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The Lunar Chronicles #1, 2, 3, 3.5, 4, 4.5
The Lunar Chronicles Box Set
The #1 New York Times-bestselling series that brought fans a complex and thrilling world of cyborgs and evil queens, available together for the first time in one beautiful boxed set
Once upon a time, in the future . . . .
The Lunar Chronicles are futuristic retellings of classic fairy tales. In Cinder, a teenage cyborg (half human, half machine) must deal with a wicked stepmother, start a rebellion against the evil Queen Levana, and decide how she feels about a handsome prince. As the series continues, Cinder forges alliances with Scarlet, a spaceship pilot who is determined to solve the mystery of a missing loved one with the help of a magnetic street fighter named Wolf; Cress, a computer hacker who is imprisoned by Queen Levana; and Winter, a princess who's in love with a commoner, and who discovers that Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress may hold the key to saving her kingdom and the world.
Follow Marissa Meyer's The Lunar Chronicles from the beginning with Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, Fairest: Levana’s Story, Stars Above (a collection of stories set in the Lunar Chronicles universe), and the epic conclusion, Winter.
Once upon a time, in the future . . . .
The Lunar Chronicles are futuristic retellings of classic fairy tales. In Cinder, a teenage cyborg (half human, half machine) must deal with a wicked stepmother, start a rebellion against the evil Queen Levana, and decide how she feels about a handsome prince. As the series continues, Cinder forges alliances with Scarlet, a spaceship pilot who is determined to solve the mystery of a missing loved one with the help of a magnetic street fighter named Wolf; Cress, a computer hacker who is imprisoned by Queen Levana; and Winter, a princess who's in love with a commoner, and who discovers that Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress may hold the key to saving her kingdom and the world.
Follow Marissa Meyer's The Lunar Chronicles from the beginning with Cinder, Scarlet, Cress, Fairest: Levana’s Story, Stars Above (a collection of stories set in the Lunar Chronicles universe), and the epic conclusion, Winter.
2977 pages, Paperback
Published November 10, 2015
18 people are currently reading
846 people want to read
About the author
Marissa Meyer
84 books132k followersI live in Tacoma, Washington, with my husband and beautiful twin daughters. Represented by Jill Grinberg. Learn more about me and my upcoming books at http://www.marissameyer.com.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
April 1, 2021
I have had the complete collection of The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer sitting on my shelf for so long, and I am so glad to have finally found the time to sit down and binge it. This series is so original with its take on fairytales in space, and I loved each of the main characters. The story also has a great ending, leaving it among my favourite books. If you have yet to read this series and are a fan of fairytales, badassery, and space, I would definitely recommend it!
Full Series Review on The Candid Cover
Full Series Review on The Candid Cover
April 7, 2024
Amazing series! Though it very keenly gives vibes of the most renowned Disney characters, this in itself could be its own universe that could very well expand on its own. It was overall very pleasant, fun and very entertaining with all these exciting characters, world-building as well as the classic evil-good trope-made a little bit more complex than what it generally seems. I'd definitely recommend this to anyone new to ya-fantasy.
January 11, 2021
| Read on Reader Fox |
We have the ability to love each other, no matter our differences. To help each other, no matter our weaknesses.
I first came across Cinder by Marissa Meyer in 2012 at a time when I’d been dejectedly hopping from disappointing book to disappointing book in search of a new read that I would actually enjoy. As it goes, I just wasn’t in the mood for another re-read of a book I actually liked. I couldn't quite tell you why this was the case, but I was just at a point where I couldn't bring myself to enjoy much of anything. As a result, I was searching for something to improve my mood in any place I could. And, if truth be told, I had no real intense desire to bother reading Cinder anyway.
Happenstance
Finding Cinder was wholly accidental. Scarlet was already out and, from a cursory look at the covers, my initial reaction was to assume the entire series would be just as disappointing as the last book I’d read. Though beautiful, those covers did look very much like they were advertising books to a 12-year-old market. I think it was the color.
If you’ve ever spent a lot of time reading middlegrade books, you’ll notice that color is something they’re pretty good with. So, while I did find it visually appealing to look at, I was ultimately comparing it to all those young reader books that I’d never actually fallen in love with.
