Scarlet

*Starred Review* Cinder, the beautiful lunar cyborg mechanic, is back, this time in what initially appears to be parallel story lines with Scarlet, the granddaughter of a former military pilot turned farmer in the small town of Rieux, France. After her midnight fall down the palace steps and her imprisonment, Cinder is a media sensation, escaping the New Beijing prison with Captain Carswell Thorne, a handsome if rather clueless petty thief. Scarlet, on the other hand, is trying desperately to gain the police's attention. Her grandmother has disappeared and is surely in danger; the officers speculate that the eccentric old woman has wandered off. Only when Scarlet meets the violent yet attractive Wolf, an alpha human with animal instincts, is she on the trail of her beloved grand-mere, and a trajectory that intersects with Cinder's attempt to save the earth by foiling Lunar Queen Levana's marriage to Emperor Kai. It's another Marissa Meyer roller-coaster ride, part science fiction/fantasy, part political machinations with a hint of romance. Readers will be pushed into a horrific alternate universe where violence, especially mind manipulation and control, create ethical and life-threatening situations for both teens. With at least one more Lunar Chronicle to come, the suspense continues. And which fairy tale will Meyer morph next? HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Cinder (2012), the first title in the Lunar Chronicles, was a New York Times best-seller. Even without the major promotional campaign, teens will be waiting for this follow-up.--Bradburn, Frances Copyright 2010 Booklist

Returning fans of Meyer's Cinder will gladly sink their teeth into this ambitious, wholly satisfying sequel. Linh Cinder has learned that she is Princess Selene, a Lunar who was supposedly murdered by her treacherous and powerful aunt, Queen Levana, but in fact survived. Meanwhile on Earth, Scarlet Benoit and her former military pilot grandmother, now smalltown farmers in France, have recently become the target of a ruthless pack of wolflike humans who, if they don't get the information they want, will probably kill them. Meyer's plot is intricate and elaborate as she leaps between Cinder's and Scarlet's narratives, leaving readers anticipating their eventual intersection. Scarlet is a headstrong and loyal heroine, determined to save her grandmother (who has gone missing) while reluctantly falling for the protective but bloodthirsty Wolf, who might have been hired to kill her-or might be in love with her. Meyer portrays each scene with precision and rising tension, leaving readers with another mesmerizing journey. The third book in the Lunar Chronicles, Cress, is scheduled for 2014. Ages 12-up. Agent: Jill Grinberg, Jill Grinberg Literary Management. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Gr 9 Up-In the second title (2013) in Meyer's "The Lunar Chronicles," listeners are introduced to Scarlet Benoit, a teenager in rural France whose grandmother has been missing for over two weeks. She's certain that her grandmother has been kidnapped and will do anything to find her, even place her trust in the mysterious and dangerous street fighter Wolf. Meanwhile, Linh Cinder has escaped prison in New Beijing with the help of a roguish thief named Thorne and is evading authorities in a stolen spaceship while she decides what to do about the revelation that she is really Princess Selene, the true heir to the Lunar crown. Rebecca Soler gives another solid performance of the futuristic fairy tale series. Her youthful voice is well cast to narrate the concurrent stories of the two teenagers, seamlessly navigating between the story lines. She gives Scarlet's dialogue a slight accent, helping to distinguish her from Cinder, and voices supporting characters with their own nuances. Soler's narration succeeds in conveying the plot's building tension. She fully inhabits the passionate, headstrong, and determined Scarlet, while also expressing Cinder's struggles with the tempting powers her Lunar heritage make possible and her hesitancy to lead a revolt against evil Queen Levana. Fans of Cinder (2012, both Feiwel & Friends) will be completely satisfied as action and romance abound and the stakes are even higher in this installment. Listeners will be clamoring for the next two titles in the quartet.-Amanda Raklovits, Champaign Public Library, IL (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Meyer adapts "Cinderella" and "Little Red Riding Hood" to create folktale/sci-fi-hybrid stories set on a futuristic Earth. In Cinder, the title character is an orphan cyborg mechanic who discovers she is the key to stopping the evil Lunar queen, Levana. As a fugitive in Scarlet, Cinder searches for answers about her past; this leads her to Scarlet, whose grandmre is being held by Levana's genetically engineered wolf-like army, assembled to destroy Earth's inhabitants. Meyer's retellings feature large casts of characters and chapters told from alternating points of view, making it no easy feat to translate these first two series entries to audio. But Soler's narrations, both confident and well paced, flow effortlessly. She masters major characters' voices: Cinder's is sardonic, with a slightly stilted cyborg tone; trusty and lovable sidekick android Iko gets a high-pitched, robotic modulation; the voice of Cinder's love interest, newly crowned Emperor Kai, exudes both authority and youthful uncertainty; Scarlet's voice has a hint of a French lilt; and Queen Levana's is eerily smooth. Soler is also very effective at quick transitions between accents in dialogue-heavy scenes. The combination of Soler's superb performance and Meyer's captivating storytelling creates a pair of tour-de-force audiobooks. cynthia k. ritter (c) Copyright 2013. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Meyer returns with the second installment of the Lunar Chronicles for a futuristic spin on "Little Red Riding Hood." Feisty, red-hoodiewearing Scarlet is beside herself; her beloved grand-mre has been missing from the family farm in the French countryside for two weeks. A mysterious, tattooed street fighter named Wolf may be able to help herand he has these awesome green eyes. Meanwhile, in the Eastern Commonwealth, cyborg Cinderwho learned she was the long-lost Lunar princess, Selene, in the eponymous first book (2012)escapes from jail with the roguish Thorne, a charming petty crook cast in the Han Solo mold. Cinder has a new, jacked-up cyborg hand and her Lunar powers of mental manipulation to help her in her quest to findScarlet's grandmother, who may hold the key to her past. Meyer's story ticks along smartly, showing no sign of second-volume sag. Both fairy-tale and romance elements are blended in to pleasing if predictable effect. Less successful from a plausibility standpoint is a bloody new Lunar plot to take over the world, though it does contribute to tension. Also troubling is Meyer's tendency toward peculiar word usage that in a more stylistically distinguished work would seem fresh but here seems just, well, peculiar and may haul readers out of an otherwise effective story. Readers who can ignore the flaws will find the book goes down easy, and they will be happy to wait in line for the third installment. (Science fiction/fairy tale. 12 up)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

