{Event} #StarsAbove Tour | Marissa Meyer Signing at Irving Public Library

Last Saturday, I dragged my husband and 7yo daughter to the Marissa Meyer signing at the Irving Public Library for the #StarsAbove tour to celebrate the author's latest release: a collection of short stories featuring the characters from The Lunar Chronicles. I had to promise them Thai food and other things since this event was over an hour away from us and would likely last a few hours that they couldn't get back. ;0) This is the first real signing my husband has attended with me, and I think it was a side of me he's never seen before, lol.

The Library

I'd never been to a signing at this locale, though they get many great authors, and it was an absolutely lovely location for the event. Mary was such an awesome host to the over 300 attendees and even got the group to sing "Deep in the Heart of Texas" to show Marissa a warm welcome. It was standing room only in the auditorium where the event was held, but it was a great crowd.

The Event - Discussion, Q&A, and Author Reading

While the author discussed the series at large and then how the compilation of short stories came to be, we listened intently, but my husband was distracted by the banner behind Marissa. He remarked later that the story and that backdrop combined would make for an awesome video game. I'm not a gamer myself, but I have to agree.

Marissa took some questions from the audience, but I forgot my notepad so I couldn't take notes. :( Here are a few that I remember, though I'm paraphrasing hardcore:

Q: Which ship does she ship the hardest?

A: Kiko (Iko and Kinney), which she says she's foreshadowed enough that we'll probably be seeing more of them...in the graphic novels :D

Q: Since we're all fangirls/boys for her work, who's someone she's met that she considers a celebrity?

A: Meg Cabot, who she was excited to learn had actually read her work, as well

Q: Does she cry or laugh maniacally when she kills off her darlings?
A: When she's writing the character deaths, they hit her hard. The one in Scarlet brought her to tears. But when she's reading reader reactions to these deaths, she grins evilly.

Marissa doesn't like to read from her own novels at signings, so she told us the story of The Little Mermaid by Hans Christian Anderson. (She is not a fan, btw.) My daughter was very surprised by this story, as thus far, she's only known the version Disney tells. Guess it's time to school her.

The Signing - W/ Bonus Mobile Planetarium

I wasn't able to get my signing ticket in advance, so I was #257, which meant a long very long wait to meet Marissa. Luckily, there were cupcakes and lemonade and Mary hosted a little adventure in the mobile planetarium they had in the library, special for the event. I'm a little claustrophobic and the crush of 300+ people was already getting to me, so I didn't check this out, but my hubby and kiddo did, and she was utterly captivated when she came back. They sang songs, got to see the constellations as they related to Harry Potter, and she learned that the Big Dipper isn't really the Big Dipper...it's apparently part of Ursa Major. Who knew? (I mean, I should have...I used to love astronomy and had a telescope in my room when I was a kid, but that was ages ago. :P)

The signing line took about two hours, but we were seated for most of that, until my number was called, so it wasn't too bad of a wait. Except for the complaints from my family that they were hungry. ;( Anyway, we got up there and I may have had the largest stack I'd seen of anyone at the event. This was my first time meeting Marissa, though she's been to my area before, so I had to have her sign all of my HCs, plus my ARCs, plus my audiobook and the drawing Katie did for Judging a Book By Its Cover so long ago. It was a lot, but Marissa was so generous with her time. She recognized that I was a blogger and so we chatted about the community a bit and about instilling a love of reading in young people.

A nice chat all around and an awesome event. Thanks to Mary, the Irving Public Library, Marissa Meyer, and Fierce Reads for putting this tour together! And thanks to my family for suffering through it with me! It means the world to me!

I can't wait for Heartless!!!!!

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Labels: 2016, favorite authors, favorites, irving public library, macmillan, marissa meyer, signings, the lunar chronicles

#Fairest Blog Tour: My Epic Re-Listen of the Lunar Chronicles + Giveaway

I am super-duper excited to be a part of the blog tour celebrating the release of Fairest later this month. Admittedly, I wasn't on the Cinder bandwagon when everyone else was, but reviews and the fanaticism of other readers forced me to give it a chance, and now it's one of my favorite series. I'm not sure how to feel about the evil villain getting her very own book, but I am sure that if anyone can convince me her story is worth telling, it's Marissa Meyer. I just hope she doesn't make Queen Levana too redeemable, or I'll have a hard time with everything that's about to go down in Winter later this year. And you know some serious stuff is about to happen!

In anticipation of the release of each book in this series, I always do a re-listen of the books up to this point, and the release of Fairest is no different. Fairest is a bridge story between Cress and Winter, and I expect to learn a lot about the evil Queen Levana from this book: her motivations, her desires, her fears. It's definitely going to be a bit of a departure from the rest of the series. I can't wait! And to prepare myself for Fairest's imminent arrival, I recently re-listened to Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress. You'll find my thoughts below, in addition to an amazing giveaway for those same books in paperback.


