Legend - Marie Lu

Legend

And so we come to another book that has spent a long time On Reserve. 

Marie Lu's Legend has floated around Hunger Games comparison lists since its release in 2011. The setting is future West Coast, although, little clues throughout the novel suggest that major flooding may have resulted in a changed coastline. The main characters are June and Day, 15 year old prodigies whose intelligence has led them down very different paths.

June has soared through her education and becomes the youngest member of the Republic's military force. Day, on the other hand, has been led to believe he is a failure and narrowly escaped the death that comes to the unwanted. He lives as a fugitive, fighting against the Republic in small ways reminiscent of Robin Hood.

Interestingly, Lu has said she came up with the concept for the book from Les Misérables. She wanted to play with the idea of the hunter and the hunted in a more modern setting. Knowing that adds an interesting dynamic to the story.

See - reading author bio's and prologues helps you get more from a book! My high school English teacher always said that if it was between the two covers, it was meant to be read. I have benefited so much from that advice over the years. If only I could get my husband to adopt the same belief. 

I may be inviting the wrath of YA lovers everywhere by saying this, but I thought Legend was fine. Just fine; not great.  

To me, the characters were predictable and unexciting. The plot, while quick-paced and full of twists, never grabbed me in the way the best books do. I absolutely understand why this book has been popular. It is a great addition to the library of any dystopian fanatic. Still, it left a lot to be desired. I think this is yet another "casualty" of my intentional effort to read better books. Books like Legend simply don't hold the same appeal any more.

Pages: 320

Date Completed: January 25, 2014

Have you read Legend? Is the rest of the series worth my time?