My expectations for Cinder were pretty low. Granted, from the summary the book did sound fantastic. Cyborg Cinderella? Sign me up! However, I had misgivings. These were based largely on previous experiences finding a plethora of cool looking and sounding novels vastly disappointing. But I had nothing better to read and I was in need of some new material. So, I got both Cinder and Scarlet. And I was fully expecting to come away thinking they’d been okay reads, but were nothing amazing, or hating them entirely.
Then I read the book
It feels somewhat silly to say it, but Cinder was pretty life-changing for me. In the strangest of ways, it genuinely gave me new energy. I’d found the series at a time I’d been really struggling and, not to delve too deeply into the matter, been very depressed. I started writing again after reading this book, something I had been avoiding for quite some time. Sophomore year of college was hard for many reasons and Cinder made it a little easier. I’ve sometimes wondered if this explains why I feel so close to the series so many years later. Still, I don't think I'd still be rereading it at least once a year if that were the case. Besides, I’d only read the first two books.
Cinder begins with a young cyborg girl and a job. Readers are thrown into the desperate times of an earth ridden with plauges. The first, a very real and deadly disease. The other, tyrant Queen Levana of the moon. It's reasonable to assume, simply by knowing this is a Cinderella retelling, that you have a basis for where the plot will go. It doesn’t take long to figure out what the plot twist near the end of the book will be. However, knowing this does not detract once from how amazing the story, the characters, and Meyer’s superb writing truly is. And I remember being absolutely blown away the moment I learned that this was her debut novel.
Some people are simply amazing.
We soon meet Prince Kaito of the Eastern Commonwealth. His first act is to deposit his malfunctioning android unceremoniously atop cyborg Cinderella’s mechanic’s booth. He enters with a desperate and almost painfully idealistic hope, quickly marking him as someone precious. Despite the ever-present threat the Moon Queen presents to both his country and planet Earth, he is kind-hearted and optimistic. Admittedly, he is also quite naive.
A plague tears through the population of the planet, setting the scene for the dire situation the world is in. And naturally, no Cinderella story would be complete without the awful stepmother, stepsister, and quirky sidekick. We meat each one early on and they are all written beautifully.
Meyer blends her story together with perfect pacing, something I’ve noticed can be quite difficult for authors to achieve. Her characters are exceptionally developed and easy to love. Meyer’s story is so well written with characters so fantastic that the predictability of a fairy-tale retelling literally becomes completely irrelevant. The differences between the material that inspired the story and the final product to truly capture and amaze readers.
I’ve always loved this story. I couldn’t tell you which re-read this was for me, though I’m well into double digits at this point. Reading this book has always evoked positive feelings in me. In fact, I often feel that a part of me has been left behind when I turn the final page.
| Reader Fox Links |
We have the ability to love each other, no matter our differences. To help each other, no matter our weaknesses.
I first came across Cinder by Marissa Meyer in 2012 at a time when I’d been dejectedly hopping from disappointing book to disappointing book in search of a new read that I would actually enjoy. As it goes, I just wasn’t in the mood for another re-read of a book I actually liked. I couldn't quite tell you why this was the case, but I was just at a point where I couldn't bring myself to enjoy much of anything. As a result, I was searching for something to improve my mood in any place I could. And, if truth be told, I had no real intense desire to bother reading Cinder anyway.
Happenstance
Finding Cinder was wholly accidental. Scarlet was already out and, from a cursory look at the covers, my initial reaction was to assume the entire series would be just as disappointing as the last book I’d read. Though beautiful, those covers did look very much like they were advertising books to a 12-year-old market. I think it was the color.
If you’ve ever spent a lot of time reading middlegrade books, you’ll notice that color is something they’re pretty good with. So, while I did find it visually appealing to look at, I was ultimately comparing it to all those young reader books that I’d never actually fallen in love with.
My expectations for Cinder were pretty low. Granted, from the summary the book did sound fantastic. Cyborg Cinderella? Sign me up! However, I had misgivings. These were based largely on previous experiences finding a plethora of cool looking and sounding novels vastly disappointing. But I had nothing better to read and I was in need of some new material. So, I got both Cinder and Scarlet. And I was fully expecting to come away thinking they’d been okay reads, but were nothing amazing, or hating them entirely.
Then I read the book
It feels somewhat silly to say it, but Cinder was pretty life-changing for me. In the strangest of ways, it genuinely gave me new energy. I’d found the series at a time I’d been really struggling and, not to delve too deeply into the matter, been very depressed. I started writing again after reading this book, something I had been avoiding for quite some time. Sophomore year of college was hard for many reasons and Cinder made it a little easier. I’ve sometimes wondered if this explains why I feel so close to the series so many years later. Still, I don't think I'd still be rereading it at least once a year if that were the case. Besides, I’d only read the first two books.
Cinder begins with a young cyborg girl and a job. Readers are thrown into the desperate times of an earth ridden with plauges. The first, a very real and deadly disease. The other, tyrant Queen Levana of the moon. It's reasonable to assume, simply by knowing this is a Cinderella retelling, that you have a basis for where the plot will go. It doesn’t take long to figure out what the plot twist near the end of the book will be. However, knowing this does not detract once from how amazing the story, the characters, and Meyer’s superb writing truly is. And I remember being absolutely blown away the moment I learned that this was her debut novel.
Some people are simply amazing.
We soon meet Prince Kaito of the Eastern Commonwealth. His first act is to deposit his malfunctioning android unceremoniously atop cyborg Cinderella’s mechanic’s booth. He enters with a desperate and almost painfully idealistic hope, quickly marking him as someone precious. Despite the ever-present threat the Moon Queen presents to both his country and planet Earth, he is kind-hearted and optimistic. Admittedly, he is also quite naive.
A plague tears through the population of the planet, setting the scene for the dire situation the world is in. And naturally, no Cinderella story would be complete without the awful stepmother, stepsister, and quirky sidekick. We meat each one early on and they are all written beautifully.
Meyer blends her story together with perfect pacing, something I’ve noticed can be quite difficult for authors to achieve. Her characters are exceptionally developed and easy to love. Meyer’s story is so well written with characters so fantastic that the predictability of a fairy-tale retelling literally becomes completely irrelevant. The differences between the material that inspired the story and the final product to truly capture and amaze readers.
I’ve always loved this story. I couldn’t tell you which re-read this was for me, though I’m well into double digits at this point. Reading this book has always evoked positive feelings in me. In fact, I often feel that a part of me has been left behind when I turn the final page.
| Reader Fox Links |
April 20, 2018
I really loved these books. Okay, so they're not highbrow. But they are so darn much fun. And, you know me, I'm a character girl. I loved the characters. I'm kind of trepidatious of the whole retelling fairy tales thing, because it's often a bit, well, lazy. I like how Meyer used the fairy tales though. She really did do her own plotting, but she kind of hit the high notes of the fairy tales in rather clever ways. So when your tween starts hankering for some adventure and romance that will suck her (or him) right in, hand her these and steer clear of Twilight.
P.S. Cinder is actually the weakest of them, so keep going. Also, imagine all the characters are about 5 years older. They really all need to be about 5 years older.
P.S. Cinder is actually the weakest of them, so keep going. Also, imagine all the characters are about 5 years older. They really all need to be about 5 years older.
February 7, 2024
One of my all time favorite YA fantasy/ sci Fi reads ever. I keep trying to get my kids to read it. Fairy Tales mixes with science fiction it's an adventure that kept me wanting more. I got this gift set off Amazon when it was on sale and is on my re read list. This story has the best villain in Queen Levana both complex and tragic.
January 11, 2021
| Read on Reader Fox |
We have the ability to love each other, no matter our differences. To help each other, no matter our weaknesses.
I first came across Cinder by Marissa Meyer in 2012 at a time when I’d been dejectedly hopping from disappointing book to disappointing book in search of a new read that I would actually enjoy. As it goes, I just wasn’t in the mood for another re-read of a book I actually liked. I couldn't quite tell you why this was the case, but I was just at a point where I couldn't bring myself to enjoy much of anything. As a result, I was searching for something to improve my mood in any place I could. And, if truth be told, I had no real intense desire to bother reading Cinder anyway.
