Another Cinderella Story and Some Other News

Recently (as in two days recently), I bought Cinder by Marissa Meyer.  At first, I discarded this book off my list of wants because I wasn't into the whole dystopian, in-the-future stuff.  But then, not only did I hear wonderful praise about this book, but I found a lovely and descriptive review about this book.  And that's when I found out that this book was a rendition of a famous fairy tail, and I just so happen to be a sucker for retellings of our favorite childhood tales.  I don't know why, but I love them.  Why, might you ask, had I not made the connection earlier on that it was a retelling of Cinderella?  Honestly, don't ask me.  I have no idea.  Not even to kid around, I just discovered last night that Cinder kind of sounded like Cinderella.  Sad, isn't it?
To the review!
If I were to rate this book, giving it some stars, I'd say it was a 4.9, to be precise.  The reason why is because I just really am not a fan of hovercrafts and metal extremities.  But, that's the only reason why I believe this book is a 4.9.  Other than that, this book was perfect.
So, there's this girl--16 years old--who lives with her evil stepmother and her daughters, Pearl and Peony.  I have to say, Adri, the mother, was a lady I did not like, and that's how the author wanted things to go, and I believed her evilness.  Adri finds ways throughout the book to nitpick at poor Cinder--the fact that she's a cyborg (Oh, did I forget to mention Cinder's part robot?) or how all unfortunate happenings are Cinder's fault.  Cinder, not once, does she retaliate with screaming and yelling and she doesn't complain about it through the book, which I liked because I hate when that's all the main character does.  *Cough* New Moon *Cough*.  Not that I can name a specific book or anything....
And then there's Prince Kai.  He's a young, gorgeous one.  I believe he's only nineteen.  But, he's got a burden to bear; his father is plagued by the infamous letumosis that's been wheedling its way into society all over the world.  And not only that, but he also has to worry about the terribly frightening Levana, the Lunar queen, that rules the Lunar people on the moon.  Cool, right?  Moon and all....  Not really.  She's one scary momma you do not want to mess with under an circumstances.  But back to Kai.  He's the swoon-worthy boy in this book.  He's got the money, the looks, and the charm.
And then there's Cinder.  She's the most talented mechanic in all of New Beijing.  She lives a mostly normal life, besides her annoyingly evil stepmother.  And as aforementioned, she is a cyborg, and in this book, people don't take too kindly to those who have metal body parts.  I felt really bad for her throughout the book, though.  All she's ever wanted was to be normal, but her mother and her cyborg-ness never allowed that to happen.  She wears gloves because she knows people will look at her differently if they knew she wasn't all human.  Who wouldn't feel bad for her?
So how do the lovely Prince Kai and Cinder cross paths?  All I will say is that there's a market day, and the Prince needs something mechanical fixed.  See where it's going?
I'll keep my promise and not spoil anything, but I will say that all the twists and turns that happened in this book gave me headaches as my adrenaline spiked with the events that happened through the book.  That does not happen a lot.  The only other book that was capable of giving me a pesky headache was The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting.  (Another great read, btw!)  I can't wait to learn what happens next in the next installment of the Lunar Chronicles.

So here's the other news I was talking about.  I worked my way over to the scant book selection Walmart had to offer, as I always do because I'm drawn to them like a magnet to a fridge.  And--bam!--The Hunger Games was everywhere.  Posters, books, displays, the whole shebang.  And as I skimmed the shelves (where I happened to find Cinder), I came across this tiny, tiny book called......
The Hunger Pains!

Okay, I had heard about The Hunger Pains vaguely here and there as I surfed the web, scrounging for other books to read.  I didn't take it seriously and even watched the 'Official Video' out of curiosity, and I died laughing.  What I didn't know was that it was actually a book!  In book form! 
Sorry to bore any of you out there who have not read The Hunger Games or does not like it, but I thought I'd share it.
And here's something to laugh at:

Have fun storming the castle! (An inspirational tidbit from an awesome teacher of mine.)