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verosnotebook 's review for:
The Young Elites
by Marie Lu
"Everyone has darkness inside them, however hidden.”
"Be true to yourself. But that's something everyone says and no one means. No one wants you to be yourself. They want you to be the version of yourself that they like.”
I didn't really know what to expect from this YA fantasy. It took a little while to get into the narrative, which is told from three main points of view. Adelina is not your usual heroine. She is flawed, like all human beings, but the abuse suffered at the hands of her father, and indeed the society around her, have deeply scarred her, more so than the loss of her eye to the blood fever. Her struggles and choices are only too natural, even when she makes mistakes. And it isn't just her - everyone in this book has a compromised moral compass, each seeing just what they want to see (or believe), whether by decision or circumstance. Everyone uses everyone, and in this aspect, I applaud the author for giving us such a psychologically interesting landscape.
The Young Elites feels very much like tragedy - a car crash taking shape right in front of our eyes, each factor making total sense, and yet leading inexorably to the sad result. I couldn't help hoping for the best, wishing for the players to 'wake up', but Lu gives us something much more realistic, even if adorned with magic. In a way, this is refreshing and I am curious to see where the author is going to take this.
"Be true to yourself. But that's something everyone says and no one means. No one wants you to be yourself. They want you to be the version of yourself that they like.”
I didn't really know what to expect from this YA fantasy. It took a little while to get into the narrative, which is told from three main points of view. Adelina is not your usual heroine. She is flawed, like all human beings, but the abuse suffered at the hands of her father, and indeed the society around her, have deeply scarred her, more so than the loss of her eye to the blood fever. Her struggles and choices are only too natural, even when she makes mistakes. And it isn't just her - everyone in this book has a compromised moral compass, each seeing just what they want to see (or believe), whether by decision or circumstance. Everyone uses everyone, and in this aspect, I applaud the author for giving us such a psychologically interesting landscape.
The Young Elites feels very much like tragedy - a car crash taking shape right in front of our eyes, each factor making total sense, and yet leading inexorably to the sad result. I couldn't help hoping for the best, wishing for the players to 'wake up', but Lu gives us something much more realistic, even if adorned with magic. In a way, this is refreshing and I am curious to see where the author is going to take this.