Happenstance
Finding Cinder was wholly accidental. Scarlet was already out and, from a cursory look at the covers, my initial reaction was to assume the entire series would be just as disappointing as the last book I’d read. Though beautiful, those covers did look very much like they were advertising books to a 12-year-old market. I think it was the color.
If you’ve ever spent a lot of time reading middlegrade books, you’ll notice that color is something they’re pretty good with. So, while I did find it visually appealing to look at, I was ultimately comparing it to all those young reader books that I’d never actually fallen in love with.
My expectations for Cinder were pretty low. Granted, from the summary the book did sound fantastic. Cyborg Cinderella? Sign me up! However, I had misgivings. These were based largely on previous experiences finding a plethora of cool looking and sounding novels vastly disappointing. But I had nothing better to read and I was in need of some new material. So, I got both Cinder and Scarlet. And I was fully expecting to come away thinking they’d been okay reads, but were nothing amazing, or hating them entirely.
Then I read the book
It feels somewhat silly to say it, but Cinder was pretty life-changing for me. In the strangest of ways, it genuinely gave me new energy. I’d found the series at a time I’d been really struggling and, not to delve too deeply into the matter, been very depressed. I started writing again after reading this book, something I had been avoiding for quite some time. Sophomore year of college was hard for many reasons and Cinder made it a little easier. I’ve sometimes wondered if this explains why I feel so close to the series so many years later. Still, I don't think I'd still be rereading it at least once a year if that were the case. Besides, I’d only read the first two books.
Cinder begins with a young cyborg girl and a job. Readers are thrown into the desperate times of an earth ridden with plauges. The first, a very real and deadly disease. The other, tyrant Queen Levana of the moon. It's reasonable to assume, simply by knowing this is a Cinderella retelling, that you have a basis for where the plot will go. It doesn’t take long to figure out what the plot twist near the end of the book will be. However, knowing this does not detract once from how amazing the story, the characters, and Meyer’s superb writing truly is. And I remember being absolutely blown away the moment I learned that this was her debut novel.
Some people are simply amazing.
We soon meet Prince Kaito of the Eastern Commonwealth. His first act is to deposit his malfunctioning android unceremoniously atop cyborg Cinderella’s mechanic’s booth. He enters with a desperate and almost painfully idealistic hope, quickly marking him as someone precious. Despite the ever-present threat the Moon Queen presents to both his country and planet Earth, he is kind-hearted and optimistic. Admittedly, he is also quite naive.
A plague tears through the population of the planet, setting the scene for the dire situation the world is in. And naturally, no Cinderella story would be complete without the awful stepmother, stepsister, and quirky sidekick. We meat each one early on and they are all written beautifully.
Meyer blends her story together with perfect pacing, something I’ve noticed can be quite difficult for authors to achieve. Her characters are exceptionally developed and easy to love. Meyer’s story is so well written with characters so fantastic that the predictability of a fairy-tale retelling literally becomes completely irrelevant. The differences between the material that inspired the story and the final product to truly capture and amaze readers.
I’ve always loved this story. I couldn’t tell you which re-read this was for me, though I’m well into double digits at this point. Reading this book has always evoked positive feelings in me. In fact, I often feel that a part of me has been left behind when I turn the final page.
| Reader Fox Links |
We have the ability to love each other, no matter our differences. To help each other, no matter our weaknesses.
I first came across Cinder by Marissa Meyer in 2012 at a time when I’d been dejectedly hopping from disappointing book to disappointing book in search of a new read that I would actually enjoy. As it goes, I just wasn’t in the mood for another re-read of a book I actually liked. I couldn't quite tell you why this was the case, but I was just at a point where I couldn't bring myself to enjoy much of anything. As a result, I was searching for something to improve my mood in any place I could. And, if truth be told, I had no real intense desire to bother reading Cinder anyway.
Happenstance
Finding Cinder was wholly accidental. Scarlet was already out and, from a cursory look at the covers, my initial reaction was to assume the entire series would be just as disappointing as the last book I’d read. Though beautiful, those covers did look very much like they were advertising books to a 12-year-old market. I think it was the color.
