The audiobook was easy to listen to, and I loved the voices of the narrators who brought Luna and Henry's characters to life. I enjoyed the whole plot. At first, I thought the main characters' relationship developed too quickly, but then I realized it’s based on a Cinderella story. That made me smile and think, "Oh, that makes sense." It's part of the book's plot.

This book was absolutely adorable! I loved that it hit all of the high points of a Cinderella retelling! Since I’m not a gamer I wasn’t sure if I would “get it all”, but it wasn’t anything over my head at all! Cinderella is my favorite fairytale and I love the theme of bravery and kindness. Those themes were so beautifully displayed throughout the book! I honestly enjoyed this so much and was grinning the whole time. The narrators both did a great job!

Cinder Luna is a sweet, clean, retelling of Cinderella. Luna and Henry. It is a fun, instant attraction story with hidden identities and the added bonus of video games! I am not a gamer, but I appreciate the light brought to the profession and the focus on the artistic nature. Luna is a tender-hearted young woman who is looking for a way to break into the game designer field. She gives of herself, sometimes to her detriment, but it is this giving nature that first draws Henry to Luna. It is a definitely a modern fairytale so be prepared for some unrealistic moments. I enjoy getting lost in a sweet fairytale, so this was part of the charm, but if you are looking for a realistic romcom, this may not be your thing. I did really enjoy the focus on family and caring for one another.
I especially enjoyed listening to the audiobook narrated by Renee Dorian and Joe Jameson.
I received a complimentary copy from the publisher via NetGalley and all opinions expressed are solely my own, freely given.

Loved this modern-day Cinderella retelling! All the little Cinderella details were so fun to try and find and tie together! The videogame theme added a fun layer to the storyline. Luna and Henry's communication, perspective, and compatibility were so fun to watch unfold! Finally, the narrators were perfection and made the story even better!!

Pretty cute Cinderella retelling.

The story is quick and easy to follow. There's a small town with (mostly) sweet residents, great friends and family who are there to help get the couple together, and a kissing-only romance.

The audiobook features two narrators and was a nice listen.

I voluntarily read and reviewed this book. All opinions are my own. Thank you to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the copy.

As a gamer girl, i loved this book! super cute!

Publisher's summary
Is Luna destined for a happily ever after, or is it game over for her love life?
Move to the adorable town of Brookhaven? Check.
Get bumped to first class on the train and meet the most gorgeous, considerate man of my life? Check.
Find a job in video game animation and a cozy apartment of my own? Not so much.
So maybe things in Brookhaven aren’t quite as idyllic as my friend promised. My one saving grace is playing video games every evening with my best online friend, MidKnight. Plus, helping him create his own video game helps me escape the drudgery of my demanding twin bosses and a dusty, cramped apartment.
It’s not long before our relationship turns from friendly to… a lot more personal.
Things get complicated when I run into the man from the train again. He couldn’t forget about me either, and he’s been searching for me. I can’t deny the intense physical attraction we have, but I feel like my heart is being pulled in two directions. But there are things that both guys don’t know about me.
Being brave isn’t my strong suit, but maybe it’s time to find some courage.

Thanks to NetGalley & Dreamscape Media for the ALC of this book!

Cinder Luna
By: Marie Soleil
Narrated by: Renee Dorian, Joe Jameson
Series: Once Upon a RomCom, Book 1
Publisher: Dreamscape Media
Release date: 05-27-24

Fun, modernized retelling of Cinderella! Henry was a perfect prince and his voice was lovely. Luna was too meek and afraid in my opinion, but that tracks with the character of Cinderella. I'm not much of a gamer, but the premise of the game they create sounded like a game I'd enjoy playing, or watching others play because the graphics were described so beautifully. All the side characters were great and I absolutely loved all the Easter eggs for the upcoming books in the series!

