 | Hey, Weirdos! As promised, I read the highly acclaimed Legend by Marie Lu, and...well I'll tell you the rest in a bit. I'll be honest, I was a bit skeptical when it came to this book, due to the fact that I'm a very closed-minded person. I'm glad I convinced myself to read it though, because it was actually very good, albeit typical. Set in Los Angeles, the Republic of America, year 2130, main characters Day and June are from completely different worlds, but are thrown into the same one when June's older brother is murdered, and Day is the prime suspect. Over the course of the novel they realize something: They might not be as different as they once thought. |
| Before I begin my Like/Dislike categories, I feel I must ask: Who in the HECK thought it would be a good idea to give Day's PoV text a baby-poop yellow color and funky font? It was distracting, hard to read, and a bit...um...disgusting. Just change the font if you must, but not the color, I beg of you. Continuing on... |  |
What I Liked:
The first chapter was pretty well done. I was intrigued by the introduction of the plague and the strange X on the door of Day's family.
I adore Day's explanation of how he makes the Republic look bad. I admire how well Marie Lu wrote this, because it's admirably creative.
The fact that--at least in the beginning--both June and Day can be seen as the protagonist and antagonist interchangeably is an approach I haven't seen before in other books I've read. However, is it possible that we're being given too much of the story?
The Skiz fight was a nice touch, and one that I didn't want to end.
Nice pacing.
I appreciated the clues in Metias' journals and how they pointed June to the website, and the clue about the rifle grease was also very clever.
The idea of both June and Day having oriental in them, yet Day has blonde hair (I can't remember if June did) is interesting. I can honestly say that I lowered the book several times just to ponder this.
The idea of Day being a perfect scoring prodigy was unexpected, and I ate it up.
I wasn't expecting June to go to Kaed for help, but it fit rather nicely.
June's idea for helping Day to escape was rather genius, and how the Patriots started throwing money as a diversion was priceless. I literally laughed out loud when I read it.
What I Didn't Like/Holes I Found:
Two things I'd like to know: First, what is the point of the dog, or is he just a decoration? And second, how do they know Day's name? It's not his real name, but surely he got it somehow.
I wish there had been a map oat the beginning of the book so I could have known which states belonged to who, as opposed to having to Google it.
Somehow I didn't feel much, if any, connection to June. Day was much more characteristically appealing, which is odd for me because I tend to favor female characters (I'm not sexist. It's a gender relation thing. Shut up) which leads to the question of if it's because the author unconsciously favored Day over June, or something else? Food for thought.
I did not appreciate being told over and over again in the beginning half of the book how incredible June's attention to detail was. Subtle hints are all that's needed for me to get the picture.
I found the entire plot to be very reminiscent of the Hunger Games, with the Elector and slums being the Capitol and the Districts. And honestly, must every dystopian novel call their location the "republic"? I'm growing rather tired of the lack of imagination. At least in the Hunger Games it was also called Panem.
It was disappointing to me that I knew who the bad-guy was going to be from early on. The Commander, Chian, and Thomas Yes, I was able to point out Thomas from very early on.
The meeting where June tried to sell Day the plague cure undercover did not seem necessary. It would have happened nearly the same whether it had happened or not.
Thomas is how much older than June and is in love with her? Give me a break. Does give the book a healthy amount of tension though, which I liked.
Metias' death was predictable. Saw it coming a mile away.
Was there a point of the Chian fellow in book 1? Or was he just there so that he can make a reappearance in book 2?
Do we really know for sure that Thomas killed Metias?
I wanted to know more about the Elector and his son. The brief snippet seemed out of place, like it would have been better suited in one of the next books.
Conclusion: I'm giving Legend 4 Stars out of 5. Lives up to the hype, and I'll be sure to get the next one - after, of course, I get through the pile that is already screaming my name.
So many books!
That's all for now. In other news, I've been approached by a new author who wants me to read/review her recently released her first novel, so there's that to look forward to in the coming months.
AND in August is my interview with Susan Dennard, as promised. Super exciting!
The first chapter was pretty well done. I was intrigued by the introduction of the plague and the strange X on the door of Day's family.
I adore Day's explanation of how he makes the Republic look bad. I admire how well Marie Lu wrote this, because it's admirably creative.
The fact that--at least in the beginning--both June and Day can be seen as the protagonist and antagonist interchangeably is an approach I haven't seen before in other books I've read. However, is it possible that we're being given too much of the story?
The Skiz fight was a nice touch, and one that I didn't want to end.
Nice pacing.
I appreciated the clues in Metias' journals and how they pointed June to the website, and the clue about the rifle grease was also very clever.
The idea of both June and Day having oriental in them, yet Day has blonde hair (I can't remember if June did) is interesting. I can honestly say that I lowered the book several times just to ponder this.
The idea of Day being a perfect scoring prodigy was unexpected, and I ate it up.
I wasn't expecting June to go to Kaed for help, but it fit rather nicely.
June's idea for helping Day to escape was rather genius, and how the Patriots started throwing money as a diversion was priceless. I literally laughed out loud when I read it.
What I Didn't Like/Holes I Found:
Two things I'd like to know: First, what is the point of the dog, or is he just a decoration? And second, how do they know Day's name? It's not his real name, but surely he got it somehow.
I wish there had been a map oat the beginning of the book so I could have known which states belonged to who, as opposed to having to Google it.
Somehow I didn't feel much, if any, connection to June. Day was much more characteristically appealing, which is odd for me because I tend to favor female characters (I'm not sexist. It's a gender relation thing. Shut up) which leads to the question of if it's because the author unconsciously favored Day over June, or something else? Food for thought.
I did not appreciate being told over and over again in the beginning half of the book how incredible June's attention to detail was. Subtle hints are all that's needed for me to get the picture.
I found the entire plot to be very reminiscent of the Hunger Games, with the Elector and slums being the Capitol and the Districts. And honestly, must every dystopian novel call their location the "republic"? I'm growing rather tired of the lack of imagination. At least in the Hunger Games it was also called Panem.
It was disappointing to me that I knew who the bad-guy was going to be from early on. The Commander, Chian, and Thomas Yes, I was able to point out Thomas from very early on.
The meeting where June tried to sell Day the plague cure undercover did not seem necessary. It would have happened nearly the same whether it had happened or not.
Thomas is how much older than June and is in love with her? Give me a break. Does give the book a healthy amount of tension though, which I liked.
Metias' death was predictable. Saw it coming a mile away.
Was there a point of the Chian fellow in book 1? Or was he just there so that he can make a reappearance in book 2?
Do we really know for sure that Thomas killed Metias?
I wanted to know more about the Elector and his son. The brief snippet seemed out of place, like it would have been better suited in one of the next books.
Conclusion: I'm giving Legend 4 Stars out of 5. Lives up to the hype, and I'll be sure to get the next one - after, of course, I get through the pile that is already screaming my name.
So many books!
That's all for now. In other news, I've been approached by a new author who wants me to read/review her recently released her first novel, so there's that to look forward to in the coming months.
AND in August is my interview with Susan Dennard, as promised. Super exciting!
| Last, I'm thinking about adding a "Free iBooks" section to the writing blog. I've been getting into it lately, so we will see where this goes. As always: Stay Weird! ~Ness |  |
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