Title: Cinder
Author: Marissa Meyer
Narrator(s): Rebecca Soler
Series: The Lunar Chronicles, book #1
Length: 10 hrs 6 min
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Publication Date: January 3, 2012
Source: purchased audiobook
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, the 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 Cinder Recap...or fangirl-y thoughts, whatever:

I loved Cinder pretty much from the beginning -- once I finally got around to starting this series -- and I think I love her just that much more with every re-read/listen I do of this series. She sacrifices so much, does so much for those she cares for, not even knowing who she really is or what she's capable of. I had her character pegged for so much more pretty early on because it was obvious to me that she was destined for so much more. Her character arc is still my favorite.

Oh, and I could have sworn that this book was the one that introduced us to Captain Carswell Thorne. Oh, well. This is why a re-read is necessary sometimes. So many lovely characters and storylines to keep track of. =)

Original review here.

Title: Scarlet

Author: Marissa Meyer

Narrator(s): Rebecca Soler

Series: The Lunar Chronicles, book #2

Length: 11 hrs 9 min

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Publication Date: February 5, 2013

Source: purchased audiobook/received from publisher for review

Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

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.

My Scarlet Recap...or fangirl-y thoughts, whatever:

I have always adored the story of Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf. But didn't you ever wonder if the BBW was really as bad as we were led to believe? I think that's why I enjoyed this sequel so much...because it explores motivations and willpower and having the gumption to fight the wicked instilled in oneself.

Of all of the characters in the Lunarverse so far, Scarlet is the one I'd most want to be like. She just wants to find her grandmother and go back to her happy little life. But she's a pilot and a fighter. Maybe not in the way that Wolf is a fighter, but even so, she can hold her own. And she deserves major props for forging ahead when others would shy away from the kind of mission she sets out on.

Original review here.


Title: Cress
Author: Marissa Meyer
Narrator(s):  Rebecca Soler
Series: The Lunar Chronicles, book #3
Length:  15 hrs 40 mins
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Publication Date: February 4, 2014
Source: purchased audiobook, ARC received from publisher
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Audible

Rapunzel’s tower is a satellite. She can’t let down her hair—or her guard.

In this third book in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles series, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.

Their best hope lies with Cress, who has been trapped on a satellite since childhood with only her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker—unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing stop her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only ones who can.

My Cress Recap...or fangirl-y thoughts, whatever:

I'm glad to see that each of the previous MC's in this series doesn't just suddenly drop off the face of the planet -- or moon -- because a new one has arrived on the scene. Meyer does a fantastic job of weaving all of these damsels in distress together into one cohesive storyline that I just can't get enough of.

I've always loved the story of Rapunzel and that amazing tangle of hair. I also love the idea of her being a programmer. I mean, girls really need to see more of that type of thing in their literature, ya know? (I even saw a program for teenage girls in Austin, completely free, no experience necessary, and you can't believe how giddy I was. If my daughter showed interest in such a field, I'd do whatever was necessary to make it happen.)

So, by this point, we have a cyborg who's become pretty adept at everything that's been thrown her way though she's still more than a little uncomfortable with it all, a farm girl who was willing to go to great lengths for the love of another, and a "shell" who's demonstrated great intelligence when it comes to hacking and programming -- and all are doing their best to subvert the Lunar Queen.

Original review here.

My thoughts on the series as a whole:

Overall, I am seriously impressed with the author's ability to take several fairy tales and roll them all up into one gigantic revolutionary sci-fi tale. You wouldn't believe how many people I've turned on to this series -- all doubters like me. But once you start that first book, you're hooked, and there's nothing you can do about it.

The Retellings:

I don't know that I can pick a favorite, based on which story is being retold. Cinder is based on Cinderella, Scarlet is based on Little Red Riding Hood, and Cress is straight from Rapunzel. I love ALL of those stories. All of these girls seem to be damsels in distress, whether in their original glory or as they're retold in this series, but they're not really. These are take-charge femme fatales in disguise. But so far as their stories are being retold, I think Meyer hit the nail on the head, making a lot of changes to fit within the world she's created but keeping the souls of those characters intact.

The Ships:

I love Cinder and Kai together as much as the next girl, especially as his predisposed feelings toward her people -- cyborg and Lunar, alike -- seem to change. And I adore Scarlet and Wolf's romance, especially with everything that they've been through together and how devoted to one another they are. And sure, Carswell Thorne is a catch on any day...that Cress is one lucky lady.

