Monday, February 6, 2017

Winter (The Lunar Chronicles)


Title: Winter 

Series: The Lunar Chronicles (Book #4)


Year: 2015 

Author: Marissa Meyer 

Summary: Princess Winter is admired by the Lunar people for her grace and kindness, and despite the scars that mar her face, her beauty is said to be even more breathtaking than that of her stepmother, Queen Levana.

Winter despises her stepmother, and knows Levana won’t approve of her feelings for her childhood friend—the handsome palace guard, Jacin. But Winter isn’t as weak as Levana believes her to be and she’s been undermining her stepmother’s wishes for years. Together with the cyborg mechanic, Cinder, and her allies, Winter might even have the power to launch a revolution and win a war that’s been raging for far too long.

Can Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, and Winter defeat Levana and find their happily ever afters? (from Goodreads)

Main Characters:
~ Cress
~ Scarlet
~ Cinder
~ Winter
~ Captain Thorne
~ Jacin
~ Kai
~ Wolf
~ Levana

Review: I can't say just what it is about this series. Truthfully, there are certain things that just make me cringe, but at the same time, something always draws me back for more. It could be the fact that it has all the crazy, space-y, awesome elements that remind me of Star Wars. It could also be that Marissa Meyer has a unique habit of creating characters that are impossible to forget and impossible not to care for. OR it could simply be the fact that these are fairy tale retellings, and I absolutely love a good fairy tale retelling.

Or it could be all of those things combined. 

At any rate, here is the stunning conclusion to The Lunar Chronicles, and we're treated once more to the adventures of Cinder and Co. All the things are at stake. People are in jeopardy. The fate of both the moon and the earth hang in the balance. And Winter can't seem to snap Jacin out of Guard Jacin mode. 

This book I felt was maybe a little more action-packed and dramatic than the other three books. Possibly because it's the finale, and I will say that Marissa Meyer doesn't disappoint with this finale. I like how she took several different plots and wove them all together into one, satisfying tale. Granted, not everything is satisfying, but there's a great feeling of an end well done once you hit the last page. 

The Snow White angle I thought cleverly woven in. I was interested to see how the author would use the glass coffin, and it did not disappoint. In the least.

Truthfully, I want more fairy tales in this style. The science fiction/space opera settings do well when mixed with fairy tales, and I was kinda disappointed that this was the last book for Marissa Meyer's Lunar Chronicles. I think the stories could have gone on a little further with more fairy tales. But that's just me. I'm a fairy tale fanatic. *coughs*

Advisory: Violence/fighting/blood/pain/death, but all on the same level as the other Lunar Chronicles books. The queen has a hobby of torturing people, so the narration gets a little graphic at times, but I never thought it too much. I can't recall anything specific that stood out, but it was definitely darker than the other three books. Also, some "adult comments" and language - all typical of the series. 

Romance from all 4 major couples plus some. I remember quite a few kisses/romantic physical content, so that's something to be aware of. It was pretty heavy, and that's a lot more than what I'm normally comfortable with. 

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars