The Girl of Fire and Thorns and Cinder

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

From Rae's Website:

Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness. Elisa is the chosen one. But she is also the younger of two princesses, the one who has never done anything remarkable. She can’t see how she ever will. Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs the chosen one, not a failure of a princess. And he’s not the only one who needs her. Savage enemies seething with dark magic are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people’s savior. And he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake. Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young. Most of the chosen do.

Rae Carson's Website

Amazon Link

My Review~

I LOVED this book, it is technically a YA book and sometimes they can be a bit 'young' of a read for me, but this one went way way above and beyond.  I was instantly interested in Elisa's life, it starts on her wedding day, which should be happy and joyful for her it was nerve wracking and scary.  I love how throughout the story we learn as she does who she is, I love her strength and her innocence.  She is strong though she doesn't know how strong until close to the end.
I enjoyed how she reacted in different situations and when she would do to stay alive, and help those that need her.  She carries a heavy burden being the chosen and even though it is more than challenging, she prevails and not in a 'well of course she is the hero' way, but a truly epic battle with heart break and victory.
I am so excited that there will be two more books. I wanted more when this one ended!

Found this on Goodreads:Out Sept. 18th, 2012

Amazon Link

Book 3 (2013)

I would recommend this book to all Young Adult readers, and those Adult readers who enjoy reading about a strong, younger age.

Cinder (The Lunar Chronicles Book 1)

Marissa Meyer's Website

Amazon Link

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

It has been since February that I read this book, but it is another fantastic Young Adult read.  The twist on Cinderella is ingenious.  Cinder is a Cyborg in a futuristic world where she meets a prince and then has to fight her evil step mother and another all too real threat against her world.  I was pulled in quickly when the story starts and I wanted nothing but to help Cinder throughout her many problems.  I am curious to see where this story goes, the author has posted on her website that there will be four books, so there is much more to come.

Scarlet (The Lunar Chronicles book 2) Feb. 2013

Cinder returns in the second thrilling installment of the New York Times-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 and 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 has no choice but to trust him, though he clearly has a few dark secrets of his own.

As Scarlet and Wolf work to unravel one mystery, they find another when they cross paths with Cinder. Together, they must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen who will do anything to make Prince Kai her husband, her king, her prisoner.