s connection to this dark, magical underworld may be more than her heritage.

It’s no wonder Tim Burton gets a nod in the acknowledgments, because it definitely has that grotesquely beautiful feeling his work always does, and if it were ever adapted for film, it would have to be done in the style of The Nightmare Before Christmas. This is a story I think would have done very well as a graphic or illustrated novel, because the text is full of so much visual description. The imagery is at times overwhelming. There are dazzling description of the landscape of Wonderland, and the unique circus punk fashion of Alyssa and Jeb (whose style seems perfectly in harmony with that of Wonderland) is detailed. You’ll never think about the White Rabbit, the Red Queen, the Mad Hatter, or the Chesire Cat the same way after meeting them in Splintered.

Melissa Marr  raved about Splintered and says it is perfect for fans of her Wicked Lovely series. Teen readers who are looking for a new twist on paranormal romance and enjoy a good love triangle should check it out. While this isn’t a story for everyone, fans of retellings will enjoy this dark and fantastical Wonderland as re-imagined by A. G. Howard.

–Molly, YA staff

A decade ago, assassins stormed the palace and murdered the royal family of Lumatere. In the ensuing chaos, an imposter king seized the throne and the people burned an accused witch at the stake, who cursed the land. Now, half of the Lumateran population is in exile, and the other half is trapped inside the gates.

Finnikin, son of the captain of the king’s guard, made a blood oath as a child to defend Lumatere along his friend Prince Balthazar and his cousin, Lucien, a memory he still carries with him.  For ten years he’s traveled with Sir Topher, the king’s advisor, chronicling the names of his people who have fallen and the stories of those who have survived in The Book of Lumatere. In their travels they also appeal to foreign royals for land so that Lumaterans currently living in exile in terrible conditions plagued by disease, sold into slavery, or starving to death can begin to build a new home. Though the future looks bleak, Finnikin still carries the hope of a prophecy that his beloved friend Prince Balthazar lives and is the key to breaking the curse, and that his father, Trevanion, the captain of the king’s guard, is alive.

A dream sends Finnikin to the edge of world in search of a girl he believes may lead them back to Lumatere. Evanjalin, the young novice, reveals she can visit their people trapped inside Lumatere in her dreams and that Prince Balthazar is indeed alive. Evanjalin leads them on an impossible quest into dangerous territory. But this strange girl is not what she seems, and the truth of her identity will test Finnikin’s faith in the pledge he made with Balthazar and Lucien on the rock as a child, and the prediction the burned witch made when he was a boy about his role in Lumatere’s future.

It would be impossible to detail any more of the story without giving away spoilers (and most of it wouldn’t make any sense). Finnikin of the Rock is a complicated and intricately plotted story with an expertly crafted world that is not easily explained. As with most epic fantasy, there is an enormous cast of characters, and Marchetta renders each one in great depth and detail. Readers who are looking for a simple, straightforward story will be disappointed and likely give up before the end. Those who want the full experience of complete immersion in a fantasy world will enjoy The Lumatere Chronicles. The magic is strange (but beautiful), and the plot relies on revision of what the characters originally believed to be true. Readers who don’t appreciate being lied to (just as the characters in the story are deceived) will find the story frustrating. Those who can suspend belief and hold on for the wild ride through the twists and turns of the plot will enjoy the book immensely.

Evanjalin is not your typical young adult heroine. She’s unabashedly manipulative and deliberately deceives Finnikin and Sir Topher on their journey, but even her lies are for the greater good. As she tells Finnikin: “There are worse things than a lie and there are better things than the truth!” She has a wisdom far beyond her years.

Though romance isn’t the driving force of the story, the relationship between Finnikin and Evanjalin unfolds in an organic and believable way. They have the kind of love that can make someone believe in destiny.

I loved Finnikin of the Rock so much, I woke up the next morning and immediately had to start the second in the series, Froi of the Exiles. Though Finnikin does make an appearance, this story follows Froi, the young thief that join Sir Topher, Finnikin, and Evanjalin on their journey to Lumatere. Froi was an orphan who had no memory of his time in Lumatere, but is still accepted into the royal guard and a close friend of Finnikin and the new queen. When conflict with neighboring Charyn seems imminent, Froi is sent on a mission into enemy territory where he uncovers the truth about his mysterious past.

