The Sunday Review: CHAMPION – Marie Lu

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 existence. June is back in the good graces of the Republic, working within the government’s elite circles as Princeps-Elect, while Day has been assigned a high-level military position.

But neither could have predicted the circumstances that will reunite them: just when a peace treaty is imminent, a plague outbreak causes panic in the Colonies, and war threatens the Republic’s border cities. This new strain of plague is deadlier than ever, and June is the only one who knows the key to her country’s defense. But saving the lives of thousands will mean asking the one she loves to give up everything.

With heart-pounding action and suspense, Marie Lu’s bestselling trilogy draws to a stunning conclusion. – Goodreads

The final installment of the Legend trilogy had a lot of action to cover. The Republic is in trouble, and aid seems unlikely. Anden and June must turn to what remains of the patriots – working with Day, of course – to make good use of their guerrilla tactics to fend off the Colonies’ forces.

To further complicate matters, an old enemy is lurking in the shadows waiting for a chance to target June and Day. And Day is faced with a difficult decision  – between family and country – while dealing with his own health issues.

I honestly can’t remember what happened at the end of Prodigy vs. the beginning of Champion, so I’m going to err on the side of less spoilers. So that’s all I’m going to say about the major plot points.

I suppose I liked this book a bit better than the previous two, if for no other reason than it allows for more emotional realism (well, in places) than the other two books. There’s a lot more inner turmoil, a lot more of Day and June thinking about how they actually feel, and trying to do what’s best for one another, even if it feels impossible.

Day’s continued devotion to his brother is nearly heartbreaking at times, and yet Eden’s bravery and selflessness really make you love the kid. In fact, a lot of the interaction between other characters centres around Eden, and he’s the one thing everyone seems to have in common at times.

The action sequences were detailed (perhaps sometimes overly so) and intense, but with a few eye rolls along the way (Me: “Really? You THROW THE OTHER GUY’S GUN OFF THE ROOF? That’s just stupid.”)

But they definitely did their job, and the fighting jumps off the page and will have you holding your breath in several places.

Lu did a good job of wrapping up the storylines, even if some of it was a little shallow. I wasn’t thrilled with the ending – but I didn’t hate it as much as I thought I would either, and I think that a lot of people would find it fitting and satisfying.

So the verdict on this series? I think it was middling to good – I probably would have enjoyed it more if I hadn’t read so many similar YA books and series in the recent past.

Recommended for: Hunger Games fans, action and romance junkies (even if it’s not always completely realistic).

Puppy dog spoiler: I can’t read a book with an animal in it without being overly obsessed with whether the animal will make it. I would always, ALWAYS rather know ahead of time if an animal makes it, because I won’t read a book if they don’t. So this is for any other weirdos like me. I’m not going to tell you anything that happens in the epilogue, but I will tell you that Ollie makes it to the end of the book – i.e. doesn’t get killed in the fighting, no big epic scene where he sacrifices himself to save anyone or anything like that.

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