Crosspost: mytokyoblues.wordpress.com 
 I kept seeing this book series whenever I was looking for a new series to start. The cover looked amazing and it convinced me to start the series. I knew it was going to be a Cinderella retelling, but I had no idea what it was going to be about. I just finished the book and it was great. This review will have a bit of spoilers so be warn! 
 Cover: I love the cover! 
 Characters: My favorite character from the Lunar Chronicles so far is Cinder. I thought that she was amazing, the author developed her character. She was a cyborg who constantly felt like an outsider with her step family who did not love her (except for Peony, her stepsister). She was the girl with the mysterious backstory that had no recollections of her memories prior to her cyborg surgery. She's sarcastic and very tomboyish mechanic who can't blush or have tears due to her surgery. I can't wait to read about her in the next book. Prince Kai, was very charming from the beginning of the novel. I enjoyed his scenes with Cinder, from their first meeting at the marketplace to their dance at the ball. It was interesting to see how he transitioned from being a prince to an emperor. He has many problems that he wants to resolve such tensions between the Lunar Kingdom and Earth. May I say, that I loved Queen Levana as the villain. I really thought she was a Queen Bee. Although I have not read the other books in the series (I will eventually get to them), I am excited for her story! 
 Plot: This was more than a Cinderella retelling. The author really took time to create this world. It's in the future and there's conflict between the Moon and Earth. It really reminded me of Sailor Moon! (for example: Cinder kept saying that lunars have magical powers). The plot, I thought was really interesting. You have Cinder as an outsider cyborg who is in fact Princess Selene (this gets revealed till the very end). The main conflict that I found in the story is that Queen Levana does not want to sign any peace treaties with Earth and wants marry Prince Kai in order to become Empress and later dominate the entire world. Cinder is the one to let Kai know of what Queen Levana is plotting thanks to a mysterious lunar girl whose guardian is Sybil Mira (thaumaturge of the Lunar Kingdom). There are two other subplots that I can think of such as Prince Kai's determination to find Princess Selene and marry her instead of Queen Levana, and secondly, Cinder being immune to lemutosis. 
 Sad Moments: I was sad to see Peony die. I had hope for her to survive since Cinder was given the antidote for lemutosis. I did shed a tear when Cinder was removing her id chip. Then there's the part with Cinder discovering Iko's personality chip in her room. Lastly when Prince Kai told Cinder "Was it all in my head? A Lunar trick...You're even more painful to look at than she is" (Kai realizing that Cinder is both Lunar and cyborg. 
 Shock Factor: I was not as shocked to learn that Cinder was Princess Selene, but I did find it shocking that Lunars were immune to lemutosis. 
 Would I recommend this book? Yes. If you're a fan of the fairy tale retellings, this book is perfect for you. I am really excited to continue reading the Lunar Chronicles 
 My rating is a 4 out of 5 :)