I'm starting this week's Friday Reads with the first book in a series I've been wanting to read for a while, but that I had decided I wouldn't read until the last book came out. It still took me a while to get to it, but during my vacation time in Feb I finally had time to binge read the whole series!
This one is part of both the Dystopian Reading Challenge 2014 as well as the 2014 Series Challenge! I'm doing very well with the Dystopian challenge, as I knew I would, since I love reading dystopians, and I'm doing ok with my Series challenge. I have completed some series I didn't have in my original list, but I've also completed some I had there, so it's progress!
Legend by Marie Lu
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I had been pushing back reading Legend until I could binge read the whole series. I had read great reviews from fellow bloggers, but I had also read that the ending of Prodigy was if not a cliffhanger a bit of a big emotional hurdle. I'm glad I did wait but I'm even happier that I've read the books because I love dystopias and this is a great dystopian series!
Legend is written in dual point of view, and both POVs are complete opposites in the beginning. June is the Republic's darling, a young prodigy that has completed her military career and is ready to start in a position according to her status of privilege. Day is the Republic's most wanted criminal and he's always trying to help his family and do what he can to disrupt the government that he feels is unfair.
We get enough world building that shows us the kind of place the Republic is. A dictatoship of sorts, with one strong leader and a military that controls the lives of its citizens. Everything is controlled by the government, the housing systems, the media, the food. And the Republic is at war with the Colonies, its next door neighbour country (and other half of the former United States of America). Since we are in the Republic we also just get their edited version of history, and have very few knowledge of what happened to lead to the current situation.
The action truly starts when June's brother, Methias, is assassinated and Day is the main and only suspect. June is tasked with finding and apprehending him by infiltrating the lower class neighbourhoods.
Both POVs are very distinctive and show us the story more completely than it would have been otherwise. June is analytical and she's more focused on her anger because she's lost all the family she had. Day is trying to protect her family and save his brother's life but he doesn't stop being a kind boy that wants to help those in need, even if he's the most wanted criminal in his city & country. We see both June and Day changing while interacting with each other and by the end of the book, their perspective has certainly shifted and they are not the people they were at the start.
With plenty of action, character development and a fast narrative, this was a fantastic dystopian book and a very strong first book! Well deserved 4 stars!
View all my reviews
This one is part of both the Dystopian Reading Challenge 2014 as well as the 2014 Series Challenge! I'm doing very well with the Dystopian challenge, as I knew I would, since I love reading dystopians, and I'm doing ok with my Series challenge. I have completed some series I didn't have in my original list, but I've also completed some I had there, so it's progress!
Legend by Marie LuMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I had been pushing back reading Legend until I could binge read the whole series. I had read great reviews from fellow bloggers, but I had also read that the ending of Prodigy was if not a cliffhanger a bit of a big emotional hurdle. I'm glad I did wait but I'm even happier that I've read the books because I love dystopias and this is a great dystopian series!
Legend is written in dual point of view, and both POVs are complete opposites in the beginning. June is the Republic's darling, a young prodigy that has completed her military career and is ready to start in a position according to her status of privilege. Day is the Republic's most wanted criminal and he's always trying to help his family and do what he can to disrupt the government that he feels is unfair.
We get enough world building that shows us the kind of place the Republic is. A dictatoship of sorts, with one strong leader and a military that controls the lives of its citizens. Everything is controlled by the government, the housing systems, the media, the food. And the Republic is at war with the Colonies, its next door neighbour country (and other half of the former United States of America). Since we are in the Republic we also just get their edited version of history, and have very few knowledge of what happened to lead to the current situation.
The action truly starts when June's brother, Methias, is assassinated and Day is the main and only suspect. June is tasked with finding and apprehending him by infiltrating the lower class neighbourhoods.
Both POVs are very distinctive and show us the story more completely than it would have been otherwise. June is analytical and she's more focused on her anger because she's lost all the family she had. Day is trying to protect her family and save his brother's life but he doesn't stop being a kind boy that wants to help those in need, even if he's the most wanted criminal in his city & country. We see both June and Day changing while interacting with each other and by the end of the book, their perspective has certainly shifted and they are not the people they were at the start.
With plenty of action, character development and a fast narrative, this was a fantastic dystopian book and a very strong first book! Well deserved 4 stars!
View all my reviews
