Waiting On Wednesday: Stars Above by Marissa Meyer

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking The Spine that spotlights upcoming releases that I'm eagerly anticipating.

--

Stars Above by Marissa Meyer
A Lunar Chronicles Collection
February 2nd 2016 by Feiwel & Friends

 

The enchantment continues....

The universe of the Lunar Chronicles holds stories—and secrets—that are wondrous, vicious, and romantic. How did Cinder first arrive in New Beijing? How did the brooding soldier Wolf transform from young man to killer? When did Princess Winter and the palace guard Jacin realize their destinies?

With nine stories—five of which have never before been published—and an exclusive never-before-seen excerpt from Marissa Meyer’s upcoming novel, Heartless, about the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland, Stars Above is essential for fans of the bestselling and beloved Lunar Chronicles.

-- The Little Android: A retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid,” set in the world of The Lunar Chronicles.
Glitches: In this prequel to Cinder, we see the results of the plague play out, and the emotional toll it takes on Cinder. Something that may, or may not, be a glitch….
The Queen’s Army: In this prequel to Scarlet, we’re introduced to the army Queen Levana is building, and one soldier in particular who will do anything to keep from becoming the monster they want him to be.
Carswell’s Guide to Being Lucky: Thirteen-year-old Carswell Thorne has big plans involving a Rampion spaceship and a no-return trip out of Los Angeles.
The Keeper: A prequel to the Lunar Chronicles, showing a young Scarlet and how Princess Selene came into the care of Michelle Benoit.
After Sunshine Passes By: In this prequel to Cress, we see how a nine-year-old Cress ended up alone on a satellite, spying on Earth for Luna.
The Princess and the Guard: In this prequel to Winter, we see a game called The Princess.
The Mechanic: In this prequel to Cinder, we see Kai and Cinder’s first meeting from Kai’s perspective.
Something Old, Something New: In this epilogue to Winter, friends gather for the wedding of the century...

I finished reading Winter last week. It was fantastic so I'm really excited for this collection of short stories and look at that cover! *drools*
I really wish I could get my hands on it already! ♥

What's your WOW pick of the week?

Leave me a link to your post so I can stop by!

Review: Fairest by Marissa Meyer

Title: Fairest
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #3.5
Publication: January 27th 2015 by Feiwel & Friends
Genre: Young Adult ~ Science-Fiction ~ Fantasy
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo
Rating: 4/5

In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?
Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.

I felt a lot of things with this book... I felt anger towards both Levana and especially her older sister Channery. I also felt sad because this book was pretty much the road to Levana's craziness and how she totally spiraled downwards. 

There were some things that were quite creepy to me while being inside Levana's head. One thing being her obsession with one of the palace guards who she ends up marrying due to some really disturbing manipulation. But we also got to see how everything with Cinder got started. And of course a little Winter and Jacin made appearances as well.

I have to say that I never sympatized or felt bad for Levana because she's always been pretty crazy and not to mention obsessive. But I do see where she's coming from with the way she was raised and how she was tormented by Channery.

Fairest was the sad, eerie yet intriguing story of Levana, the Lunar queen. Although it was pretty much what I expected, I really liked reading Levana's back story. It always interesting knowing where a villain is coming from. 

       

       Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Marissa Meyer lives near Seattle with her husband and their three cats. She's a fan of most things geeky (Sailor Moon, Firefly, color-coordinating her bookshelf...) and will take any excuse to put on a costume. She may or may not be a cyborg.

Review: Cress by Marissa Meyer

Title: Cress
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #3
Publication: February 4th 2014 by Feiwel & FriendsGenre: Young Adult ~ Dystopia ~ Fantasy
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Kobo
Cover Rating: 5/5
Overall Rating: 5/5

Rapunzel’s tower is a satellite. She can’t let down her hair—or her guard.

In this third book in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles series, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.

Their best hope lies with Cress, who has been trapped on a satellite since childhood with only her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker—unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing stop her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only ones who can.

It came not as a surprise that Cress was absolutely amazing - just like Cinder and Scarlet were. I'm so glad I started it as soon as I could instead of waiting months after I received the book like I did with the other ones. Oh and if you haven't started this series yet, I'm highly recommending you do it right now!

I loved Cress (I'm talking about the character). She was wonderful to read about. I love how being stuck in that satellite for so many years didn't stop her from hoping and dreaming (and crushing on Thorne). I also really liked how awkward and rather naive she was. All together she was simply adorable. Especially together with Thorne. 

Speaking of Thorne... as much as I love Kai and Wolf, Thorne is just my soulmate. This book definitely sealed that deal for me. I love him so so much. He's hilarious, sexy as hell even when he's blind (don't ask. just read) and at times even vulnerable. What more can someone want? I really loved the scenes with him and Cress. And there were a bunch. They fit together perfectly (although you wouldn't think so from the first look of them) and I do hope we get to see more of them in the next book because honestly? I have found my new favorite bookish couple. 

Aside from them we also saw Cinder, Kai, Scarlet, Wolf, Iko... pretty much the whole gang. I'm not going to go into detail about them but naturally I love reading about any of them and I must say there are some pretty intense and amazing scenes for them too so it's not all about Cress (not that I would've minded that). 

