Irina loves "The Young Elites"

"Lu has decided to turn 180 degrees on her style and frankly – it suits her so well. Her work has turned deeper, darker and we get to read the story of the “bad guy”- or girl in our case"

“The Young Elites” by Marie Lu – Book №1 in the series

“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.”

Genre: Fantasy, YA, Dystopia

Recommend it highly if you like: “The Mara Dyer” series by Michelle Hodkin, “The Darkest Minds” series by Alexandra Bracken, Antagonist POV, dark fantasy

Hello, my favorite bookish nerds !!

Spring is finally coming and I hope all of you are enjoying sunny days and quality books ! 

My next recommendation for you is actually series by an author I love – Marie Lu and The Young Elites series. I have read her 1st trilogy – “Legend” (pick it up if you haven’t read it, you won’t regret it) and when I learned that she is writing new series I was so excited, level GamerCat facebook emoji excited (that is why there is a nerdy cat here).. I am however impatient so often I buy books of series and wait to have them all (or at least be close to the publishing date of the last book) before reading them. And this is what happened here as well. I will write a review for each of the books in the series – for those of you who have read the 1st book and wonder if they should pick up the 2nd or you, who were not sure if that is your style; you, who have read the “Legend” series and know how good of an author she is and last, but not least – you, who never even heard of her or her books – I hope my reviews will help you with your choice. 

I would like to start with the fact that (again) I am drawn by books with maps – but I just can’t resist them. The map gives you an impression of the fictional world you are going to be drawn into and I tend to pick those books above others (sorry-not-sorry) !! The book is written in a style, reminding me of ancient times and the quotes at the beginning of some chapters add the final touch to win my soul. 

And here is where it gets really interesting. Lu has decided to turn 180 degrees on her style and frankly – it suits her so well. Her work has turned deeper, darker and we get to read the story of the “bad guy”- or girl in our case. The story is set in a fictional world where a disease has led to the death of many, leaving the children with markings – both by appearance and in rare cases with a gift (or curse?). It follows the main character Adelina Amouteru – a girl who could have seen better days. Her path leads her to a society called by many “Young Elites”, organized by other gifted children. The story is enough to get everyone hooked and though a lot of books in the YA genre are focused on “special children” – “Carve the Mark” by Veronica Roth, “The Darkest Minds” by Alexandra Bracken and many more, there is something unique about this book, mostly in the way Lu doesn’t shy of showing the bad side of her characters. And the ending.. let’s just say it has been a long time since someone managed to really surprise me with the turn of events. MAJOR TURN OF EVENTS !! 

I am giving the book 4 out of 5 only because I know she will give me more in the next books to follow the series, she is one of those authors who build their stories and tension rises to the point where you read until 3 am with bloodshot eyes. And I am planning of saving my “5” for last. 

And to prove my point that this is worth your while, a quote: 

“Be true to yourself. But that's something everyone says and no one means. No one wants you to be yourself. They want you to be the version of yourself that they like.”

I am sure this book will surprise even the “professional” bookworms!!

Until next time, 

Irina