Cinder and Ella - Melissa Lemon - Blog Tour Review

After their father’s disappearance, Cinder leaves home for a servant job at the castle. But it isn’t long before her sister Ella is brought to the castle herself—the most dangerous place in all the kingdom for both her and Cinder. Cinder and Ella is a Cinderella story like no other and one you'll never forget.

Synopsis taken from goodreads.

Title: Cinder and Ella

Author: Melissa Lemon

Genre: Young Adult, Fairytale Retelling

Publisher: Bonneville Books

Publication Date: November 8, 2011

Format: E-galley

Source: Received from netgalley, and Cedar Fort Publishing. Many thanks goes to Netgalley and Cedar Fort Publishing for sending me a copy of this book for review. I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review. 

Tour: Cedar Fort Publishing tour for Cinder and Ella. 

My rating: 3.5/5

Cinder and Ella are left to take care of their family when their father disappears. Their mother focuses solely on work, and their other two sisters rely on them for everything. When Cinder heads to the castle to obtain a job, she doesn't realize that she is heading into dangerous territory. Ella soon is brought to the castle as well, however she has been brought under false pretenses and she will have to beware the evil prince. Will she be able to save herself and those she loves from the dangers that lurk around them? 

Cinder and Ella is a captivating fairytale retelling of the classic story, Cinderella. The only resemblance to the original tale are the characters names, Cinder and Ella. Cinder and Ella are both similar in personality, however they retain their individuality. Cinder is a sweet girl who will do anything for anyone without complaint. Ella is more spunky, and she stands up for herself and Cinder. Their home life is challenging to say the least, and it seems like Cinder is more of a doormat, until she leaves to find work at the castle. Ella on the other hand doesn't stand for all of the abuse that she and Cinder are put through by their siblings. 

It was interesting to see how the element of trees and their lives were intertwined. I just wish we could have had more background on that part of the story, or had that aspect fleshed out a bit more. I'm interested in how the story will evolve as Melissa Lemon has mentioned that the story isn't finished, and that she is working on a follow-up novel to Cinder and Ella. I'm intrigued to find out where she'll take the story next.

All in all, this is definitely a cute read, and I'd recommend it for tweens and teens alike. This isn't your everyday Cinderella story, and though there is a prince, he's not Prince Charming. Cinder and Ella have their work cut out for them if they want to work or live in the castle. Honorable knights with bumbling personalities will entice a laugh or two out of the reader as well. Although this was a bit predictable, it was still a cute read. 

Blog Tour: Cinder and Ella - Melissa Lemon - Cover Post

I was so excited when Corrine suggested doing a post about the cover of Cinder and Ella. Why didn’t I think of that? The cover of Cinder and Ella is AMAZING!

One of the things I was asked to send to my publishing company after signing the contract was a character description page that included some cover ideas. Well, it seems to me that a lot of covers lately have characters on them, so that was my first suggestion. I only asked for them to make sure Ella was in the background since she is always overlooked. I can understand why they didn’t go with this option. I tried drawing a picture of Cinder once myself, and it wasn’t pretty. Finding a model would have been difficult, and let’s face it, photoshopped hair isn’t flattering on anyone.

The next suggestion was to do something with the trees or the castle. For those of you who haven’t read Cinder and Ella, and who haven’t noticed the cover, I will tell you that trees are important in this book. Every person is connected to a tree. And sometimes that connection can mean life or death. In the book, you learn a little bit about the king’s tree, Weston’s tree, Ella’s tree and the prince’s tree, while the trees of some characters will not be introduced until the sequel. (Wait, did I say sequel?) And these trees, well, sometimes they glow, especially when they are about to do something really cool.

My acquisitions editor sent me the first draft of the cover and said I could make comments and suggestions. I loved the initial design and that they had decided to do something with the trees. I did make a few suggestions and the final cover turned out stunning. I have pulled the two up to compare them and while the design stayed true, the changes they did make brought a brightness and clarity that really make the cover shine. Give a shout out to the designers who worked on the cover!

To me, the cover shows us a few things. First, the glowing tree represents the legend of the trees. The grove of trees behind the glowing tree represents Ella, since she wanders through forests for most of the book. And third, the castle represents Cinder, since that’s where she is dwelling throughout. Put the three of those things together, and you have not only an awesome cover, but a truly incredible story.

Thank you for being here today, Melissa! The cover IS absolutely gorgeous!! Love the insight you have given us about it! 

Melissa can be found on her blog, on facebook, on goodreads, or on twitter.

You can follow along with the "Cinder and Ella" tour here.