Champion by Marie Lu – Book Review

He is a Legend. She is a Prodigy. Who will be Champion?

June and Day have sacrificed so much for the people of the Republic – and each other – and now their country is on the brink of a new peaceful existence. June is back in the good graces of the Republic, working within the government’s elite circles while Day has been assigned a high level military position.

But when a plague outbreak, deadlier than any other, causes panic in the Colonies, and war threatens the Republic’s border cities, the two are thrown back together. June is the only one who knows the key to her country’s defence. But saving the lives of thousands will mean asking the one she loves to give up everything he has.

Champion begins 8 months after Prodigy ended. At the end of Prodigy, June and Day broke up and went their separate ways, and the war between the Republicans and the Colonies continues.

June is now one of three Princeps-Elect to Elector Anden, his confidant and right-hand woman. Anden has feelings for June and even though she does like him, she is still in love with Day.

Day has a position within the Republican army as a high-ranking officer. His strong, determination and loyalty to the cause has paid off, and he is seen as a hero in the soldier’s eyes.

The pair are reunited when a deadly plague is infecting the colonies and the Republicans are being blamed. With war imminent, the only hope of stopping conflict and saving the people is by using Day’s brother, Eden, who they think may hold the cure.

Can Day let his brother be used as a guinea pig to help save the colonies’ people?

This is the last book in the Legend trilogy, by Marie Lu.

Right from the first page I became hooked once again by June and Day’s story. Their love for one another, even when they can’t be together, radiates of the page. These are two people, who had such different experiences growing up, and should hate each other, but have found solace in one another instead.

The war between the Republicans and the Colonies kept me intrigued as to how the two opposing sides could find a solution for peace between them. The action between the two sides kept me entertained and engaged with the story, which was full of twists to the plot.

Champion, had my emotions running wild. From anger and upset that June and Day had separated, wanting the pair to work through their dilemma, and back in each others arms, to sadness at Day’s illness and his weakening body.

The ending was beautifully written and is heart-wrenching, showing how much Day means to June as she’s willing to sacrifice everything that they have ever had together, to save his life.

Marie Lu manages to absorb the reader into the lives of the characters. She writes such vivid scenes, that you can visualise standing right in the middle of the action, and keeps you on your toes with surprises in every chapter.

I was sorry that the trilogy had finished and wished that it had gone on, but all good things must come to an end.

Book reviewed by Stacey

Marie writes young adult novels and has a special love for dystopian books. Ironically, she was born in 1984. Before she became a full-time writer, she was an artist in the video game industry.

She graduated from the University of Southern California in ’06 and currently lives in Los Angeles, where she spends her time stuck in traffic. LEGEND was her first novel.

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