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RachelReads (74 KP) rated Cinder in Books

May 25, 2017  
Cinder
Cinder
Marissa Meyer | 2012 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
10
8.5 (96 Ratings)
Book Rating
characters characters characters (0 more)
Amazing series!
I don't usually like sci-fi novels, but this was amazing! It's a fairytale retelling of cinderella with a sci-fi twist. Highly recommend!
  
To Kill a Kingdom
To Kill a Kingdom
Alexandra Christo | 2018 | Romance, Young Adult (YA)
8
7.9 (17 Ratings)
Book Rating
I really didn't know what to expect from this one but everyone I know all agreed it was good and while a fairytale retelling it was still unique enough that it felt like it's own story. and I have to agree 100%. The characters were all great but my favorite by far was Lira the main character.

The plot was fun and the writing was great I honestly did not want to put this down, my favorite thing by far was there was no instalove and each character grew but still stayed on the darker side.
  
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KM Watts (12 KP) rated Cinder in Books

Sep 9, 2018  
Cinder
Cinder
Marissa Meyer | 2012 | Science Fiction/Fantasy, Young Adult (YA)
9
8.5 (96 Ratings)
Book Rating
Fantastic characters (2 more)
Imaginative world building
Wonderful plot
The villain could have been a bit more dangerous (0 more)
A wonderful reimagining
This book is the first in the series. This book was on my list for awhile, but I had been holding off reading it. I’m glad I finally did. It was a fast paced adventure with a sprinkle of romance. It had me rooting for Cinder the whole time, and there were enough twists to keep everything interesting. The villain was good, though I think she could have been given stonger motives. This was a fantastic retelling of an old fairytale, with an awesome sci-fi twist. I would highly recommend it.
  
The Wild Swans ( Timeless Fairytales book 2)
The Wild Swans ( Timeless Fairytales book 2)
K M Shea | 2022 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
3of 230
Kindle
The Wild Swans ( Timeless Fairytales book 2)
By K M Shea

Elise is the foster-daughter of the King of Arcainia, a mathematician, and the country's treasurer. She is not a hero. But when her step-mother, a wicked witch, curses Elise's seven foster-brothers - the princes of Arcainia - and turns them into swans, Elise is the only one who can save them. To break the curse, she must knit seven shirts made of stinging nettles, but there's a catch. She has to complete the shirts without uttering a word, and if she doesn't finish the task, Arcainia and her foster-brothers will be lost. THE WILD SWANS is a retelling of the German Six Swans fairytale and the Dutch Wild Swans fairytale. It is a story of humor, love, adventure, and magic, and it is part of the top selling Timeless Fairy Tales series - a series comprised of loosely related adaptations of your favorite fairytales. All Timeless Fairy Tales take place in the same world and can be read all together, or as individual, stand-alone books.

I must confess I’d never heard of this fairytale where have I been!! This was beautiful and a sure sign of love and strength. I love K M Shea her books are just so well written. Definitely recommended to those that love retellings of fairytales.
  
Burn Baby Burn (Fairytales of the Myth #1)
Burn Baby Burn (Fairytales of the Myth #1)
Miranda Grant | 2020 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
7.8 (4 Ratings)
Book Rating
Possible triggers with child abuse being alluded to (no graphic descriptions but you are aware that it happens)

This is a dark, very different retelling of the classic Cinderella.

You won't find a nice Fairy Godmother or glass slippers here......death, slavery, abuse, yeah, that's here and you know what? I like it. I like the darkness, the fight that Ella has within her, the fire that she shows. I do feel sorry for her though, from the beginning the odds of a happy, fortunate life were stacked against her and people seemed to just take advantage......big mistake!

Definitely not a sweet fairytale for children. This is for adults with a glass of something strong in hand and a free evening.
  
The Beauty of the Wolf
The Beauty of the Wolf
Wray Delaney | 2019 | Fiction & Poetry, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
9.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
A refreshingly different retelling
I rather liked this retelling of Beauty and the Beast. It's set in Elizabethan England, and there are some twists to the original story, which were both surprising and refreshing.
I really liked the language used: it was poetic with a good smattering of the more 'earthy' Elizabethan English (it's what we English are good at I think, isn't it!). I also liked the mix of fairytale, folklore and history. It just felt as though the author had done a bit of historical research with regards to life in London and as part of a theatrical group.
It was a good story that illustrated that what's on the inside is what really counts far more than appearances and that, I suppose, there is someone out there for everyone. Someone who will love you for yourself, regardless of what you look like - in fact, probably precisely because of what you look like.*
*This book actually caused me to check in my cynicism at the first page. And that's no bad thing in literature!
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my copy of this book.
  
This is supposed to be a Snow White retelling but I really couldn’t see it. Regardless, it’s an erotic fairytale retelling which is right up my alley. It’s heavy on the erotica while still having enough plot to push the story forward. Normally I would be aggravated that this story is divided into three parts but I knew that going in and already had the rest of the story so I didn’t have to wait for the rest.

