Legend (Legend Trilogy, #1)

by Marie Lu

"Legend doesn't merely survive the hype, it deserves it."

From the New York Times bestselling author of The Young Elites


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.

Full of nonstop action, suspense, and romance, this novel is sure to move readers as much as it thrills.

• ISBN10: 014242207X
• ISBN13: 9780142422076
• Publish Date: 16 April 2013 (first published 1 November 2011)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Speak
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 352
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780142422076

Reviews

[Kim Deister]

Legend is the first in a young adult dystopian series set in an imagined future America. The world is very different from that which we know now, split into The Republic and the Colonies. This book is set in The Republic, a place where there are clear lines between the Haves and the Have Nots, a place suffering from a constantly changing plague that rans rampant among the Have Nots. At a young age, children are required to go through The Trials, a battery of tests that determine the course of their future. Those that do well are set on a path of success. Those that don’t are generally assured of a life of drudgerey. And those that fail are sent away, to labor camps far from home. The Republic controls by propoganda, and by fear. The story is told from two perspectives, that of June and that of Day, both of whom are only fifteen. June is a newly minted soldier of The Republic. She’s brilliant, which often leads her to be cast as a troublemaker. In reality, she’s always followed the party line of The Republic. But then she meets Day, an enemy of the statewho is thought to be a Patriot, a rebel. Meeting him changes everything for her. There is so much to love about Legend! It’s dystopian (one of my favorite genres), but it’s also rich with aspects of mystery, action, adventure, and romance. And the character dynamic is wonderful! June and Day are very different people, coming from very different places within the world of Legend. And while there was romance, it wasn’t instant, and it didn’t feel like the only focus of the storyline. It felt realistic, developing naturally. My recommendation: If you love dystopian, and a book with a multifaceted storyline, then Legend is a great book to read!

[alindstadtcorbeax]

Star Rating: —> 4 Stars

Last BR of 2020 with bestie & angel extraordinaire, Darce!!!

I actually LOVED this! I love dystopian novels & with current events... jeez this was freaky! I was seriously addicted as hell to this book.

Marie Lu can do no wrong in my eyes.

[Jyc]

★★★★ // it’s been a while since i enjoyed a young-adult dystopian genre. part of that is because this one feels a little close to what was happening in the world now, with the pandemic and all. but mostly i find that i resonate with its political commentaries: about how governments control the news and media to manipulate people into believing that everything is okay and under control. how it paints subversiveness and dissent as some sort of anarchist propaganda, instead of acknowledging that there must be something wrong with the system which causes people to start revolutions. understanding what is right and wrong, especially in the political landscape, can be tricky. just like June in this story, you can get lost in the system and not see reason. but it’s not too late to see the light.

”Finally, when the sunset bathes my apartment in orange and gold, I break out of my trance. I clean up the shards of broken glass. I dress in my full uniform. I make sure my hair is pulled back flawlessly, that my face is clean and calm and devoid of emotion. In the mirror, I look the same. But I am a different person inside. I’m a prodigy who knows the truth, and I know exactly what I’m going to do.”

perhaps the only thing that i did not quite like is the romance. i did not think it was necessary, and when it pops up every now and then, i really find myself cringing, heh. but i suppose since it’s a young-adult genre, it needs that to still keep its target readers interested. but i hope the kids who read this picks up its more important messages about freedom and identity.

excited to read the read of the trilogy when i get my hands on them.

[celinenyx]

Legend is one of the novels that rode the crest of the YA dystopia wave, along with commercial successes like The Hunger Games and Divergent. I am honestly quite glad I'm reading it years after the hype, because although Legend brings its own interpretation to the genre, the general plot structure is extremely similar to the genre staples.

The main characters are super-amazing-special June, and gorgeous-very-special Day. One is a soldier trained by an authoritarian government, the other a rebel trying to annoy said government. As always, the stakes are the lives of family members, violence galore, and there is a mysterious plague.

Legend ticks all the boxes necessary for a young-adult dystopian story: the teen protagonists are amazing fighting machines, beating several adult soldiers as par de course; there are conspiracies, corrupt and evil people in power, and the extent of their horribleness is slowly revealed. It's fast-paced, and the alternating narration of June and Day works well. It all works, but I'm not particularly convinced Legend brings anything new to the table.

--
Trigger warnings: on-page death of family members, torture, strong violence.

I bought this book a couple of years ago, but somehow never got around to reading it. Years later, I finally gave it a try, but I can’t say that I am glad that I did. Legend is a well loved book, with flat unoriginal characters, the typical dystopian world, and no plot twists. Everything that could be considered a slight plot twist, is foreshadowed several pages before, to the point that it becomes annoyingly obvious what’s going to happen. We have another case of instalove, and not even the “I talked to her three times I love her”, but the worst kind of instalove: love within the first paragraph that he sees her. Also, don’t expect w lot of world building in this book. In fact, expect nothing if you don’t want to be disappointed.

