Stars Above (The Lunar Chronicles #4.5) by Marissa Meyer REVIEW

Book Details:

Pages: 369

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Released: February 2nd 2016

Review:

This was a bind up of nine stories—five of which have never before been published and they all took place in the Lunar Chronicles world! OMG, I AM CRYING! I loved the Lunar Chronicles so much, and I am going to miss it. I can't wait for Marissa Meyer's next series. She is such an amazing person in real life and a great author, and I would like to thank her for bringing me back to my childhood! Stars Above was a great book. Let me go in depth on each short story and my rating of each. The Keeper (3 Stars): The Keeper is a prequel to the Lunar Chronicles, showing a young Scarlet and how Princess Selene (Cinder) came into the care of Michelle Benoit scarlet's grandmother. It is pretty much Cinder's origin story and it was more background information. It was cool to read about how Cinder's cyborg transformation was pulled off. It was good and I am happy to have read it. Would recommend it! Glitches (4 Stars): Glitches is another prequel to Cinder, where we see the results of the plague play out, and the emotional toll it takes on Cinder. It takes place directly after The Keeper story. I loved seeing how Cinder dealt with her new surroundings and her new family. I also loved seeing how Adri treated her at the beginning. It was heartfelt and I just loved seeing Peony again. This was Very good. The Queens Army (5 Stars): The Queens Army is a prequel to Scarlet, we’re introduced to the army Queen Levana is building, and one soldier in particular (Wolf) who will do anything to keep from becoming the monster they want him to be. We follow Wolf as a child being brought into the Army. I liked Wolf as a character in the series but after reading this I felt like it brought so much more depth to his character and I love him more. His story was sad and beautifully written. I enjoyed reading this. YOU HAVE TO READ IT!! Carswell’s Guide to Being Lucky (4 Stars): This was about thirteen-year-old Carswell Thorne who has big plans involving a Rampion spaceship and a no-return trip out of Los Angeles. I related so much with Thorne especially when his dad was talking to him. I laughed and it was fun reading from Thorn's point of view. It also had a cute romance. This was Very good. After Sunshine Passes By (3 Stars): This was a prequel to Cress, and we see how a nine-year-old Cress ended up alone on a satellite, spying on Earth for Luna. Cress is so adorable and I felt bad for her at times. It is more background information. This was good and I am happy to have read it. The Princess and the Guard (3 Stars): In this prequel to Winter, we see a game called The Princess. This was about Princess Winter and palace guard Jacin. It was pretty long and it was more background information but it was enjoyable. I did feel that we heard most of it in Winter and that this just elaborated a little more. I am still happy to have read it. The Little Android (5 Stars): A retelling of Hans Christian Andersen’s “The Little Mermaid,” set in the world of The Lunar Chronicles. It doesn't tie into the other characters in the series very strongly, but as a retelling of The Little Mermaid, it is perfect! Meyer captured a feeling of longing SO WELL. This short story made me tear up a little. I went through so many emotions while reading this! I thought that this was about Iko at first but I was wrong and that is fine. "I assuming that she was the android the title refers to since it's said so often in the series that her personality chip has a glitch and she forgets she isn't human. So I went into this picturing Mech6.0 as Iko which made it that much more powerful for me. However, it's not about Iko (unless what we learned in Glitches is being contradicted). But this android is very similar to her and I really felt for her! Definitely tugged at my heartstrings." Trina wrote that and boy do I agree. YOU HAVE TO READ IT!! The Mechanic (5 Stars): In this prequel to Cinder, we see Kai and Cinder’s first meeting from Kai’s perspective. I always imagined how it would be from his perspective so I loved reading it. It was so cute and I chuckled at times. I don't want to say too much about it though unless you haven't read Cinder and IF YOU HAVEN'T GO READ IT!! YOU HAVE TO READ IT!! Something Old, Something New (5 Stars): In this epilogue to Winter, friends gather for the wedding of the century!! OMG, OMG, OMG!! that is all I said while reading this. This is what I needed after reading Winter when I went into a slump. This was so CUTE!! I loved reading about my ships again. AHH!! This was a fulfilling ending to the series! If you don't read any of the other stories, YOU MUST read this one! OMG! There is even a little twist at the end! This book definitely lives up to it's name...it deserves all the stars in the universe!!! IT WAS PERFECT! Sorry for rambling a little! Now I agree with Trina on another point she wrote so I will also be recommending this. SUGGESTED READING ORDER

In my opinion, the order of these short stories is completely wrong! The way they are numbered is not only chronologically incorrect, but doesn't flow well. If you are currently reading the series for the first time and want to know my opinion on the reading order for the novellas, this is the order I would recommend: 1. Cinder - Book 1. It all starts here. Many of the novellas occur before these events but you won't know any of the characters or world yet to care about those stories until you get into the story. 2. The Mechanic - This would fit well right after Cinder because it's a scene from Cinder from a different character's perspective. 3. The Little Android - I'm recommending this here because the only series character involved is Cinder and it takes place while she's still operating her booth at the beginning of the first book. 4. The Queen's Army - I suggest reading this before Scarlet because it will give you a much better understanding of the wolf soldiers and how they have been engineered. 5. Scarlet - Book 2 6. The Keeper - Chronologically, this story takes place before Scarlet, but it will spoil a major plot point in Scarlet and you won't have met the characters yet. I highly recommend reading it right after Scarlet because it really filled in some important details for me! 7. Glitches - This story could easily be read after Cinder, but it takes place immediately after The Keeper and they flow so well into each other that I would suggest reading them together! 8. After Sunshine Passes By - This is a very short story that tells how Cress was imprisoned in her satellite. Since we've previously met Cress in the main books and know she's on the satellite, I think this can be read before the book Cress. 9. Cress - Book 3. 10. Carswell's Guide To Being Lucky - This is Thorne's backstory. I recommend reading it after Cress because it deals with events that he refers to within Cress and reading it first could give away some of his character. 11. Fairest - Prequel novel. Technically, this book takes place before everything else, but it fits well here because you get a great intro to the Lunar city and we are about the spend the rest of the series in that location. Reading it earlier would also spoil some things relating to Levana and her family. 12. The Princess and the Guard - This takes place within and just after the timeline in Fairest. It fits perfectly to read it right before Winter because you've already met the character Winter in the book Cress and this story shows why she's gone crazy and how she got her scars. You also get to know Jacin a lot better here than in any of the main books. 13. Winter - Book 4. 14. Something Old, Something New - This is definitely an epilogue. The perfect ending to the series!

5 stars