I love friends to lovers stories, especially childhood friends. I would like to say I enjoyed the premise to this story but honestly I thought it was stupid. I wish I had better word but there it is. Now you may be saying “but you knew that going in!” Honestly, I was hoping it was going to be a menage. I guess it was just wishful thinking, because what I got instead was the age old “hey let me ask my male friend how to seduce this other male but wait my friend wants me” trope.

All in all, definitely worth the read.
  
Geekerella (Once Upon a Con #1)
Geekerella (Once Upon a Con #1)
Ashley Poston | 2017 | Contemporary, Romance, Young Adult (YA)
8
7.8 (11 Ratings)
Book Rating
Geekerella is a modern day retelling of the classic fairytale, Cinderella. Our protagonist is Ella and the most important thing in her life is fandom, specifically her love of Starfleet. It was a show that she watched on re-runs with her dad and fell in love with. Her father even started a convention called Excelsicon because of his love of Starfleet. After her mother died when she was a small child, it was just Ella and her dad. Unfortunately, her father got remarried and later died in a car accident leaving Ella with her step-mother and two step-sisters. They didn’t understand her love of the sci-fi cult hit and treated her more like a servant than a sister.

Geekerella is a cute contemporary novel that will speak to your fandom loving heart. Even if you’re not super into sci-fi, comics, comic con, cosplay or those types of things, I think you will enjoy the classic human experience portrayed in this book. The Cinderella retelling aspect of the story was the least relevant to my reading experience. I personally enjoyed the development of friendly and romantic relationships, the geeking out over fandoms and the personal growth seen in this novel.

The main characters are likable and relatable, despite the fact that one of them is famous. He alternates between wanting to be normal, or down to earth, and succumbing to the intoxicating appeal of being famous. Even though you generally know the bones of the story if you’re familiar with Cinderella, the story itself doesn’t feel incredibly formulaic and can surprise you at times.

Highly recommended to young adult/teen fan of contemporary books, teen romance, nerd/geekdom, comic con, cosplay, fairytale retellings and simple, cute reads.
  
Beheld (Kendra Chronicles, #4)
Beheld (Kendra Chronicles, #4)
Alex Flinn | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.5 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
Beheld by Alex Flinn is the fifth book in the Kendra Chronicles. Readers were first introduced to the witch in Flinn’s Beauty and the Beast retelling, Beastly. Since then she has been involved in a number of other famous fairy tales like Cinderella and Rapunzel. In this book, readers follow Kendra’s life as she finds the love of her life, loses him and repeats the cycle. Each time she encounters him, readers are treated to a short retelling. The first is Little Red Riding Hood, which is set in Salem, Ma during the witch trials. The second is Rumplestiltskin, which is set is Bavaria and features a Prince. The third is East of the Sun and West of the Moon, which is set primarily in Britain during the Second World War. The final tale is the Ugly Duckling, which is in modern day Miami.

My least favourite aspect of the book was actually the interludes linking each story together, or Kendra’s tale of trying to find her love. Each retelling would have been an interesting (if short) read, even if she were not a character and the magic was introduced in another fashion. Personally, I felt that these tales would have been better served as novellas because the thread linking them felt forced. The stories themselves felt rushed at times, perhaps because all four had to be combined into one cohesive story and if they were more detailed than the novel would be much too long.

The characters were likable and the world was believable, but neither was particularly developed. I wish that the author had taken the time to delve more deeply into the worlds and build an entrancing narrative. Overall, the book was enjoyable but there were times that it was slow and I had to force myself to pick it back up to continue.

I would recommend this novel, and the series as a whole, to young adult/teen readers who enjoy magic and fantasy in their books, as well as fairytale retellings.
  
Since this is the second in the series and emphasizes the story from the first part, I will include my review from that.

This is supposed to be a Snow White retelling but I really couldn’t see it. Regardless, it’s an erotic fairytale retelling which is right up my alley. It’s heavy on the erotica while still having enough plot to push the story forward. Normally I would be aggravated that this story is divided into three parts but I knew that going in and already had the rest of the story so I didn’t have to wait for the rest.

I love friends to lovers stories, especially childhood friends. I would like to say I enjoyed the premise to this story but honestly I thought it was stupid. I wish I had better word but there it is. Now you may be saying “but you knew that going in!” Honestly, I was hoping it was going to be a ménage. I guess it was just wishful thinking, because what I got instead was the age old “hey let me ask my male friend how to seduce this other male but wait my friend wants me” trope.

As the second in the series, Snow’s Submission continues with the heat and erotic scenes. However, I found myself disenchanted with Snow. I felt like she could have been a stronger lead and I wasn’t happy with how she handled the situation. At the same time, I understand the predicament she was in and furious with those who put her there.

That being said, I won’t ruin anything for you.