As much as I loved Finnikin, Froi was my favorite character from Finnikin of the Rock and I was glad to see him take center stage in the sequel. Froi is not the typical knight-in-shining-armor kind of a hero. He has a dark past and struggles to find redemption. Readers who love to root for the underdog or who identify with the outsiders will want to cheer him on.

The final installment of the series Quintana of Charyn, is due out this spring. While this is not a series that I’d recommend to everyone, readers who liked Graceling, Fire, and Bitterblue  by Kristen Cashore will most likely enjoy the Lumatere Chronicles. If you’re not sure whether or not epic fantasy is for you, this would be a good one to try.

- Molly, YA Staff

This is not that world.”

Last year, when Daughter of Smoke and Bone ended with Karou sneaking through a slit in the sky, I couldn’t believe I’d have to wait so many months to find out what happens next. Luckily, it was worth the wait. As much as I loved Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Days of Blood and Starlight was better.

When we first met Karou, she was a spunky art student eating goulash in Poison Kitchen and collecting teeth for her demon foster-father, Brimstone. Black handprints appeared on doors that were her secret passages through the world, the Chimera she knew as family were murdered, and she learned secrets about her past and where she came from when a wishbone broke in two. The angel with the eyes that blaze as bright as flames loved her in another lifetime, though instead of bringing peace between their races, as they had hoped, it only intensified the war that has ripped them apart almost as soon as they’ve found each other again.

While Daughter of Smoke and Bone was very much a romance, Days of Blood and Starlight is a story of war. Karou has been enlisted by her former enemy who ordered her execution because she dared to love Akiva when she was Madrigal. She brings the Chimera monsters into Morocco so she can (quite literally) rebuild an army out of her people — at least those who are left after Akiva and the rest of the army of Seraphim have slaughtered so many. Gone is the light-hearted, carefree Karou we first met in Prague. She’s truly become the last hope for her people, and resigned herself to the bloody and gruesome battles ahead.

While Akiva was not much more than the beautiful angel when we met him in Daughter of Smoke and Bone, which was almost entirely focused on Karou’s perspective, in the sequel the reader gets to see more of his depth. He’s more than just a pretty face with feathery wings; he’s a bastard son whose only purpose in life is to kill and destroy and has come to hate himself for it. His relationship with his brother and sister, Hazael and Liraz, was touching and deep. In Daughter of Smoke and Bone it was easy to side with Brimstone and the rest of the Chimera demons, but having learned more of the history and gotten to know more of the angels better, it’s clear that fault lies on both sides in this senseless war.

I read this as the never-ending conflict between Israelis and Palestinians flared up in the Gaza strip, when rockets were dropping on civilian homes and the death toll continued to rise, and I couldn’t help but draw parallels between the fantastical centuries old conflict between Muslims and Jews in the Holy Land and the never ending battles between Seraphim and Chimera in Eretz. What Laini Taylor says within this story is true: “we can’t expect the world to be better than we make it.” Senseless fighting, violence born out of vengeance, and the refusal to accept anything less than total annihilation of the enemy — this fantasy world of angels and demons seems not entirely unlike our own.

Despite the dark and violent nature of this second installment, Laini Taylor manages to inject some humor and light-heartedness into the story through Zuzana and Mik. While it would have been easy to leave Karou’s best friend and her boyfriend out of the second installment of the series, the story is better because of them. Not only does Laini Taylor manage to slip in a Monty Python and the Holy Grail reference between Karou and Zuzana (epic win!), the image of Zuze, the tiny tutu-wearing, live-action marionette, charming a demon resurrected out of the smoke and pain, warmed my heart.

What separates this series from other young adult romances that feature fallen angels is Laini Taylor’s magical prose and masterful plotting. The book could be overwhelming for someone looking for a quick, simple, light read, but it will satisfy the hunger of readers who want fantasy grounded in reality, who want to be shocked and awed by the twists and turns, who want to be surprised at every turn of the page. Likewise, readers who loved Daughter of Smoke and Bone for the romance may be turned off by the violence in this installment and disappointed by how distant and aloof Karou and Akiva are in the few times they are on the page together. As for me, I enjoyed the complexity and depth of this story so much more than the first installment, and a soulful gaze at one another from across a cave as Days of Blood and Starlight closed is enough to give me hope for these star-crossed lovers.

Now just another year to wait for the series finale. Sigh.

– Molly, YA staff

But what is steampunk?

