The book Legend was first published in 2011. It is the first book in a trilogy written by Marie Lu. The story focuses on two points of view, June and Day. June is the smartest prodigy in the entire Republic of America, considering that she scored the highest ever on her trail (a test everyone must take at 13). She and her older brother, Mateus attend the most prestigious military academy, Drake University. While June is a rule follower, Day is the complete opposite. Day is a confident and stubborn teen who was told that he failed his trail, so he was sent away. Luckily he managed to escape allowing him to continue providing for his family in the slum sectors, despite the fact his family thinks he’s dead. Their paths first cross when one night, while Mateus was on assignment, Day was seen trying to rob a bank. After he gets caught, Day tries to escape, but Mateus steps in the way and unexpectedly dies. All of the officers are convinced Day killed Mateus, so they send June out undercover to gather up evidence on him. But as June digs more into Day’s life, she starts to wonder whether Day actually did it. The only way for any of us to find out is to join June on her journey to find the truth.
Even though Legend is a book about teens, its deeper meaning of not judging a book by its cover, makes it a great read for anyone. This book truly sparked my love for reading, as it transports the reader into the world of Day and June trying to fight their way around the Republic of America. Although the book is dystopian, it puts in many different aspects of different genres, such as romance and murder mystery. Marie Lu does a great job of continuing the mystery throughout all three books, so it nevers feels as though it’s lacking suspense.