“‘Even in the future, there are damsels in distress.. ’ Cress, having risked everything to warn Cinder about Queen Levana's evil plan, has a slight problem. She's been imprisoned on a satellite since childhood and has 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 involving Cinder, Captain Thorne, Scarlet and Wolf goes awry, the group is separated. Cress finally has her freedom, but it comes at a higher 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.”
What is the book about?
Cress has lived on a satellite since childhood, alone with no one except her netscreens and her own imagination for company. She risked everything to let Cinder know about Queen Levana's plans and now has a huge problem. She has been ordered to track down the ship that Cinder and her allies are aboard for the queen. Although the tracking down was the easiest part, now the problem is that she doesn't want to give her mistress the information to give to Levana. So now she is risking her life further to keep Cinder and her friends safe from the people who want to kill them. However, when she is finally able to make contact with the Rampion, Cinder and her friends agree to rescue her and for once Cress thinks she is safe. But the rescue doesn't exactly go according to plan and the group gets separated. Now Queen Levana thinks she has won and won't let anything stop her marriage to Emperor Kai, but she didn't factor in the cyborg and her allies who will stop at nothing to protect Earth and Luna from her tyranny.
What were your initial thoughts on the book?
After finishing Scarlet I was really excited to continue reading and start the third book of this series that has definitely exceeded my expectations so far. In a way I feel like the end of Scarlet was the start of the true series, the true plot and battle against Levana. I was really excited to finally see Cinder face her and to embrace her true Lunar self. I started reading Cress almost instantly after Scarlet as I was really keen to continue the story and to find out what would happen next. I was quite confident that I would enjoy reading the book and that it would be just as good as the previous 2 books in this series. I honestly, now having read this book and the 2 previous ones, don't even know how I could have waited so long with the books just gathering dust on my shelf. Once I read the blurb I was even more intrigued as I was wondering how the group would get separated and how they would ever find themselves back together. Soon I started reading and I think this was the first book of the series where I was able to really get into it from the start, without having to read a few chapters before I really started enjoying it.
Who was your favourite character and why?
My favourite character was probably once again Thorne or possibly even Cress. I really liked Thorne for the same reasons as I liked him in the previous book: his humour, charisma and just how entertaining and confident he seemed to be. Even though it might have been annoying to the other characters that he didn't really appear to take things seriously and was always just trying to keep things light and fun, I really liked that about him. However I liked him even more in this book as it was clear that he wasn't just all the stuff that I said above and that he wasn't always confident and sure of himself. He had doubts and was clearly just keeping up an act so that the other characters wouldn't panic even more. He was trying so hard to lighten the mood not only for his own benefit so that his thoughts about how he didn't actually know anything didn't catch up to him but also for his friends who worried far too much. Cress was a really interesting character and I really liked her mainly because of her imagination. She was constantly trying to trick herself into thinking she was somewhere else, doing something else, so that she wouldn't let all her worries take over, kind of like her own coping mechanism like Thorne's joking personality. I also liked how she reminded me of myself because I often find myself lost in my own little world, building up worlds in my head. I really liked both these characters and I definitely liked them together, even though not much happened (though there is a whole book left so I have hope).
What was your favourite part of the book and why?
I honestly can't pick just one favourite part in this book as it's really just the whole book together that I enjoyed and not just one specific part. The whole vibe was just so great and I found that I loved everything about it. There wasn't one specific part of the book that stood out to me and it wouldn't be fair of me to single out just one part. Also there wasn't really many happy parts in the book as the characters were separated and constantly worrying about having to find themselves back together. I did really enjoy the time that Cinder spent in that village in Africa though, as I loved how the people living there helped her even though they knew the risks. However, the way that ended wasn't the most lovely thing so I can't really say that it was my favourite part. Honestly the whole book was just great and I can't wait to read the next one and enjoy it just as much.
What was your overall impression of the book?
Overall, Cress was a really great book and I really enjoyed reading every part of it. One thing that I really enjoyed was the link to the original Rapunzel throughout the whole novel. Some parts didn't quite seem obvious to me at first as I was initially comparing it to the Disney version, however soon the blindness started to make sense when I thought of the original version of the fairy tale. The long hair that was then cut, the fact that Cress was locked in a satellite all alone, the name Thorne and even the name Cress (another leafy vegetable like Rapunzel, which I think means lettuce is some language). It was such genius on the authors part and I am honestly in love with her approach to the fairy tale retellings throughout this whole series. Another thing that I really enjoyed was that we finally got to see parts of Luna (though the circumstances weren't exactly the best) and we also got to be introduced to the 4th girl who would be part of the final book of the series. This is the first time I knew who the book title was referring to in advance (though I suppose I have known since the first book) and it made me even more excited to read the next and final book in this series. I am so excited to finish the series and to see what happens at the end and I can't wait to read Winter.
Which book did you like better, the first, the second or the third?
All 3 of the books were absolutely amazing and I really enjoyed reading them, however I would probably say that so far Cress is my favourite book. One of the main reasons is that this book is partly based on the fairy tale of Rapunzel, which is my absolute favourite story and so obviously I have a huge soft spot for this book. Every link to the story made me so excited and made me love the book even more. Initially I wasn't quite sure what to expect or which was the fairy tale that would show up in the book as the title didn't showcase it like with the previous books but I was pleasantly surprised and gradually grew to really love it. Another thing I loved about the book that made it stand out more than the previous books was the fact that the main plan, the plan to finally face Levana and save everyone, was starting. It made me so excited as I was going to get to see Cinder embracing her future and her true identity and also see every character work together to save the world. Cress had everything I had loved about the previous books (the short chapters and the fairy tale elements) but it also just had more that I enjoyed. So far the books have just been getting better so I just can't wait to see what Winter is like.
Would you recommend this book?
I recommend reading Cress but obviously after reading Cinder and Scarlet, the previous 2 books in the series. It is a great book for those who enjoy some romance, dystopian fiction and fairy tale retellings, with a shrinking of save the world vibes.
Summarise the book in one sentence. (Verdict)
Another perfect novel with a whirlwind of an adventure and great romance to make you squeal.
Reviewed by Jimena Gutierrez Reviriego
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