This is a much better story than some of the novels for several reasons, but suffers from some of the same old weaknesses too. First plus: Cinder stays on Luna. It turns out watching her try to learn politics is much better than her trying to save the day as an action heroine. Iko is more interesting and relatable in that role. On the other hand, the gang does not get back together; instead, we see bits of each of them, some not enough. The […]
There’s gotta be a Game of Thrones joke here somewhere
This is a pretty good story, but somehow I didn’t like a lot about it. The final fairy tale ends up being Snow White, and while Winter fits the general outline, her Prince Charming Jacin doesn’t quite make sense. His attachment to Winter and hers to him just doesn’t seem to have much of a foundation other than they kind of grew up together and he’s been around her entire life. The other thing I didn’t really like is how the heroes spent so much […]
A fairy tale about salad as heroine
I have to admit, the title got me a little. I figured ‘Cress’ was short for something, but I would not have guessed “Crescent”; I was thinking something along the lines of ‘watercress’, which made no sense given that the model fairy tale this time is supposed to be Rapunzel. The other books have heroines whose names have some clear connection to the base story, so why this doesn’t is beyond me. In terms of enjoyment, Cress falls in between Cinder and Scarlet. 3.5 stars. […]
Red Really is My Color
First reaction: much better than book 1. Second reaction: a lot like book 1 really. Scarlet is book 2 of the Lunar Chronicles series, and this installment is patterned supposedly on Little Red Riding Hood. The connection to Cinderella in Cinder was quite a bit more recognizable in terms of plot and character than the fairy tale connection is here. Maybe that’s why this one is a little better, especially in terms of character because ti doesn’t have to rely on the requirements of the […]