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       WARNING: The following book review may spoil the first two books of the Legend series!

               Just a refresher; in the first two books of the Legend series by Marie Lu, we meet two people, a girl named June, and a guy named Day. June is a pristine fifteen year-old girl in the upper class sector of Los Angeles, meanwhile Day is a man on the run, only seventeen. Both scored perfect on an aptitude test given to kids at age twelve. Day was the first person to ever get a perfect score, and in term, ended up in a lab with scientists nearly killing him. Day escapes, but he becomes hunted by the Republic, due to his rebellious ways. The Republic learned from their mistakes with Day, and when June earned her perfect score, she was sent to the most pretentious military academy in the country, scoring grades higher than those twice her age. Day and June meet, after June's brother, Metias, was murdered, and the murderer, Thomas, frames Day for the crime. June comes after Day, and pretends to be his friend, however the fake friendship turns into a true alliance when they realize the Republic has been releasing a plague onto the poor sectors for years. 

               Summary: Once we reach the third book, things take a drastic turn for the worst. The Colonies have gone crazy, accusing the Republic of releasing the plague onto their people. Meanwhile, the Republic is in chaos. The poor sectors believe the Republic is holding Day, an icon of hope. The Elector of the Republic has just died in the previous book, leaving his son, Anden, hardly an adult, to pick up and take hold of the Republic. With not many options left, the fate of the Republic is in brittle hands. Day has become ill, and is left to make choices between protecting what's left of his family, or the Republic.


               Grievances in the series: There are many cases in the series where death of someone close to a character occurs. Death happens between all of the prime characters in the series, and it causes many changes in the characters. Metias, June's brother was murdered in the first book by Thomas. Day's mom, brother and even father were all brought down by the hands of the Republic, just in the first book of the series. If that wasn't enough death, let us not forget Anden's dad, the previous Elector, also died during the book. These losses cause drastic effects throughout the rest of the series.


               How loss affected characters, both good and bad: With the death of Metias, June's curiosity towards the Republic's government sparked up. In the beginning, we know she thought it was Day, as she believed Thomas' accusation of the matter. This affected Day, because due to this misconception, his mother was murdered right in front of him. The death of June's brother sparked a chain reaction, first Metias, then Day's mother, and then finally John, Day's older brother, brought down. 


               How their losses affected them in the long term: The deaths of these characters affected people harshly in the long term. Anden was basically pushed to the highest seat in the Republic's government at such a young age, forced to make decisions that hurt him and the people around him. Day as well, changed drastically beginning with the death of his father. Day blamed the Republic, and that sorrow and coldness towards the Republic is what sparked a rebellion. His face became the icon of a new chance at life for people of the poor sectors, and even people from the high sectors.


               Is the Legend series for you?: The Legend series is a great series for people who are into dystopian type novels, as well as action and adventure novels. Series in these genres include Divergent, Maze Runner and The Hunger Games. This book was written by someone who is quite young, so a lot of the writing is relatable to people who fit into the young adult novel category, while the point of views of the characters are still realistic to their age group. 


Other books by Marie Lu:   

The Young Elites is the origin story of a villain. It is set in an alternate fantasy version of Renaissance Italy. After the equivalent of the Black Death sweeps through the world, a few survivors come out of the illness with supernatural powers. The main character, Adelina, is essentially the teenage girl version of Darth Vader or Magneto—the story chronicles her downfall into darkness.



Click HERE to read an interview about the final book!

AND

Click HERE to follow Marie Lu on Tumblr for updates about both the Legend series and her new series, The Young Elites, which came out two days ago, as of the date I published this blog entry!