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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Overall just kind of an okay read. I was vaguely interested and read it pretty fast, but the key word there is "vaguely." I never felt highly invested in the characters or the stakes. Nothing really stood out to me as a wow factor. Adelina didn't even really grip me as a heroine- she had a YA immaturity that doesn't attract me as a reader anymore. While I wasn't captivated, I'll still be continuing the trilogy and hoping that it garners more of my attention.
"We cannot afford a weak link in a country that wants us dead... and I will do everything in my power to make sure you are a strong link."
"We cannot afford a weak link in a country that wants us dead... and I will do everything in my power to make sure you are a strong link."
THe beginning of a great series. Can't wait to read the rest of it.
4.5
This book is amazing; it had the first book syndrome, was really slow at first but once the story picked up speed, it was phenomenal. A fantasy that had all the elements and was unique at the same time.
This book is amazing; it had the first book syndrome, was really slow at first but once the story picked up speed, it was phenomenal. A fantasy that had all the elements and was unique at the same time.
4,5 stars
First read: May 2015
Second read: January 2017
First read: May 2015
Second read: January 2017
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
No quiero repetirme porque ya lo he dicho todo en Goodreads, pero vaya puñetero fracaso. De libro, de historia, de personajes, de todo. No vuelvo a tocar nada de Marie Lu.
I thought The Young Elites was interesting! I liked it, and I wanted to like it more, because I really liked the concept.
Something about the book made me think of the Spanish Inquistion and even the Salem Witch Trials. I mean, the Young Elites are hunted down and killed because they're different. Anyone suspected of being a malfetto was destroyed, and it's interesting that Teren should be the leader of those tasked with finding the Young Elites.
I really liked Adelina, and she's dark and twisted and hurt, but she also really cares about her sister. No one is good or bad in this book, and everyone is very much shades of grey.
I didn't particularly care for Enzo, and I think his chapters were my least favorite. Teren, though, was interesting. I didn't particularly like him, but I do understand why he acted the way he did. I really wish we saw more of Raffaele! I would have been happy if we had more chapters with him than with Enzo, but that wasn't something that happened. Hopefully there is more of him in the rest of the series, should I continue on with it.
I'm not surprised that this book was a fantasy book, but I think part of me was expecting some dystopic or post-apocalyptic elements. When you start talking about an illness that killed people, but the surviving children come out different...well, I was expecting something a little different. It's darker than I thought it would be, and I am curious about what will happen next. I don't know if I want to continue the series- while I liked The Young Elites, I don't know if I like it enough to keep going. Maybe one day I'll pick it up, but if I do, I'll most likely get it from the library.
I never really got a clear picture of the Fortunata Court, and even though we have a map at the beginning of the book, I never really got a good sense of where everything was in relation to each other. I felt like the Fortunata Court in particular was sort of vague, and I'm not hopeful that we'll get a better picture of it. I'm still hoping, of course, but I don't want to be overly hopeful and then have that come crashing down because it wasn't described the way I wanted it to be.
My Rating: 3 stars, I liked it, but I had a hard time getting into it.
Something about the book made me think of the Spanish Inquistion and even the Salem Witch Trials. I mean, the Young Elites are hunted down and killed because they're different. Anyone suspected of being a malfetto was destroyed, and it's interesting that Teren should be the leader of those tasked with finding the Young Elites.
I really liked Adelina, and she's dark and twisted and hurt, but she also really cares about her sister. No one is good or bad in this book, and everyone is very much shades of grey.
I didn't particularly care for Enzo, and I think his chapters were my least favorite. Teren, though, was interesting. I didn't particularly like him, but I do understand why he acted the way he did. I really wish we saw more of Raffaele! I would have been happy if we had more chapters with him than with Enzo, but that wasn't something that happened. Hopefully there is more of him in the rest of the series, should I continue on with it.
I'm not surprised that this book was a fantasy book, but I think part of me was expecting some dystopic or post-apocalyptic elements. When you start talking about an illness that killed people, but the surviving children come out different...well, I was expecting something a little different. It's darker than I thought it would be, and I am curious about what will happen next. I don't know if I want to continue the series- while I liked The Young Elites, I don't know if I like it enough to keep going. Maybe one day I'll pick it up, but if I do, I'll most likely get it from the library.
I never really got a clear picture of the Fortunata Court, and even though we have a map at the beginning of the book, I never really got a good sense of where everything was in relation to each other. I felt like the Fortunata Court in particular was sort of vague, and I'm not hopeful that we'll get a better picture of it. I'm still hoping, of course, but I don't want to be overly hopeful and then have that come crashing down because it wasn't described the way I wanted it to be.
My Rating: 3 stars, I liked it, but I had a hard time getting into it.
This is a different approach in storytelling for me. The heroine of the story does not seem to be the hero but at the same time is (I know, it's confusing!)
Adelina shows that there is darkness in all but its the shades of darkness and how much light we let in that makes the difference. She is someone torn with two totally opposing personalities.
While reading this, there were times that I had to drop it and ran to another room because either 1.) I can't believe she did something and it hurts or 2.) she did something stupid that makes me want to give up on her.