Day, who would do everything to save his family and had escaped the government several times, suddenly gets lured in by a girl he just met. When he falls for her, his thoughts about his family, who he cares so deeply about, are suddenly overshadowed by his love for this girl, while his brother is dying. I understand that the author thinks that this is how a fifteen year old boy thinks, but I have to disagree. We are talking about a boy who was on his own since he was ten. He took care of his family and that was all he had left. No way that he would forget about his family just because he met some girl.
The other thing that bothered me about Day is his superpowers. Day and June are supposedly normal humans, who just happen to have good genes and be very smart. They are athletic and can do a lot of stuff normal people wouldn’t be able to do. I could understand that, maybe there was some form of gene manipulation such that humans got stronger, faster, and smarter. However, when Day has serious injuries, he is still way faster and more powerful than the others. As if he wasn’t just a fifteen year old kid.

Next, June. What should I say? In the beginning, I hated how she didn’t seem to grieve her dead brother. Everyone griefs in a different way, but June just didn’t grieve. Sure, we had some thoughts that it hurt her to think about the good times with her brother, but it was always just one phrase. Nothing more.
Later on in the book she got better and I actually started to care for her, unlike I did for Day. However, I do think she should be portrayed as an eighteen year old, instead of a fifteen year old. Her deduction skills and thoughts represented that of someone older.

At least, the plot twists. Don’t expect anything special. Thomas and the republic follow the standard dystopian plot twists scheme as in every other book. They are obvious about it, and the only question is why no one besides these fifteen year olds happen to realize it. Not even the Pariots, with all their power.
Next, I liked the way June’s brother hid the information for June, however, as stated in several other reviews, it was utterly ridiculous that he made a website for her while he proved her every single dat how easy it was to hack technology. It just didn’t make sense.

[writehollydavis]

I expected nothing short of awesome from Marie Lu! Legend is a gripping story from two POVs: Day, the most wanted criminal in the country, and June, who works with her brother for the Republic, the government on the side of mankind fighting off a deadly plague. The weaving of June and Day's stories was seamless, and Marie's plots always have me gripping the edge of my seat in anticipation! I couldn't predict what would happen. I flew through this book and am ready to dive into Book 2!!

[Amber (The Literary Phoenix)]

Find more reviews like this at The Literary Phoenix.

Two different characters from very different worlds.

June want to avenge her brother's death, and Day just want to save his brother's life.  Two teens in the Los Angeles boroughs, fighting for their families get intertwined when June learns none other than the infamous Republic criminal Day has killed her brother.  She doesn't stop, doesn't look back.  Meanwhile, Day is frantic.  His youngest brother has caught the plague, and he's desperately trying to earn enough money to buy him a plague cure.  Time is running out, and he never suspects the girl he rescues from a street fight to be the very person who will turn him into the authorities.

But while June and Day are caught up in their own vendettas, things start to unravel before them.  Maybe, just maybe, the Republic isn't telling them everything.

I just don't care about these characters.

June and Day are both... just... meh for me.  I found their backgrounds interesting, but their personalities seem really flat and boring and I don't care.  And I really don't care that they fall in love.  I was so frustrated because I was seeing all these really interesting dystopian themes and opportunities to expand upon, but everything kept coming back to the love story.  It was bad enough not caring whether June or Day got what they wanted... then add the love story on?  Ugh, no.

Usually, I find redemption in the minor characters, but I wasn't feeling that with this story either.  I really, really wanted to like Tess, and I wanted to see more of Eden.  But, nope.

Everything.  Was.  So.  Predictable.

By the time Metais was killed, I had the entire plot of the book down.  Then I listened for another six hours.  And I was right on every count.  While I like being able to guess some parts of a book because it makes me feel like a smart cookie, being able to guess everything is just plain boring.

Anything I wanted to know more about was passed over.  Maybe this is because it's a trilogy and Marie Lu intended to talk more about it in the following novels.  Frankly, I don't care enough about June or Day to keep reading this story.  I can live without finding out the details of the plague or what was up with that quarter, or Day's testing.  As long as I don't have to read any more of those two characters.

I know I've got an unpopular opinion here.

This book was on my Overdrive waitlist forever.  I was so, so, so pumped when it popped up as FINALLY available.  I wanted to like this book.  I just bought Marie Lu's Warcross because it also sounded amazing and I had just given it up in my head that I would adore everything that she wrote.  That's probably shaping the depth of my disappointment with this book.  I can see where others would like it, especially if they haven't read as much dystopia as I have.  But I'm all set, thanks!

[ross91]

Quite enjoyable, but predictable

[Sam@WLABB]

My daughter bought this book back in 2012, and had suggested I read this series. I finally caved after reading The Young Elites books. They were so good, and I just wanted more of Marie Lu. I have to say, I was not disappointed. This story is packed with action, adventure, mystery, familial love, and romance. I loved all the battles both Day and June needed to fight within themselves. June was betrayed by almost everyone she trusted, and a system she trusted. I laughed, I cried, I fumed, but most of all, I hoped. I hoped that Day and June would be able to overcome the major obstacles set in their path, and that they will find a way to fix the damage the Republic has done.

[KitsuneBae]

Had I read this series four years earlier, I would have gushed endlessly about it. But since that's not the case, here I am, presenting you a 3.5 star review. Legend has its strengths but it feels redundant. Not even the twists can compensate for that.

I am not convinced that Day is that brilliant. I am not convinced that June is also that brilliant. WTF. And that romance, what the hell was that?

Well, at least, there's much worse that could've happened during Valentines day.