(SPOILERS) Legend by Marie Lu

Book 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.

My Review:

4.75/5 stars. I didn't really have any major critiques of this book, so I technically could give it 5 stars, but it doesn't quite feel like a 5-star book. I didn't finish it with that immediate feeling of "wow, that was amazing." However, it was still excellent. I loved the characters, the world was terrible in a way that a great dystopia should be, and the plot kept me engaged.

At first, I was worried June was going to be a Mary Sue. She got a perfect score on her Trial, she was the youngest student by far in university, etc. etc. But that criticism soon evaporated once she started showing more depth and flaws. As the story kept going, and especially toward the end, her naivete and complete trust of the system that was clearly lying to her was frustrating. But then because I was rooting for her, it was satisfying when she finally realized the truth.

Day was great as well. I loved that he was sort of a "bad boy" but wasn't actually bad. He had a huge heart for his family and never killed anyone if he could avoid it. Speaking of his heart for his family, one aspect I enjoyed about both June and Day was how you saw their core motivation right from the start—Day for his family, June for her brother.

The romance was good but maybe happened a bit too quickly. I liked that they were growing close without realizing who the other was. June got to know Day as a person without being biased knowing he was the supposed criminal she hated. I did feel they kissed/fell in love a bit soon though. It wasn't quite insta-love, but it was close.

One other small character detail that kind of surprised me was their ages. June being 15 makes sense, but I thought Day was more like 17. He just gave off older vibes. The age of another character, Thomas, also was confusing. He was likely around June's brother's age, in his 20s, so why was he trying to kiss a 15-year-old? That's really weird, but it wasn't really presented as such.

The worldbuilding was great because the dystopian society was perfectly terrible. The way they intentionally created plagues and pumped them into the poorer areas while making sure to have the exact right cure for everyone else, their complete disregard for human life at times, their brutality—it was awful. The world was a fairly standard dystopia while still feeling unique and original.

Content:

Language: h*ll, d*mn

Sexual Content: a boy mentions wanting to "get a kiss or three" out of a girl, thinking about wanting to kiss someone, kisses (some of which are described as getting pretty intense), touches and closeness

Violence/Gore: blood, a deadly plague, bullet wounds, bruises, injuries, stabbing, breaking someone's arm, death, dead bodies, shooting and killing innocent people, mass shooting, execution, street fights (which people gamble on)

Drugs/Alcohol: a teen goes into a bar but doesn't drink anything, teens drink wine