In its purest form, steampunk is fiction set in the late Victorian era (late 1800s through World War I) and usually in Great Britain, though it can be set in other locales (think the American Wild West). But instead of straight historical fiction, these stories are imbued with fantastical re-imaginings of steam era technologies. Think retro-futuristic weapons, transportation, and fashion. Though often set in the past, these stories offer alternative histories: a “what might have been” look at the future from the perspective of Victorians.

These novels all contain some aspect of steampunk. Whether you’re interested in science fiction, romance, fantasy, or historical fiction, steampunk has something to offer you.

Airborn by Kenneth Oppel

Matt, a young cabin boy aboard an airship, and Kate, a wealthy young girl traveling with her chaperone, team up to search for the existence of mysterious winged creatures reportedly living hundreds of feet above the Earth’s surface.

The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross

In 1897 England, 16-year-old Finley Jayne is convinced she’s a freak. No normal Victorian girl has a darker side that makes her capable of knocking out a full-grown man with one punch. Only Griffin King sees the magical darkness inside her that says she’s special . . . that she’s one of “them.”

Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

When sixteen-year-old orphan Tessa Fell’s older brother suddenly vanishes, her search for him leads her into Victorian-era London’s dangerous supernatural underworld, and when she discovers that she herself is a Downworlder, she must learn to trust the demon-killing Shadowhunters if she ever wants to learn to control her powers and find her brother.

Mortal Engines by Phillip Reeve

In the distant future, when cities move about and consume smaller towns, a fifteen-year-old apprentice is pushed out of London by the man he most admires and must seek answers in the perilous Out-Country, aided by one girl and the memory of another.

Worldshaker by Richard Harland

Sixteen-year-old Col Porpentine is being groomed as the next Commander of Worldshaker, a juggernaut where elite families live on the upper decks while the Filthies toil below, but when he meets Riff, a Filthy girl on the run, he discovers how ignorant he is of his home and its residents.

Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

In an alternate 1914 Europe, fifteen-year-old Austrian Prince Alek, on the run from the Clanker Powers who are attempting to take over the globe using mechanical machinery, forms an uneasy alliance with Deryn who, disguised as a boy to join the British Air Service, is learning to fly genetically-engineered beasts.

Airman by Eoin Colfer

In the late nineteenth century, when Conor Broekhart discovers a conspiracy to overthrow the king, he is branded a traitor, imprisoned, and forced to mine for diamonds under brutal conditions while he plans a daring escape from Little Saltee prison by way of a flying machine that he must design, build, and, hardest of all, trust to carry him to safety.

Innocent Darkness by Suzanne Lazear

In 1901, on an alternate Earth, sixteen-year-old Noli rejoices when a mysterious man transports her from reform school to the Realm of Faerie, until Noli learns his sinister reason.

Steampunk!: An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories edited by Kelly Link and Gavin J. Grant

If you’re not sure if steampunk is for you, check out this sampling of short stories from the genre.

The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor

When she is cast out of Wonderland by her evil Aunt Redd, young Alyss Heart finds herself living in Victorian Oxford as Alice Liddell and struggles to keep memories of her kingdom intact until she can return and claim her rightful throne.

Masque of the Red Death by Bethany Griffin

In this twist on Edgar Allen Poe’s gothic short story, a wealthy teenaged girl who can afford a special mask to protect her from the plague that decimated humanity in the mid-1800s, falls in love, becomes caught up in a conspiracy to overthrow an oppressive government, and faces the threat of a new plague.

Peculiars by Maureen McQuerry

Eighteen-year-old Lena Mattacascar sets out for Scree, a weird place inhabited by Peculiars, seeking the father who left when she was young, but on the way she meets young librarian Jimson Quiggley and handsome marshal Thomas Saltre, who complicate her plans.

The Iron Thorn by Caitlin Kittredge

In an alternate 1950s, mechanically gifted fifteen-year-old Aoife Grayson, whose family has a history of going mad at sixteen, must leave the totalitarian city of Lovecraft and venture into the world of magic to solve the mystery of her brother’s disappearance and the mysteries surrounding her father and the Land of Thorn.

The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron

In 1852, when seventeen-year-old Katharine is sent to her family’s estate to prove that her uncle is insane, she finds he is an inventor whose work creating ingenious clockwork figures supports hundreds of families, but strange occurrences soon have her doubting her own sanity.

Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard

In an alternate nineteenth-century Philadelphia, Eleanor Fitt sets out to rescue her brother, who seems to have been captured by an evil necromancer in control of an army of Undead.

