Winter

August 24, 2015
At twice the length of Cinder, Meyer’s 800-page conclusion to her Lunar Chronicles is daunting both in its immensity and in its narrative breadth, shifting among every major character from the series and some new ones. But readers who have invested in Cinder and its sequels won’t be disappointed: this final installment abounds with nail-biting action, suspense, and romance. As Cinder plots a revolution against the exquisitely evil Lunar Queen Levana, readers meet Levana’s stepdaughter, Winter, whose debilitating visions are kept in check by Jacin, her beloved personal guard whom she is forbidden from marrying. Meyer stays true to the fairy tales that underlie this series with several references to Snow White but continues to keep things fresh with her futuristic setting and many delightfully unexpected twists. Winter is not quite as formidable as her predecessors, and her innocence and vulnerability can be grating. That said, the explosive final confrontation with Levana is gratifyingly tense, and Meyer expertly ties up any and all loose ends, allowing readers to leave behind this saga with a contented sigh. Ages 12–up. Agent: Jill Grinberg, Jill Grinberg Literary Management.

November 1, 2015

Gr 8 Up-In the final installment of the "Lunar Chronicles" series (Feiwel & Friends), readers are introduced to Princess Winter, the beautiful stepdaughter of the villainous Queen Levana. Forced to scar her own face as a child and driven mad by her refusal to use her Lunar gift to control people, Winter is still adored by the Lunars, especially her childhood friend and guard Jacin. Meanwhile, Cinder, now aware that she is Princess Selene, the true heir to the Lunar Kingdom, makes her way to Luna with Iko, Kai, Cress, Thorne, and Wolf in order to rescue Scarlet and overthrow Levana. In a society where manipulation, glamour, and bioengineered wolf-men all serve to strengthen Levana's rule, Cinder must rely on truthfulness and kindness in addition to physical strength if she is going to gain allies and create peace between Earth and Luna. This volume may be the series' conclusion, but there are plenty of obstacles and battles that the protagonists must overcome before their happily ever after. Meyer excels at transitioning back and forth between multiple story lines and holding readers' interest. The book has an open-ended conclusion, giving fans hope that further chronicles may be on the horizon. Like the previous entries in this widely appealing series, this title features strong heroines taking control of their destinies set against a fully developed and imaginative world. VERDICT An ambitious and successful finale.-Marissa Lieberman, East Orange Public Library, NJ

Copyright 2015 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from October 15, 2015
Grades 8-12 *Starred Review* In this final book in the Lunar Chronicles, the stepdaughter of the wicked Queen Levana joins Cinder, Scarlett, and Cress to defeat the queen and restore Cinderaka Seleneas the rightful ruler of Luna. Yes, it's another one of Meyer's very fractured fairy tales, in which she offers a new amalgam of Grimms' fairy tales, science fiction, violence, women's lib, and romance. Our Snow White stand-in, Winter, is beautiful in spite of facial scars, kind to all she encounters, mentally fragile, and in love with her lowly guard, Jacin. Her sweet, admirable qualities are exactly what it takes to organize the abused workers living outside the capital into a motley army that helps take on Levana to gain control of Luna. As always, Meyer combines just enough veiled references to the original stories to spur intellectual and emotional connections. For instance, Levana glamours herself into an old crone to entice Winter to eat a sour apple, after learning that Jacin has failed to kill her beautiful stepdaughter, and Emperor Kai returns Cinder's cyborg foot to signal his intentions at series end. And, yes, it is the end: Meyer bestows all four heroines with individual happily ever afters, before she herself moves on to tackle another childhood story, Alice in Wonderland. A new series? We shall see.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Meyer's series has sold well and achieved a degree of acclaim. This conclusion's cinder-block size should only drum up further interest.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)