The plot was also really good. I just want to bow down to Marissa Meyer at her cleverness with this book. It kept building and building... and yes, there were a few unexpected twists... Things I didn't even see coming but gods, did I ever love them. The ending was also pretty good and making me despair with how long I have to wait until the next book. 

Oh and we also got introduced to Winter (who will be featuring in the 4th book) and boy, I am so excited because the little bit we saw of her was definitely interesting. I can't wait to get into that and find out more.

Cress was totally and truly awesome. Was it better than Cinder and/or Scarlet? I couldn't say because all the books in the series pretty much go hand in hand for me. All I know is these 550 pages of fantastic writing, action, romance and overall amazingness was definitely worth it. Now all we can do is wait for the fourth book. 

Favorite Quotes:

It always came back to love. More than freedom, more than acceptance—love. True love, like they sang about in the second era. The kind that filled up a person's soul. The kind that lent itself to dramatic gestures and sacrifices. The kind that was irresistible and all-encompassing.

“Captain,” she murmured. “I think I’m in love with you.”
An eyebrow shot up. She counted six beats of his heart before, suddenly, he laughed.
“Don’t tell me it took you two whole days to realize that. I must be losing my touch.”

“An animal?" Thorne said, and she realized he'd been waiting for her to further explain what she was seeing.
"It has long legs and horns and...and it's beautiful."
"Oh, good, we're back to this, then.”

“Maybe there isn’t such a thing as fate. Maybe it’s just the opportunities we’re given, and what we do with them. I’m beginning to think that maybe great, epic romances don’t just happen. We have to make them ourselves.”

About The Author:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest

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 given a small book of them when she was a child. She may or may not be a cyborg. Cinder is her first novel.

Review: Scarlet by Marissa Meyer

Title: Scarlet
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: Lunar Chronicles #2
Publication: February 5th 2013 by Feiwel and Friends
Genre: Young Adult ~ Sci-Fi/Dystopian
Cover Rating: 5/5
Overall Rating: 5/5

    

The fates of Cinder and Scarlet collide as a Lunar threat spreads across the Earth...

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the bestselling Lunar Chronicles. She's trying to break out of prison—even though if she succeeds, she'll be the Commonwealth's most wanted fugitive.

Halfway around the world, Scarlet Benoit's grandmother is missing. It turns out there are many things Scarlet doesn't know about her grandmother or the grave danger she has lived in her whole life. When Scarlet encounters Wolf, a street fighter who may have information as to her grandmother's whereabouts, she is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

~My Thoughts:

Okay, wow! I was blown away by this fabulous sequel to Cinder. It ended up being even more amazing and fantastic than I hoped it would be. Just like in Cinder, I devoured this book in record time even though it's a pretty big book of 450+ pages. 

This book follows 18-year-old Scarlet who lives in a small town in France. When we meet her her grandmother has been missing for two weeks but the police have stopped searching for her already. When Scarlet meets street fighter Wolf she finds out he might know a whole lot about her missing grandmother and is determined to find out what exactly it is he knows and where her grandmother is.
Meanwhile Cinder is trying to break out of jail in order to escape the clutches of Lunar Queen Levana who will stop at nothing to get Cinder and control of Earth. 

This second book in the Lunar Chronicles is even more awesome than the first one. Not only Cinder's story continues but we also meet Scarlet, who's in search of her missing grandmother. There were also other great new characters like Wolf who travels to Paris with Scarlet and "captain" Thorne who assists Cinder in her escape. A lot of the other characters we're used to seeing like Kai, Queen Levana (she still scares the crap out of me) and Iko (yes, she's back!).
The story definitely picks up a notch. There's more action, more gasp-moments, more unexpected friendships formed and more sadness than ever. There were quite a few different points of views; Cinder, Scarlet, Kai, also Thorne also if I remember correctly and one for Levana too (brrr). I loved all the POVs but I must say Kai's made me a little sad. 

Scarlet is definitely different girl than Cinder. But does it make her less awesome? No it does not. I like her just as much as Cinder. Scarlet and Wolf are just too adorable together when they were traveling to Paris. I loved their spark so much. And, gosh, is he hot! But swooning aside, I just admire him for changing his ways and trying to warn Scarlet not to go searching for her grandmother because he knew what was waiting them. I just want to hug that guy!

I just love the way Marissa Meyer tells this story. Her writing is seriously awesome and had me flipping page after page, hour after hour. No wonder I finished it in only a few days time. One word to describe this book is: "Addicting". So very addicting. One thing's for sure, I can't wait for the next book, Cress. The wait will be torture but so worth it. Is it 2014 already? Le sigh.

Also, if you haven't read Scarlet I would definitely recommend to read The Queen's Army (Lunar Chronicles, #1.5) before it because it'll give you more information on what's happening. You can read it for free here: http://www.tor.com/stories/2012/11/the-queens-army


Overall Scarlet was a kick-ass and absolutely worthy sequel to Cinder. I can't remember any book that's been as fascination, exciting and just stunning as Cinder and Scarlet were, especially the latter. Is Scarlet an even better book than Cinder? Most definitely so! I can't wait to see where the next book will go and what is going to happen in it. 

