Stars Above - A Review

Published - February 2016
Series - Lunar Chronicles Companion
Author - Marissa Meyer
Title - Stars Above
Format - ebook, hardcover
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This is a collection of 9 short stories set in the world of the Lunar Chronicles. In this collection, the reader gets to discover how Wolf became the solider he is, a young Carswell Thorne, how Cress ended up on the satellite, how Cinder arrived in New Beijing, Cinder and Kai's first meeting from his perspective, how Scarlet came to the farm, a wedding, and more. They are arranged in chronological order.

Story: The Keeper
Michelle Benoit, Scarlet's grandmother, finds herself the guardian of a young lunar girl. This girl is important, but she must be kept hidden. Then her young granddaughter Scarlet arrives. Michelle knows that she will protect both Scarlet and the young girl at all costs. But what will it be?

My Thoughts: This is actually a prequel to Scarlet. Time passes rather quickly in this story. Since I have never read the prequel story before, I really enjoyed this one. I loved getting more of Scarlet's background and seeing how Cinder received her cyborg parts. Rating: 4.5 stars

Story: Glitches
Cinder has arrived in New Beijing and now meets her new family. Cinder soon finds herself at odds with her new family, and then tragedy strikes when Linh Garan is stricken with the plague.

My Thoughts: Cinder's book is a retelling of Cinderella. This is a prequel story for it. It explains how the stepmother is left raising the girls. This glimpse into the eleven year old Cinder is both touching and rather sad. Touching because I know what she will become. Sad because of how she's treated. Rating: 4 stars

Story: The Queen's Army
Ze'ev Kesley is only 12 years old when he is chosen to become a part of the army that the queen is building. He's ripped away from his family and given injections that change him. He's forced to prove himself over and over.

My Thoughts: Wolf has been my favorite character since he first appeared. But this backstory of his shows just how cruel Levanna was. My heart hurt for the boy that was Ze'ev. But this story made me love him more. Rating: 5 stars

Story: Carswell's Guide to Being Lucky
Carswell Thorne is young. Very young. And he's already proven himself to be adept at getting what he wants. But is he really just trying to gain the attention of his parents?

My Thoughts: This one was rather humorous for me. I enjoyed getting to see the young Thorne. And to see, in part, how he became the man that falls for Cress. Cute. Definitely light-hearted, especially after reading Wolf's backstory. Rating: 4 stars

Story:After Sunshine Passes By
Crescent Moon is a shell. But she's very talented at anything related to a computer. She hopes to be of use to the queen, but doesn't like Sybil Mira. When Sybil realizes exactly how skilled Cress is at computer programming, she takes Cress to an isolated satellite. There Cress is left on her own.

My Thoughts: This was probably the shortest of all of the stories. And once again, it just shows how far those who work for the queen will go to ensure that the queen remains queen. But, at least this story explained how Cress came to the satellite. Rating: 5 stars

Story: The Princess and the Guard
Princess Winter is used to playing with the son of one of the palace guards. Jacin is Winter's best friend. But he's so much more than that. He's her protector. Sure, he's got his own dreams of being a doctor, but Princess Winter is more important. As Winter grows, she realizes what using her Lunar gift does, and wants nothing to do with it. Will Jacin stay beside her?

My Thoughts: While this couple is not my favorite, I have to admit that this story made me understand their relationship so much more. My heart broke for Winter as she realized the end result of not using her gift. But I actually came to really like Jacin for the way he stay with her. Rating: 4.5 stars

Story: The Little Android
Mech 6.0 is a mechanic working on a luxury ship. When the owner's son falls into a vat of oil, she dives in after him - at the expense of her own functionality. A new body later, Mec 6.0 is watching from a distance as the young man falls in love with the client's daughter. Yet he doesn't know how she feels.

My Thoughts: I loved this story. It's a retelling of the Little Mermaid, and is just beautiful. This is the only story that doesn't really feature any of the main characters. I've read the Han Christian Anderson fairy tale and it is heart breaking. This one had me in tears. Meyer stays true to the Anderson story and not the Disney version. Rating: 5 stars

Story: The Mechanic
Prince Kaito has a problem. His trusted android, Nanci, isn't working. He needs her. Because she has information about the missing princess Selene. Kai has heard of a mechanic name Linh Cinder who has a reputation of being able to fix just about anything, so since he's desperate, he leaves the palace and heads to the New Beijing market. He doesn't expect to discover that Linh Cinder is a cute teenage girl close to his age. He also doesn't realize how important that this mechanic is going to be in his own life.

My Thoughts: I loved seeing this from Kai's perspective. Because at first, I didn't like the dynamic between Kai and Cinder. It grew on me through the series, but I didn't like it at first. This though, showed that he liked her from the beginning. Of course, it gives glimpses of what they're going to mean to each other later on, but this first meeting, from his perspective was so sweet. It was like one of those awww moments. Rating: 5 stars

Story: Something Old, Something New
This is the wedding of the century. Cinder, Iko, Cress, and Thorne arrive at Scarlet's farm where they meet up with Kai, Winter, and Jacin. There has been a wedding being planned, but which couple will be the one to get married?  And will everything go off without a hitch considering that in attendance there will be an emperor, a princess, a queen, and more than a few Lunars?

My Thoughts: This is the story that I was by far the most excited about. It is the reason that I bought the book. I have to say, that this is the perfect conclusion to the series. The wedding was obviously going to be one of the four couples, but which one? I knew which couple I was wanting, but I'd have been happy with any of them. This story is set 2 years after Winter. And I have to say, that I LOVED it! I'm trying really hard to be spoiler free here, so I can only gush about how delightfully cute it is.
Rating: 5 stars

Overall thoughts: This is the perfect companion to the Lunar Chronicles. More so in my opinion than Fairest. While some of the stories were better than others, all were good.

I read this book for pure pleasure.

Overall rating: 4.67 stars, rounded up to 5 stars.