Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

Cinder by Marissa Meyer

19 reviews

smileypers0n's review against another edition

adventurous funny medium-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Emotional abuse, Genocide, Ableism, Child death, Child abuse, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Xenophobia

Moderate: Blood, Car accident, Medical trauma, Slavery, Fire/Fire injury, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Self harm, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, and Gun violence

modernhobbitvibes's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

2.75

It wasn't BAD by any means, just a bit YA-y in places, and not my usual. Seeing the Cinderella adaptation bits was probably the best part.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pandemic/Epidemic, Terminal illness, and Death

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Classism, Medical trauma, Xenophobia, and Forced institutionalization

Classic "evil stepmother abusive behavior" that you see in most fairy tales. Labeled the anti-cyborg sentiments as "classism" because I'm not sure what else to call it.

parfait52's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

This book was a lot of fun! The world-building and characters were compelling, and the plot kept me entertained. It was super predictable, but that's what you get for reading a retelling. I really enjoyed the pacing of this book, as it felt like something important was happening on almost every page. At times, there was so much happening that I would forget about an element, and then it would pop back up in the plot. I look forward to see where all these plot points are going to go.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Body shaming, Car accident, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, Violence, Ableism, Gaslighting, Pandemic/Epidemic, Child death, Xenophobia, Medical content, Child abuse, Death, Gun violence, Bullying, Emotional abuse, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Blood, Confinement, Classism, Genocide, Colonisation, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Trafficking, War, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury

ariep's review

adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism

Moderate: Murder, Body shaming, Death of parent, Child abuse, Grief, Pandemic/Epidemic, Body horror, Classism, Gaslighting, Medical content, Medical trauma, Bullying, Emotional abuse, and Forced institutionalization

thumbeleia's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Classism, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Xenophobia, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Medical content, Body horror, Gaslighting, Child death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Slavery, Terminal illness, Violence, Vomit, War, Abandonment, Ableism, Blood, Bullying, and Domestic abuse

Moderate: Body shaming, Car accident, Colonisation, Deportation, Child abuse, Self harm, and Forced institutionalization

Minor: Hate crime, Alcohol, and Infertility

bean_7088's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

Cinderella but cyborg Sci-fi


I had some big gripes with how some of the characters were written. 
Kai was my biggest gripe. I just could not believe that a boy raised to be the next emperor would be so bad at politics. So bad at interacting within that political sphere. 
I also didn't quite understand the prejudice against cyborgs? I could understand if people were wary because cyborgs were stronger/smarter/faster whatever but that's not how it was portrayed and so it was a bit forced and weird. 
I hate the died literally seconds before they could be cured thing 🙄 
Even though I had gripes, and the ending was immediately predictable. I still want to read the rest of the series. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Pandemic/Epidemic, Emotional abuse, and Death

Little big of cyborg body horror and descriptions of previous injuries from fire Extremely emotionally/verbally abusive parent. Bigotry against cyborgs and other people Pandemic. Death of sibling.

brucethegirl's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

An amazing sci-fi retelling of your favorite fairy tales. Cinder opens on the android and human filled crowded streets of New Beijing. Cinder runs a robot repair stall in the over crowded marketplace. Quickly, the authorities swoop down on a woman who suddenly begins showing signs of the highly contagious and fully deadly disease rampaging across the land. In a single scene that post COVID made me check the publication date, the stage is set for an amazing retelling of Cinderella. With robots. 

I loved the way this book introduced the world that Meyer built. From the Prince, to Cinder's step-mother, to all the little details that unfolded as the story progressed. The world building here was stunning. I love this exact kind of slowly unveiled, never to overwhelming, sci-fi. It's high sci-fi without ever getting too wrapped up in over explaining. 

I will say there was nothing revolutionary here, even for when it was published. The twists and turns are almost entirely predictable between genre conventions and the original story itself. There's nothing here that will make you gasp or surprise you. I also didn't care for how the story ends. It really felt like there should have been some semblance of a closing scene. A cliff-hanger in the worst way because there's absolutely no closure to anything introduced in book 1. A personal pet peeve about series. 

All that said, however, it was a super fun book that I finished in one sitting. I am also very excited to start book 2 and hopefully complete the series. Should all books turn out to be as fun as this one, I'll be buying that box set I keep seeing. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Bullying

johns6ka's review against another edition

adventurous fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Terminal illness, Child death, Medical content, Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, Child abuse, War, Abandonment, and Death

luckykosmos's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

Listened on audiobook, and I'm honestly surprised I let this one pass by as a child. Some of the twists are obvious coming in, but it's still fun, and I loved how Meyer adapted aspects of these stories. However, the Eastern Federation felt a bit like cultural soup in some places.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Ableism and Child death

Minor: Forced institutionalization

lectricefeministe's review against another edition

dark reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Classism, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Forced institutionalization, Gaslighting, Body shaming, Car accident, Toxic relationship, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Medical content, and War