It's not a bad story, but it is poorly told. It's really, REALLY not a Cinderella retelling. It's You've Got Mail with a bunch of Disney references thrown in. It feels less like a retelling of a fairy tale, and more like a fanfiction of a specific version (or couple of versions, I see you too Ever After). How can you call it a Cinderella retelling when the main character has a happy, loving, supportive family? It's like you missed the entire point of the original.

The stakes are low, like super low, below the basement low; but they're treated as if they are high stakes which is so weird. At no point is our girl in danger of being homeless. She has family and friends who love her and would help her out but she CHOOSES struggle for no real reason.

It started out cute, and if the author had let the story just be what it wanted to be instead of cramming it into a Cinderella slipper that clearly did not fit, it might have worked. It's clear from the huge cast of side characters with fairy tale names and oddly detailed back stories that the author is planning a whole series of retellings. I only hope that for future the author reads actual source material and does some thinking about the story rather than just basing it off her favourite film version.

The narrators weren't bad, but they also weren't great and I'm not sure that dual narration was the right choice for this. It might have served the fairytale theme better to have had it completely read as a narration by Aunt Agatha

A slow burn romance that starts off with meeting over a video game and chatting for years to meeting as strangers on a train. Then fall for each other again without realizing they already know each other. It's like a square romance 😂..

Cinder Luna was a delightful fairytale retelling with a twist around video game playing and creation. I liked Luna and Henry's meet-cute - setting them up to connect in person. I also love that these two have a long-time friendship they can build with their online personas. I personally really enjoy it when characters fall for each other in two circumstances, when they don't know they are falling for each other in both places. It is even more sweet when they finally get together since they feel the complicated feelings of enjoying both relationships and then finding out they are the SAME relationship.

Of course, you will spend at least 50% of the book yelling at Luna just to tell the truth (clearly, she will have to eventually when she put the game animation on her resume), and there are some unrealistic pieces (she could recode a whole game in a weekend?), but overall I found the book to be a fun romp, the characters likable, and the story compelling enough to make me want to keep listening.

It is nice how the author integrated some commentary into the story about how women are treated in the online gaming world.

What a sweet romance! I enjoyed the trope behind it and the story as it unfolded. It was a great read and I adore Luna and how she finally came into her own with help from her friends and family. I'd love to visit BOTH bakeries, but macarons are my favorite! A perfect weekend read!

𝐂𝐈𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑 𝐋𝐔𝐍𝐀
𝙾𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚄𝚙𝚘𝚗 𝚊 𝚁𝚘𝚖𝚌𝚘𝚖 #𝟷
ʀᴀᴛɪɴɢ: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
ᴄʟᴏꜱᴇᴅ ᴅᴏᴏʀ ʀᴏᴍᴀɴᴄᴇ

🎧 Listening via #netgalley
⏳ 06𝗛 56𝗠
🎙️ Renee Dorian & Joe Jameson

💙𝙲𝚒𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚊 𝚁𝚎𝚝𝚎𝚕𝚕𝚒𝚗𝚐
💙𝚂𝚎𝚌𝚛𝚎𝚝 𝙸𝚍𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚝𝚢
💙𝙵𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝙻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚜
💙𝚂𝚕𝚘𝚠 𝙱𝚞𝚛𝚗

Luna is a struggling aspiring game animator, she was lucky enough to get bumped into a first-class train ride where she met a handsome stranger with a British accent. They had an unforgettable kiss but went separate ways without learning each other names. When they meet again under different circumstances, things get a bit complicated…

This was such a fun one to listen to! I love retelling of any kind, and this was an adorable version of modern Cinderella retelling. Luna is such a sweet girl, love to see a gamer girl as cinderella, this is definitely a fresh idea. And Henry! Give me a hunky British guy anytime, and they guaranteed to always sweep me off my feet, and with that narration? Lord, I adore this. If you love a Cinderella retelling, this is definitely not one to be missed!
In this book, we have:
✅Prince Charming ➡️ Video Gaming CEO
✅Evil Stepsister ➡️ Evil Twin Landlord
✅Heroine’s Best Friend ➡️ Fairy Godmother
✅Vintage Christian Louboutin ➡️ Glass Slipper

🎧𝐀𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐨𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰🎧
Renee and Joe are new to me narrators, and I enjoy their performance immensely! Joe has a very settled British accent, as I’m a bit particular in that department, this subtlety is much appreciated. And Renee has such a sweet voice that match Luna’s personality, just how I imagine it. This was such a treat to listen to, highly recommend the audio version!

