The Lunar Chronicles: An Intensely Detailed Not-So Condensed Non-Spoiler Review
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Author: Marissa Meyer
Overall rating: 4.6/5 Stars
Okay.. where do I start? Goodness. WHY did it take me THIS long to start this series?? Actually, no, I take that back. WHY did it have to end so quickly? There should be NO end to this story. I can go on and on reading about these characters and this.. this perfectly crafted world that is Luna.So let's start from the very beginning - Cinder. Picked this book up once, wasn't interested. Picked it the second time, changed my whole life. I've seen people everywhere going 'didn't finish Cinder.. might give it another try' or 'a Sci-Fi retelling of Cinderella? Seems a tad bit odd don't you think? And honestly, I felt the exact same way. I don't know what made me hooked the second time I picked it up, maybe it's cause I actually read on and waited for everything to finally pick up. Okay, I'm a hypocrite for saying that we shouldn't judge how good or bad a book is by their first few pages, because I do that all the time. Trust me, there were times where I'd read the first paragraph of a book, went 'NOPE', and went on to burying it deep under my TBR pile. But you can't help it - and no one can blame you for doing so. It's not wrong, but it's unfair. A book should be just as good as any other if you actually made the effort of finishing it. Only then are you allowed to judge the way you feel about it.That is how this series started. It's a freaking roller-coaster. It builds up the adrenaline from the start and surges throughout the whole ride, and what a thrilling ride it was.So Cinder started off a bit slow but it picks up REALLY quickly. I think what it fast-paced was the overflowing drama and conflict between the protagonist and antagonist. Goodness was it frustrating. I was holding onto my dagger ready to plunge the blade into someone's chest (I'M KIDDING). But seriously, Adri and Pearl were just... UGH!Then there's Prince Kaito... oh, this lovely human being. Am I the only one who imagines Kai as EXO's Kai?? For those of you who aren't familiar with EXO, they're a popular Korean Boy Band consisting of 9 members and the face of the group is Kai, and just like Prince Kai, he's good-looking, kindhearted and is dominating the world at a very young age whilst capturing the hearts of the many die-hard fangirls.... Their resemblances are uncanny!Cinder ended at a massive cliff-hanger which left me sobbing real hard. That was how attached I was to the characters and the world, and that was only the first book!Sooo going to Scarlet, I had a bit of trouble reading the first half of it, not going to lie. I still wasn't sober after Cinder so it took me some time to gather my emotions back together. I also didn't particularly liked Scarlet at first BUT she's grown to be so freaking badass and hilarious and bright that she's become one of my faaavourite characters. Also, she reminds me a lot of Sansa Stark.Now, let's talk about Wolf. Back when I was new to Bookstagram (about 2 years ago), Wolf's name was EVERYWHERE. So I've had high expectations going into Scarlet and meeting this 'Wolf' character. Before I started Scarlet, I was hoping for a sexy, dark and mysterious character, and did Wolf claim my heart! Again, he's become one of my all time favourite characters! His brooding aura and those eyes *sigh*. How can one NOT fall for him??Scarlet was close to perfect - just the first half bothered me a little (and it's because of me, NOT the book. If my emotions were a bit more stable I would've flew threw the book in one sitting)Going to Cress, I got a bit intimidated. It was pretty huge, and I've got two books to recover from - how am I going to handle another one?Well, Cress turned out to be my favourite out of the whole series. Then again, the other three are all close favourites. I loved Cress because she's so relatable. She's like a dreamy fangirl with anxieties who gets really insecure around people she's never met before. I mean she's been locked in a tower in space for her whole life, it's completely plausible. Yet, she's one of the strongest and smartest character in the series. Talk about a major girl crush!Then we have Captain Thorne. This charming bastard. Witty, strong, smexy, and sensitive. What more can you want in a guy?! I honestly love everything about Cress - how everything just flowed smoothly and the transitions between the characters' point of views. It's quite a large book, but SO many things happened that it's crazy to wrap everything in your head.The final installment of this series was Winter. Stars, it was flawless. Even though Winter and Jacin were just recently introduced as major characters of the book, they became lovable so quickly! I loved them just the same as the other characters of the book, and that says a lot having only to appear in two books. Winter was a very unique character, and definitely very different. Jacin, on the other hand, was quite the contrast of Winter and I see him as a mixture of Wolf and Kai. Very serious, strong, and loyal.Overall, everything wraps up neatly. The last book connected every piece together leaving nothing behind. One thing I liked most from the series is that though it's a twisted Sci-Fi/Fantasy retelling, the author manages to keep that 'Fantasy' aspect of the story. The glass slipper, big bad wolf, tall tower, evil jealous queen, Marissa Meyer was able to keep all the details of each Fairytale while twisting everything else and still being able to make everything work out. Honestly, how does she do it???? How does a cyborg go along with Cinderella? Why is Little Red drawn to the wolf? How can Rapunzel be a hacker genius and Snow White the princess with scars on her face? How did the author pull off such a masterpiece with all the unthinkable combined together?With that being said, Go. Pick. This. Series. Up. Right. Now. It deserves all the love and praise. Kudos to you, Marissa Meyer, and thank you for this amazing adventure!Happy reading everyone!Sincerely, a mentally exhausted fangirl whose feelings are a mess right now.
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