If you’ve ever spent a lot of time reading middlegrade books, you’ll notice that color is something they’re pretty good with. So, while I did find it visually appealing to look at, I was ultimately comparing it to all those young reader books that I’d never actually fallen in love with.
My expectations for Cinder were pretty low. Granted, from the summary the book did sound fantastic. Cyborg Cinderella? Sign me up! However, I had misgivings. These were based largely on previous experiences finding a plethora of cool looking and sounding novels vastly disappointing. But I had nothing better to read and I was in need of some new material. So, I got both Cinder and Scarlet. And I was fully expecting to come away thinking they’d been okay reads, but were nothing amazing, or hating them entirely.
Then I read the book
It feels somewhat silly to say it, but Cinder was pretty life-changing for me. In the strangest of ways, it genuinely gave me new energy. I’d found the series at a time I’d been really struggling and, not to delve too deeply into the matter, been very depressed. I started writing again after reading this book, something I had been avoiding for quite some time. Sophomore year of college was hard for many reasons and Cinder made it a little easier. I’ve sometimes wondered if this explains why I feel so close to the series so many years later. Still, I don't think I'd still be rereading it at least once a year if that were the case. Besides, I’d only read the first two books.
Cinder begins with a young cyborg girl and a job. Readers are thrown into the desperate times of an earth ridden with plauges. The first, a very real and deadly disease. The other, tyrant Queen Levana of the moon. It's reasonable to assume, simply by knowing this is a Cinderella retelling, that you have a basis for where the plot will go. It doesn’t take long to figure out what the plot twist near the end of the book will be. However, knowing this does not detract once from how amazing the story, the characters, and Meyer’s superb writing truly is. And I remember being absolutely blown away the moment I learned that this was her debut novel.
Some people are simply amazing.
We soon meet Prince Kaito of the Eastern Commonwealth. His first act is to deposit his malfunctioning android unceremoniously atop cyborg Cinderella’s mechanic’s booth. He enters with a desperate and almost painfully idealistic hope, quickly marking him as someone precious. Despite the ever-present threat the Moon Queen presents to both his country and planet Earth, he is kind-hearted and optimistic. Admittedly, he is also quite naive.
A plague tears through the population of the planet, setting the scene for the dire situation the world is in. And naturally, no Cinderella story would be complete without the awful stepmother, stepsister, and quirky sidekick. We meat each one early on and they are all written beautifully.
Meyer blends her story together with perfect pacing, something I’ve noticed can be quite difficult for authors to achieve. Her characters are exceptionally developed and easy to love. Meyer’s story is so well written with characters so fantastic that the predictability of a fairy-tale retelling literally becomes completely irrelevant. The differences between the material that inspired the story and the final product to truly capture and amaze readers.
I’ve always loved this story. I couldn’t tell you which re-read this was for me, though I’m well into double digits at this point. Reading this book has always evoked positive feelings in me. In fact, I often feel that a part of me has been left behind when I turn the final page.
| Reader Fox Links |
August 10, 2024
Individual reviews were left on each book's main page.
December 25, 2022
I love all of it the storyline, the characters,everything. The romance in this series is adorable the villain is amazing and the originality of it is incredible. Please if you ever get a chance to read this series, read it. This is the series that got me really excited about reading.
Read
May 14, 2024All I can say about this series is that it's incredible. While I was reading through, I kept flipping back to the original fairy tales in my head, and I always lit up when I realized what people/places/events corresponded to in those other stories. (I remember being especially delighted when I realized a certain main character, who I'd thought was disconnected, wound up corresponding to the blind guy in Rapunzel.) That's what makes this series so interesting: because we all know the original four fairy tales, any reader can make predictions right from the start about how the book will turn out. The thrill becomes seeing how Meyers put her own spin on it and surprises the reader with whole new concepts. I feel like The Lunar Chronicles really is an ideal picture of the twisted-fairytale subgenre: while it does stay true to the original plot and character scheme, it has plenty of creativity all on its own. And of course, the character arcs, worldbuilding and overall tone are all phenomenal. Highly recommended to anyone who doesn't mind blood!
December 29, 2024
I was starting to think ya just wasn't for me anymore. I started at least 3 young adult books this year and gave up on them, I thought it was me.