The Hunchback Assignments by Arthur G. Slade

In Victorian London, fourteen-year-old Modo, a shape-changing hunchback, becomes a secret agent for the Permanent Association, which strives to protect the world from the evil machinations of the Clockwork Guild.

Once you make it through this list, don’t fret…steampunk is a genre that is steadily growing and sure to produce fantastical re-imaginings of a future that never was!

Despite the seemingly endless supply of novels about a teen challenging the authority of their seemingly perfect yet obviously malicious society, none are quite like Crewel by Gennifer Albin.

The world of Crewel, Arras, is your basic dystopian on the surface; personal decisions we take for granted, like what job we’ll have, who we’ll marry, and how many children we’ll have, are all dictated by the state. Of course, they provide for your most basic needs, so there’s not much cause for complaint.

Arras is ruled by the Guild, who control the Spinsters, or those with the special ability to weave time and matter. The concept behind Crewel is fascinating. I loved the passages where Adelice is weaving time and learning about how Spinsters create and control life in Arras. It’s kind of like the mythology of the Fates crossed with the mythology of The Matrix. Though I personally wish there would have been more of a sci-fi component, it worked as the basis for this fantasy world.

Spinsters are revered by society. They get to wear fancy dresses and attend exclusive parties. They have power others do not. They are special. Who wouldn’t want to be a Spinster? Well, Adelice doesn’t want to be one. When she showed an aptitude for weaving as a child, her parents began secretly training her to disguise her talent so she could deliberately fail the tests administered to teens and stay near her family.

But during testing, she slips, and for a second, demonstrates her uncanny ability: she can weave without a loom. Just as she suspects, the authorities come for her at night. And thus beings Adelice’s journey.

Adelice is a likable character. She’s snarky, and her sarcastic dialogue was delightful. I like a heroine with sass, and Adelice certainly delivered. Her ability to see the strands of time and matter, to pull them apart and stitch them back together, could have made her haughty or self-important, but she remains down-to-earth and loyal to those she cares about even when she’s being tempted with an extravagant life that most girls in Arras dream of having one day.

Like so many YA novels, this one features a love triangle — Erik, the charming blond, and Jost, the quiet, dark-haired boy. Yet they both have those piercing blue eyes…

While it was awfully convenient that these two young men happen to be available to help Adelice once she’s been taken by the Guild, and doubly convenient that they both have feelings for her (though she only seems to have romantic feelings for one…) this “love triangle” didn’t immediately turn me off the way some do. The twist at the end (I’m trying not to spoil) made me want to find more about their pasts, which I already found compelling.

I love a good villain, and this was where Crewel did leave me a bit disappointed. Ambassador Cormac Patton, while lecherous and repugnant, didn’t seem to have much depth or motivation. The ambitious, jealous, Spinster who is responsible for Adelice’s training but mostly just torments and humiliates her, is very one-dimensional. As I’m fond of imagining stories from other character’s points of view, I found myself wondering what made her tick, what her story was, but sadly, it was never revealed. The Guild is the true antagonist, as they are the ones who control the Spinsters and dictate the pattern of the weave that is the world of Arras, but we learn so very little about them. I guess that’s what sequels are for…

In the tradition of The Handmaid’s Tale My Margaret Atwood, Crewel had the potential to be read as a feminist text. While Spinsters, and particularly the Creweler, who is the only one who can gather the raw materials that Spinsters weave to make the world of Arras, are the ones with the power, they are controlled by the men of the Guild. Even women who don’t have the talent for weaving and live “normal” lives are only permitted to work in subservient service positions. Spinsters and regular citizens alike are objectified and forced to conform to a very sexualized vision of femininity. Throw in some illicit lesbian relationships, and you’ve got the perfect set up for a critique of patriarchy…but Crewel just didn’t pack enough of a punch to meet my feminist expectations. Of course, there are always those sequels.

Despite being less than perfect, Crewel is a stand-out addition to the young adult dystopian romances that are still all the rage. It’s a highly readable, inventive, and well-written novel that I anticipate will be a hit, especially with fans of Delirium by Lauren Oliver and The Selection by Kiera Cass. It’s certainly the most creative and unique dystopian world I’ve come across this year.

