Legend

I found this book when I was in high school. Our library didn't carry any of the sequels, but I made a mental note to finish the series when I had the chance. Years later, as an adult, I have digital access to almost any book I can think of. This book inspired me as a teenager, and I'm proud to say that it's best quality, the complicated relationship between its leads, still holds up very well. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who likes YA, and especially to younger readers. It is an excellent introduction to dystopian fiction. Thank you Marie Lu for bringing this world to life!

Actual rating 3.5 stars.Told in alternating perspectives between solider June and rebel Day, both who have very high IQ and agility on either side of a war against the controlling faction of the Rebublic. I’m always wary of a militant style of a group in power, it usually signals control and deception. And that is exactly what we get in ‘Legend.’I wanted to spend more time growing an emotional bond with our two protagonists, but the story structure, and reveals are plotted exceptionally. June seems to be the one with the calculating and inquisitive mind, were Day feels like he’s just getting on with life with no real objective. Apart from his family, and found family as his motivation, I felt like I wanted a stronger drive for Day.I wasn’t sold on the romance – there was no build, no slow burn, it felt a bit insta-lovey. The plot also felt a bit simple and not quite completed – but this is a trilogy, but still, I felt like I needed more resolution to be completely satisfied with ‘Legend.’I guessed the gist of the plot very early on, but it took me until halfway through to fill in the details. I enjoyed the storyline, but I would have appreciated a few more surprises.Lu’s writing is simplistic and lends to a fast pace and easy immersion into the story. But I’m finding there is something about her writing style that doesn’t completely engage me like other novels in this genre. Now that I have a few titles of hers under my belt, I think it has something to do with the world building and fleshing out the emotional profile of her characters... they are interesting but not necessarily engaging for me.There was something a little off with the way this world is set up – I can’t quite place my finger on it, that there wasn’t the amount of believability with it... maybe because it was such a narrow view snapshot of the world that you don’t get the see the diversity, the machinations, and the nuances through the first-person narrative of June and Day. Maybe that will grow in the next two novels.We find a lot of clues or plot points planted for the following two books in this series, and really, by the end of ‘Legend’ I felt like the story had only just begun. I did have some high expectations for ‘Legend’ based on how highly my friends recommended this book, but it did not quite reach my lofty anticipation. A great read, but didn’t wow my socks off, but I’d still recommend ‘Legend.’ Looking forward to continuing the story with 'Prodigy' next.

I guess you would call this series science fiction. It seemed to me like primarily a political thriller in many ways, with a touch of romance and more than a touch of mystery.The setting of Legend is a world sometime in the future. Massive flooding and other disasters have occurred worldwide (in the second book of the series it is mentioned that the polar ice cap over Antarctica has melted, and I assume this means the north polar ice cap has also melted). Large parts of most of our current continents are underwater leaving the population of the earth squeezed into much smaller landmasses. A hundred or so years after this process began, the world’s population does not appear to be any smaller than the current population despite nearly frantic measures to kill off incredibly large numbers of people.Due to the shrunken land area, the former United States split into two countries when the people in the western states rose up to seal their borders against people trying to move there from the east where the flooding was much worse. So now there is The Republic of America, which consists of mostly the western part of the former United States and still has more or less recognizable states (although there is now only one Dakota), and another country they refer to as the Colonies, which is what is left of the eastern United States. The two countries are at war and have been so for so long that the younger people don’t even remember that they were once part of the same country.Legend is almost exclusively concerned with the Republic, and nearly all of its action takes place on Los Angeles. Everything else is just background. But it is kind of a looming, hulking background. The government of the Republic is absolutely rife with unsavory secrets that they are keeping from their own people.As in all countries everywhere, past, present or future, real or imagined, society is divided into two groups – the rich and powerful, and everybody else. June Iparis is from the rich and powerful segment of society. Daniel Altan Wing, commonly known as Day, is from the poor sectors of town. Since being left for dead after experiments in a government facility, Day has been living as a thief and something of a terrorist on the outskirts of society.Then one day the need to get plague medicine for his brother forces Day to attempt a robbery in the government’s main research hospital. Soldiers attempt to stop him, and, in self-defense, Day throws a knife at June’s brother, hitting him in the shoulder. But when June is summoned to the scene, she finds her brother dead. Her brother’s commanding officer pulls her out of school early and assigns her to a place in the squad her brother had been commanding. Her first assignment is to capture Day.