The lunar chronicles showed me that I just have to be more selective. I can't imagine never reading this.
It's so unique to me, I love how MM slowly worked up the characters and their pov's as the story went along. It felt so organic, and they each had their own voice.
These weren't two-dimensional characters.
The one thing I did miss a bit (but also not?) Is all these people get hurt, go through insanely traumatic experiences, parents and guardians die and I feel like that sometimes I just forgot about it 😅. Though for my mood, it was probably preferred
The lunar chronicles showed me that I just have to be more selective. I can't imagine never reading this.
It's so unique to me, I love how MM slowly worked up the characters and their pov's as the story went along. It felt so organic, and they each had their own voice.
These weren't two-dimensional characters.
The one thing I did miss a bit (but also not?) Is all these people get hurt, go through insanely traumatic experiences, parents and guardians die and I feel like that sometimes I just forgot about it 😅. Though for my mood, it was probably preferred
March 7, 2025
"oh my STARS. this series will be forever stuck in my head and in my heart."
The Lunar Chronicles series has my heart. They're the first books I've read since I stopped reading years ago, and I am so so happy I got to regain my book obsession with the help of these six lovely books. The story just drives you and takes you on this wonderful adventure. It was a whole rollercoaster of emotions that always keeps you at the edge of your seat. You will love each and every character and all their contrasting personalities, but also dislike some of them, of course. Marissa Meyer never disappoints. She is a genius and her work is just marvelous.
The Lunar Chronicles series has my heart. They're the first books I've read since I stopped reading years ago, and I am so so happy I got to regain my book obsession with the help of these six lovely books. The story just drives you and takes you on this wonderful adventure. It was a whole rollercoaster of emotions that always keeps you at the edge of your seat. You will love each and every character and all their contrasting personalities, but also dislike some of them, of course. Marissa Meyer never disappoints. She is a genius and her work is just marvelous.
June 25, 2025
I read this when I was very small.
I really liked how it was written, and as someone who doesn't read a lot of fantasy, I think these books were very well written and had a great plot.
mind u the focus on the romantic aspects is not as much as the focus on the fictional side as there is on the fantasy part.
I really liked how it was written, and as someone who doesn't read a lot of fantasy, I think these books were very well written and had a great plot.
mind u the focus on the romantic aspects is not as much as the focus on the fictional side as there is on the fantasy part.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 1, 2023
I recently reread these books for a sense of nostalgia, and found them as good as I remembered. Featuring female heroines, sci fi retellings of fairy tales, and modern takes on the meanings of those tales, this book series is perfect for any young adult book lover.
July 10, 2025
Bir yerde okuyana kadar prenseslerle alakasını aklıma getirememiştim.. Çok güzel yedirmiş yani. Muhteşem bir seri olduğunu düşünüyorum🤍 Okuması inanılmaz keyifli, karakterlerle bağ kurmamak imkansızdı. Iko ve Thorne✨💗 Keşke bir gün animasyonunu falan yapsalar :(
August 2, 2023
This was honestly probably my favorite series of all time. It was SO. GOOD.
October 1, 2023
My favorite book series!
September 3, 2024
Kudos to Marissa Meyer for creating an intriguing world with twists and turns, compelling politics and an extremely charming friend group that will always have a special place in my heart
Read
March 5, 2025I was dying to read them, but didn’t like them!!
October 14, 2025
One of the absolute best book series I've ever read! I named my son after the prince! lol This is a fabulous read!
January 6, 2019
I absolutely LOVE this series so much! It’s SO much fun and I totally recommend it! The characters and fantasy-filled storyline pull you in from the start, and it’s one wild ride you can’t help but binge read.
May 22, 2020
Favorite series
July 11, 2020
Bought this series not realizing it was true scifi. I could not put it down. I read through the entire series in less than a week. I loved it.
Want to read
January 11, 2024I loved this series it kept me wanting more
July 6, 2021
Loved this series! You will get absorbed with the characters. Cinder got me hooked and they just get better with each book.
August 22, 2021
Love that each book in this series is a sci fi interpretation of a classic fairy tale.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews