Book Review: Champion by Marie Lu

Title: Champion Series: Legend #3 Author: Marie Lu Published: January, 2014 by Putnam Books for Young Readers (Amazon / Goodreads) Synopsis: Injured and on the run, it has been seven days since June and Day barely escaped Los Angeles and the Republic with their lives.  Day is believed dead having lost his own brother to an execution squad who thought they were assassinating him.  June is now the Republic's most wanted traitor.  Desperate for help, they turn to the Patriots - a vigilante rebel group sworn to bring down the Republic. But can they trust them or have they unwittingly become pawns in the most terrifying of political games?

The final book in a trilogy can sometimes be a let down. It doesn't wrap things up, it bites off more that it can chew, or it just doesn't stack up to the others. But I am so happy to say that Champion was the perfect ending to this trilogy and a fantastic read. Marie Lu once again expanded the world, developed the characters, and wrap everything up with with a thrilling plot that had me engaged from beginning to end.

I'm such a fan of the characters in this series. Both June and Day are complex and interesting protagonists and I've really enjoyed their character arcs throughout the series. They have both really developed into amazing heroes that care for others and their countries. But at the same time they are far from perfect. Despite learning their lessons in Legend and Prodigy they still make mistakes and have to live with the consequences. But in this book they finally felt like heroes and I was totally rooting for them. I was also rooting for them in terms of the romance. I didn't ship it at all until this book. Maybe that's because it was just a fantastic slow burn, maybe it was because they spent so much time apart in this one, or maybe because I just didn't buy into until the high stakes of Champion but I totally ship it now.

And once again I loved Marie Lu's narrative style and the alternating perspectives. You are once again able to get inside both June and Day's heads. We get to know them better and on a personal level and see them through the other person's eyes. It gives you a well-rounded and more complex look at the characters. It also made the book more complex and interesting, the characters spent a lot of time in different places so the book had a more well-rounded look at the world of this book. It also created a really fantastic dramatic irony in the book. There was so much mystery which I loved. 

That mystery also extended to the plot of the book. With every passing book there has been more and more exciting action.  Champion was so thrilling. The stakes were higher and it felt like an epic end of the world as we know it kind of book. It was life or death. I was on the edge of my seat and I definitely cruised through this book much faster than the first two books. What I loved most was the fact that it took little hints from the first book and brought them back in with moments from the second book. It all came full-circle and wrapped up with an interesting and thrilling finale. Despite that I did found the pacing a bit problematic. It was like a roller coaster ride. There was tons of thrilling moments but then it would slow down. There were some ups and downs with some lulls at times but on the whole I absolutely loved the plot of this book.

And once again I loved the fact that much of the plot was about the dystopian world and the political intrigue. Each book we get to see more and more of the world and more of the politics involved. In Prodigy we got to see the Colonies and how different they are from the Republic, here in Champion that all came to a head. It was even more about who had the people's best interests in mind. We also got to see more of the larger global world which really cool and there was some really interesting stuff in Antarctica. But my favorite part was June's exploration of the politics in the Republic. I love the exploration of power and control in dystopian novels and we saw so much of that in Champion from all different angles. I really enjoyed the world and how it was developed in Champion.

On the whole Champion was conclusion of an interesting dystopian series. The characters continued to work their way into my heart, the plot was thrilling and full of action, and the world-building was complex and full of political intrigue. A great read and a great series.

I give Champion by Marie Lu 9 out of 10

Buy/Borrow/Bypass: Buy/Borrow. This is far from my favorite dystopian series but it is really enjoyable and fans of the genre should definitely check this book out. I loved June and Day, I'm kind of sad to see them go. It's a thrilling series with a fantastic world.

Have you read Champion? What did you think? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

Book Review: Prodigy by Marie Lu

Title: Prodigy Series: Legend #2 Author: Marie Lu Published: January, 2013 by Putnam Books for Young Readers (Amazon / Goodreads) Synopsis: Injured and on the run, it has been seven days since June and Day barely escaped Los Angeles and the Republic with their lives.  Day is believed dead having lost his own brother to an execution squad who thought they were assassinating him.  June is now the Republic's most wanted traitor.  Desperate for help, they turn to the Patriots - a vigilante rebel group sworn to bring down the Republic. But can they trust them or have they unwittingly become pawns in the most terrifying of political games?

Prodigy was such a great sequel to a dystopia series. Prodigy is what Mockingjay should have been, what Insurgent could have been, and what The Scorch Trials would have been. Marie Lu took the established world and characters, made the stakes higher and then threw in that political intrigue I was missing in Legend. All this combined to create a captivating and action-packed read.

I loved the characters in Legend and that didn't change in Prodigy. Both June and Day are complex and interesting protagonists. Despite being heroes to many people, they are far from perfect. In Prodigy they have to live with the consequences of their actions in Legend. Things are not easy for either June or Day in this book but they can handle anything that you throw at them. In this book their personality traits both positive and negative felt much more similar. They are both so trusting, in fact they are too trusting. But they are both also caring, intelligent, and resourceful. My one main criticism is that they just don't seem fifteen. I read a lot of YA and I am used to young protagonists, I am used to characters that grow up fast and are trust with a lot of responsibility at a young age. But here for some reason I just found myself wondering why on Earth anyone would have a fifteen year old doing, saying, or thinking that. It made it hard for me to suspend disbelief at times. That also extended into the romance of the book. As much as I didn't necessarily ship it in Legend, the addition of love triangles in Prodigy made things even more frustrating when it came to romance. But on the whole I love June and Day together, I think they make an excellent team and they are fantastic characters.

Liking those characters together and apart made Marie Lu's narrative style work so well. I say it with every book I read from her but she does alternating perspectives so perfectly. You are able to get inside both June and Day's heads so we are not only able to get to know them on a more personal level but we are also able to see them through the other person's eyes which makes things really interesting. But it also made for a unique narrative. In this book the main characters spend just as much time in the same place as they do in different places but it never feels odd. When one character drops the story the other one will pick it up. And despite often ending one person's portion on a twist or cliffhanger it never felt like a sudden or confusing. It all flowed in a really great narrative.

A narrative that grew and built to a thrilling and exciting conclusion. I think that was one of the biggest changes for me when it came to Prodigy that made me enjoy it so much more. It was much more thrilling. Legend had some pretty good action scenes but they never felt very high stakes. Here they felt like it was life or death. I was definitely on the edge of my seat with Prodigy. A few scenes in particular were incredibly thrilling and when everything really picked up I just kept reading and readig having getten through much more of the book than I thought. The pacing too was much better in this book. The characters got to the ending at the same time and it made the book much more mysterious and captivating. I actually didn't predict the twist in this one and made things all the more interesting and exciting.

But that thrilling and exciting plot was really mostly about the dystopian world. Like most dystopian sequels it took us out into the larger world. Here that expanded focus really worked. We got to see more of the Republic, including their capital in Denver, and we even got to visit the Colonies. In the first book the world was so basic. I wanted more about what was happening and why, which is exactly what I got here. There were so many different things happening in Legend but with Prodigy while the world grew the focus seemed to narrow. It was about the dichotomy between the haves and have nots. It was about the elites and their control of the people. It was all about the fight between the Rebels and the Republic. It's all about that political intrigue. I love the exploration of power and control in dystopian novels but here it felt more about who had the people's best interests in mind. It was such an interesting and refreshing take on the power concept I like in my novels and I really enjoyed it.

On the whole Prodigy was a great sequel and a huge improvement to a series I am now really interested to see how it develops. The characters continued to work their way into my heart, the plot was more thrilling, and the world-building was bigger and more interesting.

I give Prodigy by Marie Lu 9 out of 10

Buy/Borrow/Bypass: Buy/Borrow. This is definitely more like it. Fans of dystopia should definitely check out this book. If you liked the first one at all then be ready for more of June and Day, more exploration of the world, and more thrilling action.

Have you read Prodigy? What did you think? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!

Book Review: Legend by Marie Lu

Title: Legend Series: Legend #1 Author: Marie Lu Published: November 2011 by Putnam Juvenile (Penguin Group) (Amazon / Goodreads) Synopsis: What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.  From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths—until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

Last November I read my first Marie Lu book, The Young Elites, and was blown away by her writing, world building, and characterizations. I knew I needed to read more of her books so I couldn't wait to start this series that I know a lot of people love. And while I did find Legend to be an enjoyable read, I didn't love it. I thought it had great characters and an interesting narrative style but I found the plot to be a little basic and I wanted more world-building.

Probably my favorite thing about Legend was the characters. Both main characters were complex and interesting and while they are similar they are also incredibly different. Both June and Day are larger than life. June is the youngest prodigy serving in the military and is well-known for her prowess and intellect despite being a teenager. But she's not your average kickass female warrior. Despite being incredibly skilled she still has to prove herself to others. I found her really compelling because while she never for a moment doubts herself that's kind of her biggest weakness. She is a little sheltered and very trusting which gets her into trouble sometimes. But that is what makes her a well-rounded and likable character. Day however is not an elite, he is the most notorious criminal. He is also well-known and infamous for his skills and intellect. He's definitely misunderstood though and has this real Robin Hood vibe about him that I totally respected. And while they come from different backgrounds and want different things, they find a kinship in one another. And while I did enjoy that aspect of their relationship, I didn't love their romance. It was a little intsa-lovey and for me their companionship didn't have to be romantic. But that didn't ruin their characters. I was still invested in their struggle and wanted to see them succeed.

But liking the characters so much was really helpful for the narrative style of the book, another thing that really worked for me. You know that I don't love alternating perspectives but seriously, no one does it better than Marie Lu. Both June and Day had very distinct voices despite their similarities. Seeing the book from each of their perspectives led to us getting to know them a lot better. I felt like I knew them both on a deeper level and I wanted to see them succeed even when they were at odds. The other thing that the alternating perspectives did was create a lot of dramatic irony. We knew things that the characters did not know and that made for a really suspenseful narrative.

That suspense also extended into the plot of the book. While there was a lot of action and excitement throughout the book I didn't feel the thrills in the way I often do with these kinds of reads, I think I was expecting a thrilling and action-packed story but what I got was a mysterious and intricate read. The stakes here are pretty high for both our main characters and things definitely build to a thrilling conclusion but the general plot development was not about the thrills. And while I did find the plot interesting, I found the pacing to be a little disconnected. With two separate protagonists they are going to move at different speeds and reach different points that lead them to the inevitable climax. And while they did reach the same climax it felt like they reached their own individual ones first which was odd to me. But a lot of the plot is about learning the truth and learning about what is really going on here and they had to find their own truth before they found it together and learned the bigger picture information about the world as a whole.

Speaking of that world, Legend was a perfectly passable dystopian read but I was missing a little something from the world. I think my lack of connection with this book was the world-building. I feel like I'm being contradictory to what I often say about the world-building in my reads but here I would have liked a little but more. The disparity between the elite and general populace is a concept I love in my books but it was only barely touched on. And while the idea about a disease affecting the population was a big part of the plot development, I didn't feel like I knew that much about it. When it comes to dystopia what makes the books engaging for me is either lots of thrilling action or big picture political intrigue. In this book the lack of action wasn't balanced out by the bigger themes. Legend is the first book in a series and usually with first books I find that they either give you too much info about the world or not enough and in the case of this one it was the latter. I found the world interesting, I just wanted more.

But thankfully this is just the start of a new series and I am excited to see it all develop. I don't always love first books so I am going to continue with this series and find out more about the world and these characters.

I give Legend by Marie Lu 8 out of 10 stars

Buy/Borrow/Bypass: Buy/Borrow. If you are a big dystopia fan check this series out. It was a good start to a series and I am excited to see where things go. I am definitely connected to these characters and I want to see where it all ends for them.

Have you read Legend? What did you think? Leave me a comment with your thoughts. Thanks for stopping by and HAPPY READING!