– Molly, YA 

Excalibur: The Legend of King Arthur, A Graphic Novel by Tony Lee and Sam Hart

Retells, in graphic novel form, the tale of Arthur Pendragon who, raised in obscurity, draws a legendary sword from a stone and begins the life he was born to lead, guided by the elusive wizard Merlin.

Sword of the Rightful King by Jane Yolen

Merlinnus the magician devises a way for King Arthur to prove himself the rightful king of England–pulling a sword from a stone–but trouble arises when someone else removes the sword first.

Out of Time by Paul McCusker

A man on horseback wearing medieval garments and claiming to be King Arthur arrives in Fawlt Line, Maryland, teenaged Elizabeth’s hometown that may be a portal to alternate times and unexpected time travels.

Here Lies Merlin by Phillip Reeve

When her village is attacked and burned, Gwyna seeks protection from the bard Myrddin, who uses Gwyna in his plan to transform young Arthur into the heroic King Arthur.

Damosel: in which the Lady of the Lake Renders a Frank and Often Startling Account of her Wondrous Life and Times by Stephanie Simmer

Damosel, a rule-bound Lady of the Lake, and Twixt, a seventeen-year-old dwarf, relate their experiences as they strive to help King Arthur face Morgause, Morgan, and Mordred, one through her magic and the other through his humble loyalty.

Avalon High by Meg Cabot

Having moved to Annapolis, Maryland, with her medievalist parents, high school junior Ellie enrolls at Avalon High School where several students may or may not be reincarnations of King Arthur and his court.

Lady Llena: The Way of the Warrior by Patricia Monroe

Now chief of Dun Alyn, fifteen-year-old Ilena disgraces herself on the battlefield and, while subsequently exiled from her people, becomes involved in a plan to rescue King Arthur from his Saxon captors.



Song of the Sparrow by Lisa Ann Sandell

In fifth-century Britain, nine years after the destruction of their home on the island of Shalott brings seventeen-year-old Elaine to live with her father and brothers in the military encampments of Arthur’s army. She describes her changing perceptions of war and the people around her as she becomes increasingly involved in the bitter struggle against the invading Saxons.

 
Crossing to Paradise by Kevin Crossley-Holland

When fifteen-year-old Gatty, an illiterate field-girl who sings beautifully, is selected for a pilgrimage, she travels from her home on an English estate to London, Venice, and eventually Jerusalem, and experiences great changes in her circumstances and in herself.

 

I am Morgan le Fay: A Tale of Camelot by Nancy Springer

In a war-torn England where her half-brother Arthur will eventually become king, the young Morgan le Fay comes to realize that she has magic powers and links to the faerie world.

 
Whether you’re looking for magic and fairies, time-travel, historical fiction, or modern day re-tellings of Arthurian legend, one of these, or the many more available in the Teen Zone, will be sure to satisfy your curiosity about Arthurian legend!

In Jodi Lynn Anderson’s newest novel, Tiger Lily, she recounts the familiar childhood tale of Peter Pan, but with a twist. The story is told from Tinkerbell’s perspective, and she begins long before Peter and the lost boys ever met Wendy Darling. Tink gives us the scoop on Peter Pan’s first love, Tiger Lily.

The adopted daughter of Tik Tok, the shaman of her tribe, Tiger Lily is still an outcast despite her high social position. She is even more ostracized when she saves a shipwrecked man and her tribe fears she has caught the aging disease. Tiger Lily is lonely, until she meets the most feared creature in the forest—Pan, and his band of lost boys.

Tinkerbell as narrator is a gimmick, to be sure. Using her first person perspective allows the story to be wider, and we see scenes from Hook and his pirates, Peter and the Lost Boys, as well as Tiger Lily and her village. Tink is also able to offer us her opinion on those involved—she’s certainly not an unbiased narrator. While it took me 100 pages to come to terms with Tink the observer as the voice of the story, in the end, I thought it worked.

Anderson renders the familiar characters in a much more nuanced way than their Disney counterparts; Tiger Lily is not just an Indian princess; Hook is a sad man with a broken dream and an obsession with Peter Pan; Smee isn’t just a side-kick, but a twisted villain in his own right. My absolute favorite character was Tik Tok, whose quiet wisdom and celebration of gender non-conformity gives him a unique perspective.

In a sea of insta-love and happily-ever-afters, Tiger Lily stands out because we know it’s not going to end well for Peter Pan and Tiger Lily. Once Wendy bursts onto the scene, readers have no doubt that Peter will chose to grow up. But like most first loves, Peter and Tiger Lily leave lasting  impressions on one another’s hearts, and certainly will do the same for readers.

