Book Review: Cinder and Ella

by Kelly Oram

Tweet Synopsis:

Ella is living a nightmare. Her best friend, Cinder, is a mystery. Her stepsisters are terrible. This modern Cinderella story has some twists you aren't expecting.

Why Did I Pick It Up:

I'm doing book reviews and this one came up as a choice ... I'm so glad I chose it even though I didn't like the cover (judging books by their covers and all that). 

The Good:

I love a good Cinderella story - really any fairy tale retelling is fun for me. From the first moment I was pulled into Ella's world in the same way that a teen movie pulls you in. Ella's life is a disaster from the moment of her accident. Her father and step-mom are oblivious, her step-sisters are truly terrible, no one seems to want to take a moment to really consider what it going on.

I really liked how the characters developed over the course of the book. Juliette is an especially good example of this. It starts while we believe that she hates Ella just like Ana does. But then we start to see that she is just more passive then Ana and isn't really saying anything. She slowly starts to warm up ... well I won't spoil it for you, but for a character nerd like me who really enjoys good character development, this was awesome. 

I also really liked how Ella isn't perfect, she screws up just as much as everyone else and her emotion seems real (at least, real for a fun YA book). 

All in all this is a super fun read. There are some holes in the details and the cheese factor might be a teensy bit high, but I loved it. It is a fun, feel good, fluff read that everyone needs every now and again. Read it and enjoy it, don't read it and analyze it (although, it can be argued that is what I'm doing right now). 

The Bad:
The total disregard for Ella and what she is going through by her family and the school staff made me so pissed! No one is really treated that badly ... but then Cinderella's pain isn't all that believable either. Her father and step-mom are so utterly oblivious to her pain and how everyone is treating her I refuse to believe that her father is a high-powered attorney and has the brains to go with that job. 

There is a certain amount of "cheese" that goes along with this book as well. If you love watching teen movies then you might not even notice the silly lines and bows that are put on story lines. However, be warned, this book ties itself up in a pretty little package. 

The Ugly: 
Ella's body is that badly burned and yet her face is still perfect? 

Ana gets to act that terribly and no one notices?

Ella's father is an attorney, but is too dumb to notice what is going on under his own roof?

There were some pretty big details that seemed to be glossed over in the story and I think the biggest one was that Ella's face and hair survived the burning car. Hair singes so easily, but her hair is super long and luxurious from the moment she leaves with her father. It has only been eight months, it can't have grown. 

Who will love this book? 

If you love teen movies and pretty much any show on the CW, you'll like this book. If you like fun YA romances like The Lux series (but this has nothing supernatural), then you'll like this book. If you just want some fun, fluff romance this is the book for you. 

How much did I like it? 8/10

Will I read more? The ending is pretty neat so even if there are more books written, I think I know all I need to know about Cinder and Ella.