My actual rating : 2.5 stars 
 Comment: Don't get me wrong, this book was actually better than a lot of other novels that I've read. The characters are not at all superficial, the heroine is very likeable, and the story flowed along nicely. Cinder proved to be a fantastic read for those who seriously had nothing to do. It' just that I have high taste. I am becoming more and more selective, and called me a literary snob if you like, but I can hardly galvanize any interest into the contemporary fantasy . The main problem I have with this book is.... 
 The Politics : Yes, it left me laughing of how naive and ridiculous all the ministers in here is. Okay, I don't need to be enroll in a HOW TO BE A PRINCE 101 to know this but: 
 1. If you are a royalty, do not go alone on the streets without body guard to met a total random mechanic : Kai my dear, putting a hoody over your head is a terrible attempt at disguise. In an era of tumultuous politics, he could have been easily spotted, killed, assassinated...etc. The prince could have contract the disease itself and die, given the fact that market is a dirty, contagious place and a person in there die right on the same day. Why does he not send a servant to Cinder, eh? 
 2. Do not hand your confidential information to a total random peasant mechanic : I think it is the dumbest idea when Prince Kai walked to the market and asked Cinder to fix his robot, which contained powerful, royal secrets such as Prince Kai's current research on Princess Selena. Er, some spies could have see that, killed Cinder, and stole the robot. If Cinder is the best mechanic in New Beijing, why don't the prince hire her to work at the royal palace, and then put her under guidance to ensure she isn't doing anything shady with it? What if Cinder successfully fixed the robot (which she did), accidentally knew the information (which she did, haha), and passed it to somebody else? (which she didn't, thankfully). The entire secrets of the palace could be leak out... through a mechanic. 
 3. Cinder wandering in palace and er, the prince confide all secret information to her : YOU JUST DON'T SPILL OUT NATIONAL SECRET TO A RANDOM STRANGER, HELLO? Okay, you know what, let's do a whole analysis on Prince Kai. 
 CHARACTER: 
 Prince Kai : Okay, this is the dumbest prince I have ever seen walking on Earth. Alright he is your typical, nice Disney guy who suddenly taken interest in a random, greasy peasant because she is the main character, whatever, I will buy it, but I cannot buy the fact that he is the dumbest political leader I have ever seen. I mean, if he was in Game of Thrones, he would have died in page three of the book. His first mistake, which I list above, was to wander by himself out of the palace in terrible disguise and conversing with a stranger. His second mistake is handling sensitive information to that stranger. His third mistake is that he ACT as a total teenage boy who seem to think ruling is a kind of video game. He showed obvious disdain to Queen of Lunar, who clearly is a dangerous woman that could snap him into two. At least he could pretend to like her and scheming behind her back instead. Jeeze. And he asked a total random peasant to the ball - a total blunder because the ball is a suitable time to gain political alliances and you do not offend a country (with a big army behind) just because you are in love with a peasant girl. No, the world does not work like that. 
 The Lunar people : very interesting, but they need a little but of development. Where do Lunar power came from? Why are they living on the moon? Why all of them use power for bad purpose? What is their conflict with Earth that cause such outrage? And again, Queen of Lunar (I forgot her name) is another strange, boring, two dimensional character. Why does she need a marriage with Prince Kai when it is so obvious that she could: 
 1 : Go to Earth and use her Lunar charm to brainwash people to support her and use their support to overthrow the monarchy. Which sorta work at the protests. If she is that powerful, can convince a horde, a crowd to love her, how come she cannot convince Prince Kai? 
 2. : It is clear she realize Prince Kai disdain her. Why does she kept pressing on this stupid behavior? She could put in her daughter or illegitimate daughter... whatever, or a cousin, or anybody, to marry him, secure the alliance quicker, and stab him in the back right after the marriage? 
 3. : Invade Earth with her mutant army. BOOM! And why the fuck does she show the mutant army so blatantly as a threat? I thought this woman was supposed to be clever. Why don't she pretend Lunar as a harmless country by hiding her army and later make a surprise attack with the Lunar hovercrafts? 
 In short I don't see how she is a dangerous villain. At any rate, I quit reading when there are only two chapters left. I have guessed the true identity of Cinder since like... at a quarter of the story. This book is a nice read, it is not terrible, but it offered nothing new. We have your typical sarcastic heroine who had a terrible life, typical hateful stepmother and stepsister, nice second stepsister, handsome charming prince with celebrity status, cliche villain who is clearly too dumb to be a villain and whose only motive in life is to rule/dominate/conquest/murder, and some bland characters that add no flavor to the story (Dr. whatever his name who test Cinder, Prince Kai minister, and Mistress Sybil). The world building should be explored more. Overall it was okay, a good read for those who who are easily captivated by a story, but for me, I had long taken up the sports of spotting plot holes and unrealistic details to actually enjoying it. I can't help who I am, folks. And so, return back to my classics. Haiz.