- Molly, YA

  Between Sea and Sky by Jaclyn Dolamore

Esmerine, a mermaid, grows close to her childhood playmate Alander, a winged man, when they join forces to find her sister Dosia, who has reportedly eloped with a human despite the sisters’ vow to always keep the sea and its people first in their hearts.

  Lost Voices by Sarah Porter

Assaulted and left on the cliffs outside of her grim Alaskan fishing village by her abusive, alcoholic uncle, fourteen-year-old Luce expects to die when she tumbles into the icy waters below, but when she instead transforms into a mermaid she is faced with struggles and choices she could never have imagined. Be sure to check out the sequel, Waking Storms.

  Of Poseidon by Anna Banks

Galen, prince of the Syrena, is sent to land to find a girl he’s heard can communicate with fish. He finds Emma and after several encounters, including a deadly one with a shark, Galen becomes convinced Emma holds the key to his kingdom.

  The Vicious Deep by Zoraida Córdova

After being sucked out to sea in a tidal wave, Tristan Hart returns ashore on Coney Island with no memory of what happened to him– yet he can sense the emotions of others and dreams of a terrifying silver mermaid with razor-sharp teeth.

  Lies Beneath by Anne Greenwood Brown

As the only brother in a family of mermaids living in Lake Superior, Calder White is expected to seduce Lily, the daughter of the man believed to have killed the mermaids’ mother, but he begins to fall in love with her just as Lily starts to suspect the legends about the lake are true.

  Tempest Rising by Tracy Deebs

On her seventeenth birthday, Tempest must decide whether to remain a human and live on land or submit to her mermaid half, like her mother before her, and enter into a long-running war under the sea.

  Fathomless by Jackson Pearce

Celia, who shares mental powers with her triplet sisters, finds competition for a handsome boy with Lo, a sea monster who must persuade a mortal to love her and steal his soul to earn back her humanity.

The Mermaid’s Mirror by L K Madigan

Lena, almost sixteen, has always felt drawn to the waters of San Francisco Bay despite the fears of her father, a former surfer, but after she glimpses a beautiful woman with a tail, nothing can keep Lena from seeking the mermaid in the dangerous waves at Magic Crescent Cove.

But nothing is cooler than Cinderella as a cyborg. In Cinder, the first in the Lunar Chronicles, Marissa Meyer has gone beyond a simple retelling and created a fantastical new universe by transporting the classic Cinderella story to New Beijing, a futuristic world where former Earth residents have colonized the moon.Living on Lunar has caused these citizens to develop special powers that allow them to manipulate the thoughts and minds of others—but wait, I’m getting ahead of myself…

Cinder has no memory of her life before being adopted. Whatever happened to her as a young child, she knows it was bad, because in order to survive, she had a computer operating system hard-wired into her body, and one foot and hand are now metal. When her adopted father suddenly dies of the plague that is slowly sweeping the world, she is left with her stepmother and stepsister, who are not especially nice and even blame her for his death. Luckily, she has is close to one of her stepsisters and also has a droid as a friend.

Cinder works as a mechanic to support her family. Her cyborg status makes her a second-class citizen. The story opens with Prince Kai (in disguise, of course) stopping by her booth to see if she can fix his droid. Before she gets a chance to repair it, a sudden outbreak of the plague infects her sister and puts Cinder in a dangerous position. Her stepmother blames her for her sister catching the disease, and thus volunteers her for the dangerous vaccine experiments conducted by the palace research teams. She may be the only one in the world to be able to stop the plague and in the process, discovers secrets about her past.

Before a cure is developed, Prince Kai’s father, the king, dies from the plague, prompting the Lunar Queen Levana visits Earth. She intends to capitalize on the tragedy by forcing Kai to marry her to form an alliance, the first step in her plan to conquer Earth. Will Kai be able to maintain peace with the Lunar colony and resist Queen Levana’s influence? Will Cinder be able to fix his android? Will a cure be found for the deadly plague? And most importantly, will Cinder agree to go to the ball with Kai?!

The plot is familiar, but the sci-fi setting more than make up for the predictable “twists.” Cinder was a character you wanted to cheer on, whether she was rushing to try and save her sister or risking her own safety for the Commonwealth. She’s strong, self-sacrificing, and smart.