All in all I can't wait for the next book cause I can already see this is interesting and entertaining approach to Dystopian Fiction
Adelina shows that there is darkness in all but its the shades of darkness and how much light we let in that makes the difference. She is someone torn with two totally opposing personalities.
While reading this, there were times that I had to drop it and ran to another room because either 1.) I can't believe she did something and it hurts or 2.) she did something stupid that makes me want to give up on her.
All in all I can't wait for the next book cause I can already see this is interesting and entertaining approach to Dystopian Fiction
The Young Elites is a fast-paced YA high fantasy that both plays with a lot of recognizable fantasy standards and also often subverts them. Unlike many fantasy heroines, Adelina doesn’t start off as an uncertain main character who learns a little along the way and grows into self-confidence. While Adelina learns and grows, as all good main characters should, her character growth breaks outside the norm.
See, Adelina is a dark and tortured character from the beginning, but unlike many, she knows it. She might still have some learning to do about her powers and how they manifest and what she’s capable of, but from a personality standpoint, she knows exactly who she is. Adelina is cunning and cut-throat, and she’s not about to let anything stand in her way–which is not to say she’s completely closed off to others. While Adelina is guarded, she will sometimes let other people in. She cares deeply about her sister and that plays out in the story over and over again, but Adelina has no qualms about who she is. She’s not a nice person, and she knows it, and I kind of love her for it.
I also really thought The Young Elites was well-paced and well-plotted. It was a little confusing to be thrown into the world at first, but Lu did a good job of introducing the reader and not relying on info-dumps for the most part(though I did feel like there was a little of this at the beginning). It doesn’t take long for Adelina to learn she is a Young Elite and what she can do–the whole self-discovery part of the plot happens extremely quickly in this one, and it works. It leaves more time for scheming and blackmail and growth.
At first the world in The Young Elites seems rather simple. There’s a blood fever, and it can have side effects of oh yeah, giving children who survive it, often with physical disfigurations, special powers. I was willing to go with this premise, though I had questions. Over time, however, Lu really builds up the world around Adelina and shows that this is a complex world filled with complex characters.
There are a few other characters that The Young Elites closely follows. I’m not going to get too much into talking about them specifically, but I wanted to point out that for characters who sometimes don’t get much page time, they’re remarkably well-developed. A few of them do get some significant chunks of the text, but I was still amazed at just how real they felt and how soon.
However, those characters also lead to my only real complaint with The Young Elites. Adelina’s chapters are told in first person, but then the story sometimes cuts to another character–and sections are all done in third person. This sort of point of view device was really irritating as a reader, because every single time there was a character jump it completely jarred me out of the story, and it felt like a way around having to really differ two character’s narrative voices. I would have much preferred it all be in first person or third person, and stay limited to that narration the entire time. It felt shocking to suddenly be pulled out of a first person perspective and into a third person perspective, and then back again. While the story of The Young Elites was excellent, this style of story-telling really hindered my complete enjoyment.
This review first appeared Book.Blog.Bake.
See, Adelina is a dark and tortured character from the beginning, but unlike many, she knows it. She might still have some learning to do about her powers and how they manifest and what she’s capable of, but from a personality standpoint, she knows exactly who she is. Adelina is cunning and cut-throat, and she’s not about to let anything stand in her way–which is not to say she’s completely closed off to others. While Adelina is guarded, she will sometimes let other people in. She cares deeply about her sister and that plays out in the story over and over again, but Adelina has no qualms about who she is. She’s not a nice person, and she knows it, and I kind of love her for it.
I also really thought The Young Elites was well-paced and well-plotted. It was a little confusing to be thrown into the world at first, but Lu did a good job of introducing the reader and not relying on info-dumps for the most part(though I did feel like there was a little of this at the beginning). It doesn’t take long for Adelina to learn she is a Young Elite and what she can do–the whole self-discovery part of the plot happens extremely quickly in this one, and it works. It leaves more time for scheming and blackmail and growth.
At first the world in The Young Elites seems rather simple. There’s a blood fever, and it can have side effects of oh yeah, giving children who survive it, often with physical disfigurations, special powers. I was willing to go with this premise, though I had questions. Over time, however, Lu really builds up the world around Adelina and shows that this is a complex world filled with complex characters.
There are a few other characters that The Young Elites closely follows. I’m not going to get too much into talking about them specifically, but I wanted to point out that for characters who sometimes don’t get much page time, they’re remarkably well-developed. A few of them do get some significant chunks of the text, but I was still amazed at just how real they felt and how soon.
However, those characters also lead to my only real complaint with The Young Elites. Adelina’s chapters are told in first person, but then the story sometimes cuts to another character–and sections are all done in third person. This sort of point of view device was really irritating as a reader, because every single time there was a character jump it completely jarred me out of the story, and it felt like a way around having to really differ two character’s narrative voices. I would have much preferred it all be in first person or third person, and stay limited to that narration the entire time. It felt shocking to suddenly be pulled out of a first person perspective and into a third person perspective, and then back again. While the story of The Young Elites was excellent, this style of story-telling really hindered my complete enjoyment.
This review first appeared Book.Blog.Bake.