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Heroine

Linh Cinder, more commonly known as Cinder, is the heroine.

Plot Summary

This is basically a sci-fi twist on the Cinderella story. Cinder is a cyborg who has been taken in by a family that hates her, meets Prince Kai, the heir to the throne, and falls in love with him. The enemy is Queen Levana, the queen of the Lunars (a species of people living on the moon with special mind powers). Meanwhile, there is a plague going on. Lunars are immune and have the cure, so Prince Kai must do what Queen Levana wants, which pretty much means marrying her, in order to get the cure. Ultimately, this means Queen Levana will have power over both Earth and the Moon, which is what she wants. Cinder tries to stop this, and appears at the ball held when Queen Levana arrives in Earth to negotiate with Prince Kai, now the Emperor. Queen Levana sees her and recognizes that Cinder is Lunar, so she wants to kill Cinder. Eventually, after a big showdown, Cinder is put in jail but escapes. Throughout the book, there is mention of a Princess Selene who would be heir to the Lunar throne, but disappeared a while back. Only an idiot wouldn't realize Princess Selene is Cinder. Other notable characters include Iko, Cinder's android friend, Dr. Erland, a Lunar doctor that helps Cinder escape, and Peony, Cinder's stepsister who gets the plague and eventually dies.

Departure

Call to Adventure: Adri volunteers Cinder to be a test subject for the plague cures. 

Refusal of the Call: Cinder resists enough that they shut her down. 

Supernatural Aid: This isn't really a step. Dr. Erland will give her the cure for the plague, but that is much later. 

Crossing of the First Threshold: Cinder meets Dr. Erland for the first time. 

Belly of the Whale: Dr. Erland tells Cinder she is Lunar.

Initiation

Road of Trials: Cinder has a more metaphorical road of trials. Her trials are that she has to deal with the fact that she is Lunar. She turns this over several times in her mind, trying to accept it.

Meeting With the Goddess: Prince Kai meets up with Cinder and they walk and talk through the palace gardens. 

Woman as Temptress: In this case, Prince Kai is also the temptress when he asks Cinder to the ball. 

Atonement With the Father: Cinder meets Dr. Erland again, who sets things straight for her and gives her the cure for the plague. 

Apotheosis: There isn't really an apotheosis. You might argue it is when Cinder faints and wakes up to Dr. Erland, but that happens before the Atonement With the Father.

Ultimate Boon: Dr. Erland reveals to Cinder that she is not a shell, but does have and can do magic.

Return

Refusal of the Return: Despite Dr. Erland having told her not to go to the ball and to just go home, Cinder goes to the ball, refusing to return home.

Magic Flight: Queen Levana discovers she is Lunar and so Cinder tries to fight the Queen with her new Lunar abilities in a desperate attempt to escape the palace.

Rescue from Without: Prince Kai saves Cinder by telling Queen Levana not to kill her, and that he will deal with her later.

Crossing of the Return Threshold: Cinder goes to jail, no longer using her powers as a Lunar and instead following Earthly rules and standards.

Master of Two Worlds: This is not a stage.

Freedom to Live: Cinder escapes from jail and is now free to do whatever she wants, not having to worry anymore.

Final Thoughts

This project was overall fun and a great idea on your part. Sometimes I had to stretch things a bit to make them work. It doesn't seem to follow the Hero's Quest as much as, say, Harry Potter does. For one, Harry Potter has very clear 'worlds'. It is obvious which two worlds Harry is traveling between. With Cinder, the worlds were not quite as physical. I ended up making her two worlds that of being a Lunar and that of, well, not being a Lunar? One story I was thinking that would probably follow the monomyth is The Chronicles of Narnia. It involves two worlds, and I bet if you examined it, it would follow the Hero's Quest. I think a lot of fairy tales follow this pattern as well.