When Things Don't Go According to Plan - Legend by Marie Lu

Just the facts:

Overall: 4 stars

Addiction Level: I read it every waking moment.

Believe-ability: It was believable.

Dystopia Factor: The world is starting to disintegrate. (To the characters, at least.)

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     I’ve waited for Legend to be released for months. I finally have a copy. And, now it’s over. Already! Agh! Why does this always happen? Dang books that I have to wait for!

     Told from alternating points of view, Legend is about two teens from opposite sides of the track. Day, the Republic’s most wanted outlaw, is being hunted down by June, the Republic’s prodigy soldier, who believes Day murdered her brother. Along the way, we are introduced to many supporting characters and learn that things are not always what they seem. Interesting thought coming from a dystopian book, no? ;)

     Now, on to why I loved the book. - The characters. Period. Legend is a shining example of how to make characters feel real. Even the supporting characters, like Thomas and Tess, are fully created. These are characters that you would really like to know, or not. – The dialogue. The way that June and Day speak is very natural. It feels familiar and comforting to me. (I know, you think I’m strange for saying so.) – The visual elements of the book. Legend has an almost post-modern feel to it. Lu uses a different text and text color for Day and June, which I really enjoyed. It reminded me a bit of The Book Thief, which uses some of the same text manipulation techniques to help tell the story. And lastly, romance doesn’t rule in Legend. Yes, there is some attraction, but it is not the driving force behind the story.

     Although I am giving Legend four stars, (which is great coming from me) I feel I must point out one of the reasons that caused Legend to fall short of my five star standard. Legend is too short! I know that there is more of the story to be told, but I feel like we only catch a glimpse of June’s realization that their society isn’t perfect and shouldn’t be fully trusted. I like instant loathing and rebellion, not slow realization!

     I do have hope that the following books will dive into the dystopia deep end and that, for me, means more longing for books to be released. Too bad there isn’t some instant-book-release-inator. Maybe I should invent one? I’d make it look like a futuristic vending machine. E-6, please. :)

Can’t Wait Books of 2012 Completed: 1/5