Rating: 4 starsI know I'm late to the game, but Marie Lu does not disappoint!Legend is about a dystopian version of the Western U.S. called the Republic of the United States which is warring against the Colonies, a neighboring country. It’s got a very severe wealth gap where those who are deemed smart get the best opportunities and careers while those who are seen as average get lesser jobs. And those who fail the Trial, the test deciding all this? Well they’re carted off and killed by the government, but then again, not everyone knows that. To top all that off, the Republic is run rampant with plague, and it's been that way for years. So that’s the world Day and June, the main characters are living in, on two very different ends of the spectrum. Day being an outlaw who is suppose to be dead and June being the smarty pants in an elite family. By a twist of fate they are pitted against each other following the murder of June’s brother.Day and June share the narration equally, and by equally I mean they have relatively the same amount of coverage in the book, and tend to have very similar thought processes. They are unique in some ways, but that's mostly just through knowledge rather than personality. Still the protagonists are relatable and admirable characters. There are limitations to this style of narration such as the lack of the minor characters' development. Tess, Day's best friend and side kick, is such an important aspect of Day's life and I really know nothing about her except how the two met. When Marie Lu is giving details on the characters though, she seamlessly integrates the information into the narration, switching from present circumstances to past events. With the minimal amount of information given and unique narrations, there’s room for a lot more development later in the series.This novel, although holding true to classic/cliché dystopian archetypes, does provide a unique take on the surrounding details. Yes, the novel is the classic "the government is bad and there's a rebel trying to make things better." Day isn't actively trying to overthrow the government, he's just trying to help his family and others in the poor neighborhoods. *Spoiler: And yes the government is bad, but the real kicker isn't obvious at first; the kicker being that the government is infecting its own citizens with the plague.* Despite the archetypes, the characters and plot are entirely enjoyable and fast paced. There are some areas that are predictable simply because of the genre and previous experience, but even then Lu spices things up. *Spoiler: Like the fact that the Republic is bad, but then June and the reader both find out just how off its rocker the government really is.*Matching the lack of character development, Legend also lacks in its world development. The government is bad and is doing all these bad things, but why? The readers don't get any information, not even the fake idealized version the government is suppose to tell the citizens. People just accept their lives. But then again it seems natural, the characters, the world, that it isn't completely ridiculous to think it could happen in the future.To offset the negatives, I think the ability of Marie Lu to write action sequences is astounding. The vivid imagery and narration really bring the reader excitement and put them on the edge of their seat. Day and June both are kick-ass fighters and geniuses who are so relatable you have a hard time not thinking that you yourself could be like them. When the novel first begins, it jumps right into the action. there’s no long biography or background given. You learn more about the world the more you read, but the action is real from the start. And the cliffhanger ending really sets up the entire second book, which I'm sure will continue the roller coaster ride we’re already on.I have enjoyed my fair share of dystopian novels and they are all fairly similar. This was surprisingly original in many aspects while still holding true to some archetypes, but i feel as though the rest of the books will continue on with very unoriginal dystopian plot points. For example, one outcome I am sure will come is that after Day and June join the Colonies they realize that both governments are corrupt and/or just bad in general. I'm 100% positive that's going to happen, but I do know the books should only get better from here. The character development will probably increase in the following books, and the readers will feel connected to them.Overall this book was great! There were plot holes and minor underdevelopment issues, but the plot was original, the characters were great, and the action was supreme. Plus, I hear they're making a movie out of this, so we'll see how that goes.Happy Reading!Jewels

Legend was a really great book! I had already heard great things about it so I was expecting to enjoy it, and I was not disappointed. Its also been a while since I’ve read a good dystopian book so I’m glad I picked up this one.The story follows main characters June and Day in a futuristic United States known as the Republic. When a child is of age in the Republic, they go through their trial, which is essentially a test to see where they will be placed in society. If you do well, you are given a well-paying job and you have a nice, cushy life. If you do poorly or even fail, things don’t go quite so well. Early on, we learn that June not only passed her trial, but she got a perfect score of 1500. She is considered a prodigy and is a dedicated soldier to the Republic. Day, on the other hand, failed his trial and should have been killed but instead is now considered a criminal of the republic. Day’s family lives in one of the poorer sectors of the Republic, and we also learn that there is a plague that ravages these areas. Told through alternating points of view between June and Day, Lu creates an exciting adventure with elements of conspiracy, betrayal, friendship and romance.Once I got over the fact that Day is only fifteen but he is the most notorious criminal in the Republic, I really enjoyed this book. I know its YA so the protagonists have to be a little younger, but fifteen just seemed a little too young to have such a well-known reputation. That being said, while Legend is certainly an exciting story, the alternating points of view really make it special. We intimately get to know June and Day as characters even before they meet. June and Day were very different characters, both in their nature and upbringing, so it was refreshing to learn about them in each chapter. June is a strong female heroine, but it took me a while to connect with her. She comes across as very cold and calculating, but I liked her more as the story went on. Her interactions with Day and her brother Metias (mostly through memories) helped me warm up to her. In contrast, Day is nothing but sweet throughout the entire story. Ironically, he is supposed to be this notorious criminal, but we quickly learn that he is only concerned with keeping his family safe.I thought June’s character development throughout the story was excellent. June was raised as a soldier of the Republic, so I’m glad she didn’t immediately get on board with some of the ‘rebel’ ideas. She was raised by her older brother Metias, who was her only family and they loved each other very much. June’s discovery of her government’s deceit and corruption is a slow-burning realization, and her actions are very believable.While I thoroughly enjoyed each of the main characters, Lu also created well-developed supporting characters. Even though June’s brother Metias dies very early, I mourned his death along with June. We also get to know him through June’s memories, and it was obvious that he loved June and took care of her. Tess, John and Thomas were also great characters and all added to the story in their own way.There is some romance in this story, but I was very happy to see that the romance does not dominate the story. Yes, June and Day are attracted to each other, but I did not feel as if their moments took away from the greater story. They have the beginnings of a relationship and I found it very sweet!There were some familiar YA tropes in Legend, such as the corrupted government and prodigy children but I didn’t really mind these because the story was still engaging. I overall thoroughly enjoyed Legend. While it had a great plot and world-building, the most unique aspect of this book was the alternating point of view between June and Day! I would definitely recommend and I will be starting Prodigy and Champion soon :)