This novel is a great exploration of the nature of prejudice; both Lunars and cyborgs are feared and despised. Still, the story moves beyond this to the basic question of the essence of humanity. Do a few artifical parts or an evolved consciousness change what it means to be human? These themes made Cinder as thought-provoking as it was entertaining.

The romance was subtle. Cinder’s shame over her cyborg parts forces her to keep Kai at a distance. Kai is persistent but not overbearing in his pursuit of Cinder. He’s a down-to-Earth guy who takes his royal responsibilities seriously. Rather than pushing into melodrama, the conflict was based on real hardships, rather than artificial angst.

My only complaint was the cliff-hanger ending! I can’t wait to read more from Marissa Meyer. This was one of the most hyped debuts of 2012, and for me, it lived up to it.

You can read a short story and prequel, “Glitches,” online here, and the second installment in the Lunar Chronicles, Scarlet, will be out next February! I recommend this to anyone who likes reimagined fairy tales or a blend of sci-fi and fantasy in their young adult fiction.

– Molly, YA

What is it about? Now eighteen and Queen of Monsea, Bitterblue has found that she is surrounded by lies. Her advisors have presented her with a distorted version of reality and she is just now discovering that her entire kingdom is filled to the brim with deceit. These lies hide behind corners and inside people Bitterblue thought she knew. They embed themselves into everyone around her, including the people she loves the most. They torture these people and create a mist around any logical thought, almost as if King Leck were still alive and forcing people to do his bidding by manipulating their minds. Except Leck isn’t alive and these lies shouldn’t be taking place. But after thirty-five years of being lied to Monsea is going to take not only time, but people’s lives as it struggles to uncover the truth from its people and its history.

What did you think of it & why did you pick it up: This book drove me CRAZY up until the very last sentence. It took me almost a week to read it because of this (and admittedly, because I had a lot going on this week) which is a long time for me and now I’m slightly angry because I’m behind on my reading for this month. BUT it was a good kind of crazy. The kind where I had to occasionally put the book down and take a deep breath before resuming to read because I was overwhelmed by how much I felt for the characters and their situations, whether they were in a good situation or a bad one. I admit, I didn’t sob or anything. Probably because, although third-person is great and definitely works for Kristin Cashore’s novels (and lots of other fantasy novels), I am just used to reading teen dramas in first person where you know the protagonists thoughts at all times. But that’s the point; Kristin Cashore wrote a more plot-based novel using a slightly less personal ! method and still manages to make me feel empathy. Even if I didn’t cry, I definitely teared up and had to sit down for awhile to absorb.

What I like about Kristin Cashore’s characters is that they are complex. And more than that, their relationships are complex. There is a rather large cast of characters but they are all relevant and they all have histories and lives that affect the way they interact with each other. I’ve read a couple other reviews on Bitterblue and one critic mentioned that she liked the fact that the women and men in the novel could say ‘I love you’ and kiss and hug and be completely platonic. I definitely agree with this! The Lienid probably do this the most of all and I just couldn’t help myself from falling in love with Po and the love interest, Saf who are both Lienid. Also, the books have no problem with gay characters which you don’t see enough in fantasy’s and is just awesome in general.

Kristin Cashore is just a very brave writer overall and I admire her for that. Honestly that’s why I give her books five stars every time. She always surprises me and I realize that her series is probably one of the most original, complex, and passionate ones I’ve ever read. I say passionate because all of her female leads ARE passionate (and the rest of the characters, don’t worry). Even when they are faced with impossible odds and have to break down occasionally, they always get back up. They do it for the people who are depending on them. I sort of imagine Cashore to be this way because you know that books like this have must have more work put into them than most others.

Overall Cashore has created a great book here and a great series. It is so great that I can’t even pick my favorite book from it. Although you don’t have to read Graceling or Fire to understand Bitterblue it’s really cool to see how everything just comes together in that final book. I would definitely recommend these to anyone. Except maybe romance fanatics. Because although it did contain romance and it was a somewhat big deal it wasn’t the biggest factor in the book either. Still, that was to be expected and it wasn’t an issue. Don’t be worried about the size either because even if you start to feel a little frustrated in the beginning with how big and how complicated it is (like I did) you won’t be able to put it down by the end of the book.

  Star Rating: It was awesome! Everyone should check this out!

I would suggest this for: Fantasy and dystopian lovers and just book lovers in general. Its a novel for all ages.

Reviewed by: Lauren B.

Thanks Lauren!