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A review by cgreaderbee
The Young Elites by Marie Lu
4.0
"To love is to be afraid. You are frightened, deathly terrified, that something will happen to those you love. Think of the possibilities. Does your heart clench with each thought? That, my friend, is love. And love enslaves us all, for you cannot have love without fear."
I would say throughout the first half of this book, I was rating it a solid 3/5 stars. I read the Legend series by Marie Lu, and really enjoyed that series. At first I was questioning whether or not this would be as good; but by the time the second half started picking up, I was hooked.
Lu creates an interesting concept in this world - a blood fever spreads throughout a land that leaves it's victims marked - and time reveals that some of these marked "malfettos" are also left with supernatural abilities. This creates a setting of fear, rejection, suspicion, and overall unrest. And from this rises the Young Elites, a rumored group of such gifted malfettos who are rising above the years of suppression placed upon them.
And what would a book be without it's characters? This is another aspect that Lu powerfully establishes. The main character Adelina is troubled, twisted, and at times, terrifying. She is a malfetto mistreated by her Father, and through a series of circumstances breaks away and is taken under the wing of the Young Elites. New to her powers of illusion, they hesitantly begin to train her in her abilities and begin to form friendships, while remaining weary of her instability and her strong alignment to fear and darkness.
I really enjoyed getting to know each of the Young Elites; they were a group of dynamic characters that were pretty easy to get attached to (which was unfortunate given certain events at the end of the book ... but no spoilers).
Ultimately, the book takes multiple twists and turns that make you question the precarious line between hero and villain. I always love learning the backstory behind the darkness within, and this book certainly provides that.
Evil isn't born; it's made.
Looking forward to the rest of the installment. :)
I would say throughout the first half of this book, I was rating it a solid 3/5 stars. I read the Legend series by Marie Lu, and really enjoyed that series. At first I was questioning whether or not this would be as good; but by the time the second half started picking up, I was hooked.
Lu creates an interesting concept in this world - a blood fever spreads throughout a land that leaves it's victims marked - and time reveals that some of these marked "malfettos" are also left with supernatural abilities. This creates a setting of fear, rejection, suspicion, and overall unrest. And from this rises the Young Elites, a rumored group of such gifted malfettos who are rising above the years of suppression placed upon them.
And what would a book be without it's characters? This is another aspect that Lu powerfully establishes. The main character Adelina is troubled, twisted, and at times, terrifying. She is a malfetto mistreated by her Father, and through a series of circumstances breaks away and is taken under the wing of the Young Elites. New to her powers of illusion, they hesitantly begin to train her in her abilities and begin to form friendships, while remaining weary of her instability and her strong alignment to fear and darkness.
I really enjoyed getting to know each of the Young Elites; they were a group of dynamic characters that were pretty easy to get attached to (which was unfortunate given certain events at the end of the book ... but no spoilers).
Ultimately, the book takes multiple twists and turns that make you question the precarious line between hero and villain. I always love learning the backstory behind the darkness within, and this book certainly provides that.
Evil isn't born; it's made.
Looking forward to the rest of the installment. :)