Wish I Had Read It Earlier - Cinder

Theme Friday


Cinder - The Lunar Chronicles #1 by Marissa Meyer

Excuse me while I wax lyrical about Cinder!!

I'm ashamed to admit I had a half read copy of Cinder on my kindle for ages before I managed to find the time to read the awesome US paperback edition I won online. I loved the futuristic retelling of Cinderella and oh Kai!
I cannot believe it took me this long to read Cinder #bookbloggershame 

More about Cinder: Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

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Buy links: Amazon US * Amazon UK
Marissa Meyer

Theme Friday: Let's Talk Classification & Ages

This post is pretty movie-centric but is also valid for books...

Fifty Shades of Grey has been rated as R movie (in America). I thought an R rating was for people of over 18 (like our 18 rating in England) but apparently not.
In my confusion I decided to look into ratings/classifications a bit more:
In America (from the Motion Picture Association of America website - there's also more info on CARA):
G - Nothing that would offend parents for viewing by young children. PG - Parents urged to give "Parental Guidance." May contain some material parents might not like for their young children. PG13 - Parents are urged to be cautious. Some material may be inappropriate for pre-teenagers. R - Contains some adult material. Parents are urged to learn more about the film before taking their young children with them. NC-17 - Clearly Adult. Children are not admitted.

In England (from the British Board of Film Classification website):
U - Suitable for all. PG - Parental guidance. 12A - Cinema release suitable for 12 years and over. 12 - Video release suitable for 12 years and over. 15 - Suitable only for 15 years and over. 18 - Suitable only for adults. R18 - Adult works for licence premises only.
In England Cineworld have Fifty Shades listed as an 18, whilst Odeon currently have it as TBC.
The BBFC website also describes an 18 movie as:

"There can be strong and detailed portrayals of sex at 18, including full nudity. There are no constraints on nudity in a non-sexual or educational context.

Very strong, crude and explicit sex references are permitted at 18.

An 18 film or video might also contain depictions of real sex, as long as the film or video is not a sex work."

And:

"Sex works are works whose primary purpose is sexual arousal or stimulation. Sex works containing only material which may be simulated are generally passed 18. Those containing clear images of real sex, strong fetish material, sexually explicit animated images, or other very strong sexual images will be confined to the R18 category. Material which is unacceptable in a sex work at R18 is also unacceptable in a sex work at 18."

I got to thinking how on earth can the production team turn a book like Fifty Shades into a R film and not have to cut a lot out? Then I realised: 
1. The more people who are able to watch = the potential for more money, thus deeming the movie a commercial hit.  2. It's being released for Valentine's Day and the producers are trying to sell the romantic aspects for 'date night' with a naughty twist. 3. Does it REALLY matter if a book which sold millions of copies based around sex and the taboo doesn't include all the sex scenes (quite frankly I'm glad the tampon scene isn't in the film!)?

This is also an issue with books!
I cannot tell you the amount of times I receive a book described as Young Adult which is really for much younger teens, or an adult book featuring characters who seem more like teens. I suppose the difference with books is that it's far easier to vet it. You can read the book before you give to your kids, or at least have a quick look at it. With movies you either have to trust the classification board, trust reviews and friends opinions, or watch the entire film before taking your children etc.
The other aspect with books is being mislead by writers, publishers, PR companies and even reviewers/bloggers etc. I have several blogger friends who only read adult romances and expect adult content. And others who are only interested in clean YA books who have been left horrified by certain smutty scenes appearing in YA stories. This can be a huge problem, but when it comes down to it, I suppose interpretation of the rules and guidelines is individual and we all have different ideas regarding content and labelling.

So on that note: Does it really matter what Fifty Shades of Grey has be classified as? Surely what matters is whether it's well made and keeps the book alive.
What do you think about movie and book classification? Does it matter? Would you ever let a rating discourage you from watching the movie or buying the book? 

Theme Friday - Sequels

How do you feel about book sequels?

Me? I'm kinda torn. If I loved the book and characters I'm always going to want more story, but there's the potential of the sequel ruining the first book. 
To write a sequel the author is going to have to create tension, drama, angst etc because something needs to happen - I'm always pretty protective of my favourite characters (yes I know it's the authors work and not mine but as a reader I always build an affinity with certain characters).

How do you feel about a sequel set after the HEA where the couple split up, then either stay apart or end up back together after time apart? 
In theory I'm all for it BUT only if said event was part of the authors original plan or if it makes sense for the plot. If the book was always intended to be part of series or if there is simply more story to be told then why not?
A good example is Samantha Towle's Storm series. I loved The Mighty Storm and although I really wanted more Tru and Jake, I was worried about more drama in a sequel (there's lots of drama already in TMS) but Towle did a fab job with Wethering The Storm - Plus it made sense to hear more about their life together after everything that happened in TMS.
What I don't personally like is when an author is compelled to flog a cash cow (yes I know authors need to make money but surely it should be about more than this?). Writing a sequel purely to make more money has the potential to be catastrophic. You run the risk of upsetting your readers and damaging your brand by introducing unnecessary tension and drama. But when it comes down to it the author knows what's best for their characters.
An author I love recently posted about how certain couples won't be getting another book because it would only be about cashing in and creating unnecessary problems - What do you guys think? I have HUGE respect for this decision!!


Do you have any books that are sacred to you and you don't think should ever get a sequel?
For me I tend to be most protective of classical books, plays and poems. I think this is because they've already stood the test of time and would be difficult to recreate. My favourite book/play is The Tempest by William Shakespeare. I've seen numerous versions of the play on stage and watched as many people draw from the story (yes Ikea advert I mean you) but it would take a LOT to convince me anybody could ever recreate the brilliance of Shakespeare. 

How about when another author decides to write a sequel to a different author's book?
Has anybody read Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys? It's not a sequel as such, but it takes inspiration from Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre and focuses on one of her characters.
Any there any books you'd love a sequel to?
I'm still holding out high hopes for a follow up to Stephenie Meyer's The Host - the idea of The Seeker has been around for ages and I really hope we get it sometime soon.
I'm a big fan of Cassandra Clare's The Mortal Instrument series (I actually enjoyed the movie) but was concerned when she decided to expand the trilogy to a six part series. BUT I needn't have worried because Clare is a goddess and I loved the final three books and how she ended the series with City of Heavenly Fire.


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