But my favorite ship in this Lunarverse is Captain Thorne and Cinder. I know their relationship is platonic, but I always hoped it would be more like the Han and Leia type of romance...that slow hate-to-love burn that develops over time. I know it's not headed in that direction, and that's okay. A girl can dream. :) But it's been done before, so whatever. :P

The Villain:

Never have I read about such an irredeemable villain as Queen Levana. I thought it was pretty obvious where her story was headed, but I never questioned where it all began. Maybe if she'd had a shred of humanity to her -- unlikely since she isn't human -- I'd have cared more about her backstory. Luckily for us, the author does think her story is worth telling, and so we get the next book in this series before the finale. I really hope there's something more to Levana than just the ego-trip she seems to be on, but I also hope she doesn't have a redeemable bone in her body because it will make it that much harder to witness what happens to her in Winter, especially if Cinder and the others catch wind of it. Either way, I cannot wait to get my hands on Fairest. Now that I've relistened to the entire series again, I'm even more excited to see where Levana comes from and where her motivations lie.

The Audiobooks:

Dude, if you haven't listened to a book narrated by Rebecca Soler, you're seriously missing out. I think these books are THAT much better because I listened to them on audio. And they're pretty fabulous in text. If you ever get the chance to revisit the series via audiobook, take it. You won't have wasted your time.

Oh, and if you're still not convinced, you can check out a few short stories from Marissa Meyer in this series on Wattpad. My original reviews of Glitches and The Queen's Army are here.

What are you waiting for?!? Scroll down and enter the giveaway so you can start reading the Lunar Chronicles and discover the epicness for yourself!

But first, more on Fairest:

Title: Fairest
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles, book #3.5
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Publication Date: January 27, 2015

In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.

Thanks to Feiwel & Friends/Macmillan, I've got a set of the Lunar Chronicles to give away, which includes a paperback of Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress.

Rules:

• This giveaway is US/CAN only. The publisher will be providing the prize for this giveaway.
• One entry per household. 
• Entries will be verified. Any entry found to be falsified will result in disqualification of all entries for that participant. 
• Winner will be notified via email. Winner will then have 48 hours to respond before another winner will be selected. Please check your SPAM folder!!! 
• We are not responsible for lost packages. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Thanks for sharing in my excitement in anticipation of Fairest's release on January 27th. Want more? You can:

• Become a fan of the Lunar Chronicles on Facebook!
• Become a fan of Marissa Meyer on Facebook!
• Follow Marissa Meyer on Twitter!
• Become a fan of the Lunar Chronicles on Tumblr, where you can access Marissa’s tour schedule, wallpaper, the first page of Fairest, and more!

And be sure to check out the rest of the tour for reviews of the first book in the series, re-reads, playlists, tour recaps, and more!

The Lunar Chronicles Blog Tour Schedule

Monday January 5

The Starry-Eyed Revue

Tuesday January 6

Snuggly Oranges

Wednesday January 7

A Perfection Called Books

Thursday January 8

Icey Books

Friday January 9

The Book Addict’s Guide

Monday January 12

YA Bibliophile

Tuesday January 13

Alexa Loves Books

Wednesday January 14

Forever Young Adult

Thursday January 15

Writer of Wrongs

Friday January 16

Cuddlebuggery

Monday January 19

Paper Riot

Tuesday January 20

Great Imaginations

Wednesday January 21

Belle of the Literati

Thursday January 22

Adventures of a Book Junkie

Friday January 23

Good Books and Good Wine

Happy reading!

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Labels: audiobooks, blog tour, favorites, giveaways, macmillan, marissa meyer, promotions, the lunar chronicles

Waiting on Wednesday: Fairest by Marissa Meyer

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's WoW selections are...








's Pick:




I decided to post a WoW last minute this week, so April wasn't aware that she needed to pick an anticipated release. Oops. I did tell her we were taking it easy this week because of the holidays. =)






's Pick:



Title: Fairest
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles, book #3.5
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Publication Date: January 27, 2015

In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

Marissa Meyer spins yet another unforgettable tale about love and war, deceit and death. This extraordinary book includes full-color art and an excerpt from Winter, the next book in the Lunar Chronicles series.

Since we're featuring villains on today's Top Ten of 2014 post, I figured I'd showcase a book I'm seriously anticipating that features a villain as the main character. I can't wait to read Levana's story and maybe find her a tiny bit redeemable in the end. I mean, there's always some good in every evil villain, right? Be sure to check back in January for my stop on the Lunar Chronicles tour celebrating this book's release! I'll be re-reading the series and revisiting everything I loved about it.


What are you desperately waiting for this Wednesday? Let us know in the comments or share a link to your own WoW post!