*Starred Review* Cinder, the beautiful lunar cyborg mechanic, is back, this time in what initially appears to be parallel story lines with Scarlet, the granddaughter of a former military pilot turned farmer in the small town of Rieux, France. After her midnight fall down the palace steps and her imprisonment, Cinder is a media sensation, escaping the New Beijing prison with Captain Carswell Thorne, a handsome if rather clueless petty thief. Scarlet, on the other hand, is trying desperately to gain the police's attention. Her grandmother has disappeared and is surely in danger; the officers speculate that the eccentric old woman has wandered off. Only when Scarlet meets the violent yet attractive Wolf, an alpha human with animal instincts, is she on the trail of her beloved grand-mère, and a trajectory that intersects with Cinder's attempt to save the earth by foiling Lunar Queen Levana's marriage to Emperor Kai. It's another Marissa Meyer roller-coaster ride, part science fiction/fantasy, part political machinations with a hint of romance. Readers will be pushed into a horrific alternate universe where violence, especially mind manipulation and control, create ethical and life-threatening situations for both teens. With at least one more Lunar Chronicle to come, the suspense continues. And which fairy tale will Meyer morph next? HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Cinder (2012), the first title in the Lunar Chronicles, was a New York Times best-seller. Even without the major promotional campaign, teens will be waiting for this follow-up. Copyright 2012 Booklist Reviews.

In Cinder (2012), a cyborg Cinderella falls in love with a futuristic prince, only to lose him to an evil alien queen. At that book's close, Cinder escapes execution and learns a world-changing secret about her origins. In the series' second installment, young Scarlet does not yet understand her connection to Cinder, only that her grandmother has gone missing and the police no longer suspect foul play. When a street fighter named Wolf offers to help in the search, Scarlet comes to learn that her grandmother's past was much more exciting than her present quiet life in the French countryside. With their engaging characters and exquisite world-building, Meyer's far future–meets–fairytale "Lunar Chronicles" have become best sellers. This fun take on Red Riding Hood (with its sexy wolf) only whets the appetite for more. (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Returning fans of Meyer's Cinder will gladly sink their teeth into this ambitious, wholly satisfying sequel. Linh Cinder has learned that she is Princess Selene, a Lunar who was supposedly murdered by her treacherous and powerful aunt, Queen Levana, but in fact survived. Meanwhile on Earth, Scarlet Benoit and her former military pilot grandmother, now smalltown farmers in France, have recently become the target of a ruthless pack of wolflike humans who, if they don't get the information they want, will probably kill them. Meyer's plot is intricate and elaborate as she leaps between Cinder's and Scarlet's narratives, leaving readers anticipating their eventual intersection. Scarlet is a headstrong and loyal heroine, determined to save her grandmother (who has gone missing) while reluctantly falling for the protective but bloodthirsty Wolf, who might have been hired to kill her—or might be in love with her. Meyer portrays each scene with precision and rising tension, leaving readers with another mesmerizing journey. The third book in the Lunar Chronicles, Cress, is scheduled for 2014. Ages 12–up. Agent: Jill Grinberg, Jill Grinberg Literary Management. (Feb.)

Gr 7 Up—Scarlet picks up immediately where Cinder (Feiwel & Friends, 2012) ended. Cinder Linh is in prison, armed with the secret knowledge that she is the long-lost Lunar Princess Selene, and that Lunar Queen Levana will do anything to get rid of her and her claim to the throne. She breaks out with a fellow prisoner, and they use his hidden spaceship to escape and figure out their next move. Meanwhile, Scarlet Benoit is barely holding on. Her grandmother has disappeared, the police are no help, and she is trying to run her grandmother's farm and figure out how to find her. Enter Wolf, a street fighter who has a distinctive tattoo and might know more than he's saying. And Emperor Kai is still busy trying to make Queen Levana happy without sacrificing his people's freedom. Meyer does an excellent job of subtly using the tale of Red Riding Hood to move the plot along and even gives readers some things to contemplate. Wolf is big, and bad, but does he mean to be? Can he overcome his past? There are plenty of viewpoints in the book, but transitions are seamless and the plot elements meld together well. This novel has enough backstory to stand on its own, but is much better after reading Cinder. The author has stepped up the intrigue and plot from the first novel, and readers will be eagerly awaiting the next.—Kelly Jo Lasher, Middle Township High School, Cape May Court House, NJ