Favorite Quotes:

Amusement touched the corner of his lips. "Animals love me."
"Oh, I'm sure they do," Scarlet said, beaming with fake encouragement. She shut the door before muttering, "What farm animals don't love a wolf?”

He was still dazed, and though she hated to admit it, he was actually rather attractive. If a girl happened to like that square-jaw, bright-blue-eyes, devilish-dimples kind of thing. Although he was in desperate need of a haircut and a good shave.

A sickening howl stopped her, sucking the air out of her lungs.
The night's chatter silenced, even the loitering city rats pausing to listen.
Scarlet had heard wild wolves before, prowling the countryside in search of easy prey on the farms. But never had a wolf's howl send a chill down her spine like that.

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 given a small book of them when she was a child. She may or may not be a cyborg. Cinder is her first novel.

Visit Marissa at:

Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | YouTube | Website

Purchase Scarlet at:

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | Fishpond | Kobo

Review: Cinder by Marissa Meyer

Title: Cinder
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: Lunar Chronicles #1
Publication: January 5th 2012 by Puffin 
Genre: Young Adult ~ Dystopian ~ Retelling
Format: Paperback, 387 pages
Cover Rating: 5/5
Overal Rating: 5/5

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, the 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.

~My thoughts: 
So I got to reading this book because I put it on a poll on Goodreads and that's what got the most votes. While the others only got 4, 2 or even 0 votes, Cinder got over 15 so it was obvious what people wanted me to read. What I want to say to those people is: THANK YOU SO MUCH! If you hadn't voted on it it would've probably taken me even LONGER to read this amazing book. 
I've had Cinder on my shelf for almost a year I think. Actually found it at a local bookstore but I guess it slipped my mind that I had it and I never picked it up until recently. I could just smack myself on the head for that!

Our heroine is a 16 year-old cyborg (Gotta love that!) who is a mechanic in New Beijing (Love that too!), who's parents died in a car crash years ago (That's the accident where Cinder got turned into a cyborg also). Even since she's lived with her stepmother who hates her and stepsisters, not remembering a thing about her life before the crash. One day prince Kai shows up at Cinder's stall where she works, to get his android fixed. From there on out everything get so much harder and crazier! Somehow Cinder is immune to the plague that has been causing deads for over a dozen years. Why is she immune, while she is so different already? And can she resist the prince's charms when he asks her to go to the ball with him?

I was hooked from the moment things started speeding up and Cinder got send to get tested for possible plague antidotes. From that moment I could hardly put this book down.
Cinder is just an amazing heroine. One of my favorites so far. She's courageous, funny, strong and she cares so much about her family (well, maybe not her stepmother Adri and stepsister Pearl but who can blame her?) She does love her little stepsister Peony a lot and their android Iko. How can she not? Peony and Iko are adorable! Especially Iko is really cute. I want an android like her!

This book had so many awesome elements. Like cyborgs, androids, New Beijing, Lunars (people who actually live on the moon!) and so on and on. It was all really cool. Almost makes me wish I could live in this book. 
I loved prince Kai! He is freaking swoon-worthy! But not only that he also cares a lot about his people and wants to do what's right for them to avoid a war with the Lunars who's queen is just the epitome of pure, pure evil! 
I was really heart broken because of the scene at the ball where everything about Cinder comes out. This one sentence just breaks my heart. "You’re even more painful to look at than she is." I really want these two characters to be together and live happily ever after. I hope it'll still happen!

Really, the only negative things I can say about Cinder is that in the beginning I didn't love it immediately, I took me at least 50 pages to get really into it. I was rather confused because I didn't get what exactly was going on but once I got past that I was swept away in this story like I haven't been for a long time.
Also the "twist" in this story was really obvious but I didn't really mind it (even when I kind of jumped up and went, "YES!"). I guessed it from the beginning and at the end it came out. Never mind that because it was a fantastic book nontheless.

There was a little bit of romance in. No kisses or anything yet but there definitely was the promise of more romance in the future. I loved Kai's little flirting with Cinder and how he kept asking her to the ball. I had many *facepalm* moments everytime she kept saying no (even though I totally understand why but it's Kai! Oh so cute. Oh so sweet!).

Overall Cinder is a beautiful, exceptional fairytale retelling that keeps you hooked and sucks you into the world of technology, cyborgs, evil moon queens but also of fairytale love, frienship and courage.
Now I am just waiting to get my hands on Scarlet very soon!

It was amazing!

~Favorite Quotes;

Vanity is a factor, but it is more a question of control. It is easier to trick others into perceiving you as beautiful if you can convince yourself you are beautiful. But mirrors have an uncanny way of telling the truth.

Cinder twisted up her lips. "Do you think it could have a virus?"

"Maybe her programming was overwhelmed by Prince Kai's uncanny hotness."

~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 given a small book of them when she was a child. She may or may not be a cyborg. Cinder is her first novel.

Visit Marissa at:

Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest | YouTube | Website

Purchase Cinder at: 

The Book Depository | Amazon | Fishpond | Kobo