✨ 𝙸 𝚛𝚎𝚌𝚎𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚍 𝚊𝚗 𝚊𝚌𝚌𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚝𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚊𝚞𝚍𝚒𝚘𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 DREAMSCAPE MEDIA 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚊𝚖 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠 𝚟𝚘𝚕𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚛𝚒𝚕𝚢 ✨

This was a super sweet Cinderella retelling.

Luna has spent the last few years living at her parent's house to help out after her dad got severely injured in a car accident. After her best friend gets engaged and asks her to move closer so they can plan the wedding, Luna decides it's time and she moves to Brookhaven. On the train to her new life, she meets Henry who she feels an instant connection with. But she doesn't divulge her secret: she LOVES video games. She plays online every night with her close friend MidKnight. As time goes on, she gets closer to each guy. While juggling both of them, she's also working nonstop for twin bosses who dump everything on her and living in a tiny apartment. Then, Henry invites Luna to a ball for his company, but MidKnight will also be there. What is a girl to do?

This is a clean romance. Only some hand holding and a little kissing. No alcohol or cussing.

“I kissed a stranger. I don’t even know his name. For all I know, he could be a serial killer. I just kissed a serial killer!"

What I liked about the book:
Luna and Henry were so cute! Their personalities fit very well together.
When Henry first sees Luna again, she's coming out of a "pumpkin" carriage, and I just thought that whole scene was silly, in a fun way. And then the goats and her lost shoe? I cackled.
Luna was always nice, and she tried to always look on the bright side. She didn't take anything or anyone for granted, and she continuously tried to help where she could. This does lead her to get walked on by certain people, but she was also able to stand up for herself in the end. I like when a female main character isn't always a door mat.
The story had a lot of cheesy moments, but that's to be expected of a fairytale retelling romcom. It landed more on the endearing side than the cringy side.
Chickaletta! Paw Patrol was such a huge thing in our house for 6 years, so as soon as I saw that name, I just KNEW.
The family gaming scene was great. Each of the sibling's personalities shown through, and I enjoyed how the entire scene played out.
Devil Cat. Need I say more?

What I didn't like about the book:
I understand Madeleine not wanting to live with Mason until they're married, but why didn't Luna move in to his extra room? I think it was weird he never offered and it was never mentioned. Madeleine really just left Luna out to dry with no place to live. (Upon looking at other reviews, I'm assuming it's because she won't live with *any* guy until she's married? I don't know. It makes sense for the characters, but it should have been addressed in story so I'm not thinking Mason is a meanie for not offering.)
Some stuff went down with Lilly, Henry's sister, and Adam, Henry's brother, but we as readers don't know what because it's "not his story to tell". Okay... then why mention it? Why was it included in this plot? Henry had to leave at a pivotal moment of the story to deal with this, yet we're left wondering what the heck. I know it's probably hinting at the next stories in the series (Adam's is next as you'll discover in the epilogue of this book) but it irked me that it was mentioned and made into this whole big thing, but then we're told nothing. We hear the aftermath of what the characters are now doing, but we don't know what happened and why. I feel like that could have been handled better.

Honestly, if I had known this was a clean romance, I probably wouldn't have read it. So I'm kind of glad I went in blind, because I did enjoy the book. And I'll more than likely read the rest of the series as well.

