The Young Elites Book Review
The Young Elites written by Marie Lu is one of my favourite books of all time! I read the two books in the series earlier this year and cannot wait for the third to be released later this year. These books are absolutely amazing for more than one reason and I really wanted to encourage those who haven't read it to try them out by reviwing them!
This is a spoiler review HOWEVER, I will warn you when the spoiler parts come so do not worry if you're planning to read this, I won't spoil it for you.
About the book.
Author: Marie Lu
Pages: 355
Publisher: G.P Putman's Sons Books for Young Readers
Rating: ★★★★★
Sypnopsis: Adelina Amouteru is a survivor of the blood fever. A decade ago, the deadly illness swept through her nation. Most of the infected perished, while many of the children who survived were left with strange markings. Adelina’s black hair turned silver, her lashes went pale, and now she has only a jagged scar where her left eye once was. Her cruel father believes she is a malfetto, an abomination, ruining their family’s good name and standing in the way of their fortune. But some of the fever’s survivors are rumored to possess more than just scars—they are believed to have mysterious and powerful gifts, and though their identities remain secret, they have come to be called the Young Elites.
Teren Santoro works for the king. As Leader of the Inquisition Axis, it is his job to seek out the Young Elites, to destroy them before they destroy the nation. He believes the Young Elites to be dangerous and vengeful, but it’s Teren who may possess the darkest secret of all.
Enzo Valenciano is a member of the Dagger Society. This secret sect of Young Elites seeks out others like them before the Inquisition Axis can. But when the Daggers find Adelina, they discover someone with powers like they’ve never seen.
Adelina wants to believe Enzo is on her side, and that Teren is the true enemy. But the lives of these three will collide in unexpected ways, as each fights a very different and personal battle. But of one thing they are all certain: Adelina has abilities that shouldn’t belong in this world. A vengeful blackness in her heart. And a desire to destroy all who dare to cross her.
Genre: Fantasy, Dystopian, Young Adult
Series: The Young Elites - first book out of the triology
Age Group: Young Adult novel however can be read by anyone 12+
My thoughts.
The Young Elites is unlike anything I've read before. It's dark, thrilling and unique. Mixed with fantasy and magic, this book is an absolute pleasure to read because it's unpredictable and impossible to guess what will happen next/ It's not a typical feel good story with sunshines and daisies so if you're looking for something that will make you feel warm and fuzzy inside, you will be severely disappointed.
But that's not to say The Young Elites isn't a good book. Far from that in fact.
The characterrs, espeically Adelina Amouteru are very 3D and real. This sounds like a funny statement and even as I write it, I'm puzzling over how to better explain what I mean. The characters in the book have their strengths, they have their weaknesses, they can be light but they can be just as dark and scary. And when they are pushed too hard, they can fall over the edge into darkness, much like what happens to the characters throughout the book. The characters are very unpredictable and there is no knowing what they'll do next.
One final thing that is absolutely brilliant about this series (I know I say that a lot, but I promise it really is!) is the blur between good and bad. There is no clear distinction in the book between who is good and who is bad and it's impossible to try and figure out. There is only survive.
So this is the part for the people who have read the book, and if you haven't stop reading it otherwise you'll spoil the book for yourself!
First thing, let's chat about the characters. I talked a little about them above but I want to further elaborate. I love how Adelina isn't the perfect protagonist. I like how she is dark, can be quite revengful and unpredictable. It makes sense seeing the way she grew up - with a father who hated her and a sister who was the supposedly perfect one.
I didn't like Enzo much. His ulterior motive for rescuing Adelina made me quite wary of him. I also didn't like how he refused to help other elites if they didn't have any purpose for him. I wasn't too sad when he died, more shocked that Adelina was the one who accidently killed him but it was understandable seeing how she couldn't control her power.
Raffaele was someone else I was wary of because during the perspective changes when he and Enzo would converse, it was apparent, he too only wanted Adelina for her power and what she could do for The Young Elites. It was apparent Adelina quite liked Raffaele not only for his looks but also for his kindness, none of which turned out to be very real at the end of the book. However, there is a small part of me who believes Raffaele did like Adelina. But he was more loyal towards Enzo and instead continued with The Young Elites work and betrayed Adelina.
Teren doesn't appear in the book as much as he does in the second one but I quite liked the way Marie Lu portrayed his character. And another character, Adelina's sister Violetta being a Young Elite was also a surprise for me! Not something I expected at all.
All in all, an absolutely wonderful story and one that I enjoyed throughouly! If you would like me to do a book review on the second book, which is the Rose Society, leave a comment below letting me know and I'll try and write one!
0 happy thoughts