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Labels: beautiful covers, favorites, macmillan, marissa meyer, retellings, sci-fi, the lunar chronicles, villains, waiting on wednesday (wow)

{Mini} Reviews: The Lunar Chronicles 1-3 by Marissa Meyer

Title: Cinder
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #1
Publisher:  Macmillan
Publication Date: January 3rd, 2012
Source: Purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

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

These are my thoughts on books 1-3, so there may be spoilers unless you've read all three of these books.

AHHHHHH!!! Why did I wait so long to read this book!!! I’ll tell you why. Fairytale retellings don’t really wet my muffin. I’ve read a few, but it takes me a while before I get the urge to pick one up. So many things can go wrong, especially when your messing with stories I loved as a child.

Take Cinderella for instance… a cyborg Cinderella? Come on now, that sounds lame as shit. Or so I thought. You see, I saw the cover and saw everyone talking about it when it came out. Still, I thought, Nah! This book is not for me. Then Scarlet came out… more raving! *sigh* Really? It can’t be that good, it doesn’t sound that good. Alas, Cress was released and I couldn’t put it off anymore. The blogger applause was deafening, so I proposed to Jess that we give Cinder a try and if we liked it, then we would read the others.

WE Loved it!!! Our normal 25% a day turned into finishing it in about 48 hours. Lol. Some books you just can’t put down. You just can’t. I think Jess almost wet herself the night I told her we could continue reading past 50%, she was fiending, but truth be told, I was too!

As a retelling of Cinderalla, I thought it was excellent. So different and original, but I loved all the little details that were thrown in, that would immediately bring my mind back to the fairy tale.

Love Love LOVED!!!! This Book!

Title: Scarlet
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #2
Publisher:  Macmillan
Publication Date: February 5th, 2013
Source: Purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Cinder, the cyborg mechanic, returns in the second thrilling installment of the 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 or 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 is loath to trust this stranger, but is inexplicably drawn to him, and he to her. As Scarlet and Wolf unravel one mystery, they encounter another when they meet Cinder. Now, all of them must stay one step ahead of the vicious Lunar Queen Levana, who will do anything for the handsome Prince Kai to become her husband, her king, her prisoner.

The week after we read Cinder, we picked up Scarlet. It picks up right where Cinder leaves off. I was pleasantly surprised to see that not only do we read from two knew pov’s, we still got to keep everyone elses!

It confused me at first, but I quickly got used to it bouncing around between them all. And it really gave you a feel for what was going on at all time. Scarlet, she’s feisty and I like her. I liked Wolfe too, but I’ll be honest, I’m still weary of him. He’s the wolf!!! Ya know?

The same as in Cinder, this retelling is so original. I’m kind of blown away honestly and I’m not sure how she comes up with this stuff. Authors are awesome. I loved that you get to learn more about Cinder. More about the revelations that are revealed at the end of book one. It’s good stuff.

Title: Cress
Author: Marissa Meyer
Series: The Lunar Chronicles #3
Publisher:  Macmillan
Publication Date: February 4th, 2014
Source: Purchased
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

In this third book in the Lunar Chronicles, Cinder and Captain Thorne are fugitives on the run, now with Scarlet and Wolf in tow. Together, they’re plotting to overthrow Queen Levana and her army.

Their best hope lies with Cress, a girl imprisoned on a satellite since childhood who's only ever had her netscreens as company. All that screen time has made Cress an excellent hacker. Unfortunately, she’s just received orders from Levana to track down Cinder and her handsome accomplice.

When a daring rescue of Cress goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a high price. Meanwhile, Queen Levana will let nothing prevent her marriage to Emperor Kai. Cress, Scarlet, and Cinder may not have signed up to save the world, but they may be the only hope the world has.

Oh my freaking gosh, If I thought these books couldn’t get any better, boy was I wrong. Cress, I loved her. Rapunzel is one of my favorite stories, so I was all over this one.

Again, it’s such an original take on the whole thing. So much happens in this one. There is an “OMG, No WAY!” moment towards the end. I love those moments. I love how all these books tie into each other, and the characters too.

This was another buddy read with Jess. We read them all in three weeks. We thought Cress was the last one! Nope, now we have to wait for Winter. *sigh*. It will be worth it I’m sure.

I decided to review all of these together, because they are just too good to review on their own. I had trouble finding enough words for mini reviews. I really feel like if you haven’t given this series a try, you should! The first one is only 2.99 for kindle I believe, so you should totally....

Give it a shot!!! 

About the author:

Marissa Meyer lives in Tacoma, Washington, with her husband and three cats. She’s a fan of most things geeky (Sailor Moon, Firefly, color-coordinating her bookshelf . . .), and has been in love with fairy tales since she was given a small book of them when she was a child. She may or may not be a cyborg. Cinder is her first novel.

Find Marissa:

Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads | Pinterest

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Labels: cinder, cress, macmillan, marissa meyer, retellings, reviews, scarlet, the lunar chronicles