Right from the opening page Marie Soleil had me falling hard for this book!! Cinder Luna came on my radar last year when I saw a bunch of bookstagram friends raving about it, I put it on my TBR. I loved this fresh take on a Cinderella retelling. Marie did a fantastic job of keeping enough of the fairytale elements that always make me love the story while adding fun modern twists. I adored the way the hidden identity part came into play thru the characters both being online gamers. The narrators did a superb job bringing Luna and Henry to life in this dual POV narrative. I loved the main characters so much, they were like able and relatable. Luna is so kind, and compassionate toward others, truly selfless. Henry is charming, and passionate but like any “Prince” is struggling to make his mark on the world while holding up to family expectation. And what I love most of all in these kinds of stories is when the “Prince” finds his girl and they both bring out the best in each other and their strengths are made that much stronger. All the stars for this one my friends!! If you love lighthearted, feel-good, sweet rom-coms with a fairytale atmosphere, then give this story a try.

Thank you @netgalley @dreamscapemedia for the advanced copy of the book to listen to and review. All thoughts are my own.

Cute and a little bit cheesy Cinderella retelling. Overall, the story felt a bit more YA than adult. I can see some readers really loving this story.

The narrators were good and expressive.

Thank you NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for the audio arc.

This is a fun modern romance Love the duel romance ;) where your falling for the online and real life person. This is a fun quick read and the twist on Cinderella was a nice ad on for the story.

Gamer girl Luna wants to help create games and when your online friend starts knowing you more than you meant them to.

I will say her family and the game nights were the best part of the story.

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

This was my first read by Marie and I will definitely get to her backlist after enjoying this book. I think a lot of Cinderella retellings stick too closely to the original and I liked that this book captures the spirit but in a unique way. The gaming storyline was fresh and new - certainly not something we are used to seeing in romcoms but it worked. While the connection on the train felt instant, I liked how the relationship progressed between Henry and Luna. The conflict felt believable and was resolved nicely. I also am impressed when an author can clearly set up future books but without having that completely pull you out of the main story.

Dual point of view is my favorite and I thought both narrators represented the characters well. The audio version published today and indefinitely recommend this for audiobook lovers of retellings and closed door romcoms.

I enjoyed this book on audio with an advanced copy from NetGalley. The thoughts and opinions in this review are my own.

Content Notes: Kisses

I had had the opportunity to read Cinder Luna's ebook a few months ago and now that the story is told has been incredible! The narrators are the right ones for the two PoVs, especially the narrator who gives voice to Luna, she is just as one imagines her reading how she tells the story.

This is a highly recommended story if you like love stories that start with a crush, have a secret identity, I like how Luna tells the story when she connects the dots and discovers who Henry is and much more if you are familiar with the world of video games.

I really enjoyed hearing this beautiful story. Many thanks to Dreamscape Media for the audiobook.

Cinder Luna was such a breath of fresh air and a charming, delightful tale that I devoured!

The premise was original and so much fun and I loved the tie-ins to Cinderella. The story was unique while having cute nods to the fairytale.

One of my favorite tropes is hidden identity with a “You’ve Got Mail” aspect to it. I loved that in this book! The hidden identity worked super well because of online gaming safety and the desire Luna had to keep her gender and name private from her gamer friends. I am not a gamer, but I found this component of the story very intriguing.

I loved the narrators! The narration felt very natural and just like a friend was telling me a story. I’m very glad I was able to get the audio but I also hopped into the ebook a bit when I wasn’t listening.

This was my first book by the author. Her books have been on my TBR for a while and I was impressed with her writing and excited to read more from her.

This is one of my new favorite Cinderella retelling. My other favorite I like to watch out for is Beauty and the Beast and this series is going to have both! I CANNOT WAIT for the next book in the series: Isabelle and the Beast. The bonus epilogue with the story setup was AMAZING!

🔥: Kisses

Tropes:
Modern day Cinderella retelling
Opposites attract
Hidden identities
Gamer friends
Romcom
Cinnamon roll hero
Small town

3⭐️
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