Champion by Marie Lu

Series: Legend #3
Pages: 369
Date Released: November 5, 2013
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Rating: ☆☆☆☆

The explosive finale to Marie Lu’s New York Times bestselling LEGEND trilogy—perfect for fans of THE HUNGER GAMES and DIVERGENT!

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 once again. 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 he has. With heart-pounding action and suspense, Marie Lu’s bestselling trilogy draws to a stunning conclusion.

Note: There are spoilers for Legend and Prodigy in this review.

Let's just take a moment to admire the beautiful quality of that cover. It's almost just as beautiful as this book. Now, I have to point out first that the ending wasn't what I expected at all. I honestly thought that Lu was going to pull a Veronica Roth on us. Just saying. But she didn't, and I'm so glad. But she pulled something that broke my heart, and my friends at school thought I was having a seizure or something. (Yes, I read at school, and while reading this ending in class, I was pretty much hyperventilating.)

But putting the end aside--it was amazingly yet heartbreakingly executed--Champion was solid. Real solid. Usually, third books are difficult to keep interesting and yet continue on with the plot. I have to admit that Champion did struggle with this a bit. Sure, it was interesting enough, but there were times where I wanted to read just one point of view. The spilt views is...unique...but sometimes June would be really intriguing me but then Lu would cut the chapter off and move onto Day. Like, no. I'm sorry. I love you, Day, but I want to hear from June right now. And vice versa. But I will say that Lu does well with two points of views, which I'm happy about.

There was this one scene (multiple scenes, actually) where June is in Antarctica with Arden doing her Princeps-Elect duties. The entire prospect of life being a game in Antarctica is so interesting that I almost wish that we could have that right now. The whole system seems to work out nicely with Antarctica. And it's weird to read a book where Antarctica is inhabited and appears to be the leading country regarding economics and defense. I think I'm still a bit stuck on the fact that there is civilization in Antarctica.

I loved the characters in Champion way more than when they were in Legend and Prodigy. For one, June isn't blindly following a government that could very well be deceiving her (which they were, but who cares now?), and Day wasn't...well, I don't know. Day is nice in every book. I just liked him in here more for some reason. Probably because his brother Eden is back.

The bond that Day shares with his brother makes me all warm inside. Day loves his brother so much, and it's apparent in the book. Eden is always in the back of Day's mind when he makes decisions, and to me, that's love. When you think about others more than yourself, that's love.

I think it was a mix of characters, emotion, and the right amount of romance and action that made me love this book all the more. Champion was definitely a strong finish for the trilogy, and I'm glad that I spent the time to read the previous two books. I feel very satisfied with the ending, therefore I can see one or two rereads in the future.

If you've read Legend and Prodigy but not Champion, go and read Champion now! It's definitely worth it. And if you haven't read Legend yet and you decided to read this review even though I said that there would be spoilers (were there? I can't tell), then go and read the first book!