Set in the future, the United States is now divided into two: the Republic and the Colonies. Constantly at war with its neighbor, the Republic has adopted a highly militarized state where kids are trained to be soldiers from a young age. June, a military prodigy from an elite family, has everything set for life. Day, a homeless kid trying to keep his poor family alive, happens to be the most-wanted criminal in the Republic. The two cross each other when June sets out to avenge her brother’s death, and although they should be utmost enemies, their wants may be more aligned than they think.
Legend is extremely underrated. Dare I say, Legend sits among the pillars of dystopian, young adult fiction with The Maze Runner and The Hunger Games. Lu does really well with writing from two narrative perspectives, June and Day, and neither of them gets boring. She pulls in the reader more and more by the alternating perspectives that get closer and closer in time until the climax hits you. I’ve read this book two times, and each time I couldn’t put it down. It’s fast-paced, addicting, and powerful. The only thing I wish is that Lu took more time on making the book deeper--perhaps by adding more nuance to June and Day or developing the world building better. That being said, this book is only the first in a series and I would recommend reading all of them. I just think including those things may have drawn readers in more to continue reading the series. For any fans of dystopian fiction, here’s your next read.