"Legend" by Marie Lu (UPDATED 1-4-12)

Legend by Marie Lu is teen fiction that takes place in a futuristic Los Angeles.  It is told by a young boy named Day and a young woman named June.  Day is an outlaw and is wanted by the Republic.  June is a member of the Army of the Republic.  They are on opposite sides, or are they?  Legend is so good that the movie rights have already been sold.  If you loved "Hunger Games" and "Divergent," you will love Legend too.  I look forward to the second book in this series.
(Gerard's review)



Legend by Marie Lu is a futuristic teen romantic thriller about a fugitive 15-yr.-old, Day from the slums, who is passionate about protecting his family and helping people, even if it means going against the Republic. When June, a Republic agent and military prodigy from a wealthy family, thinks Day is responsible for killing her brother when trying to steal the cure for the plague to cure his youngest brother, she hunts Day down. This is a fun, adventurous novel that is a page turner. 

Favorite quote from this book:

“I never did ask you about your street name. Why 'Day'?”
“Each day means a new twenty-four hours. Each day means everything's possible again. You live in the moment, you die in the moment, you take it all one day at a time.”

I liked how the author alternated telling the story between Day and June.  It kept my interest and was also easy to follow.  Although somewhat predictable, I enjoyed it very much and was rooting for Day and June to become friends from the start.  I recommend this to anyone who likes action and romance.

(Karen's review:  My rating: 5 of 5 stars)


Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

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Teaser Tuesday: "Legend" and "Murder Past Due"

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should  Be Reading. Anyone can play along, so I thought  I  would play for fun! Just do the following

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on  that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away!   You don’t  want  to  ruin the  book for others!)
• Share the title and author, too, so that other TT participants can  add the book to their TBR  Lists  if they  like your teaser.   

Gerard's:

"You're too late," she says. "Because today the plague patrol is coming for your family. They're taking them away."

From pg. 145 of Legend by Marie Lu.

Karen's:

The last thing I wanted was to get involved in the life of one of my boarders. If Justin's problem turned out to be serious, he would have to go home to his parents.

From page 13 of Murder Past Due by Miranda James.

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"Weight of Silence" by Heather Gudenkauf

The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The Weight of Silence by Heather Gudenkauf is a page-turner that grabbed my attention right from the start. A young girl is abducted and her friend, Calli is also missing. Calli is seven but hasn't spoken since she was four. I liked this book because it wasn't predictable and deals with a lot of different issues such as family dynamics, alcoholism, old flames, police investigation, selective mutism and friendship. It is a fast read and contains discussion questions at the end. I recommend this book if you like contemporary fiction about families.


(Karen's review 2/11/10)--Also enjoyed These Things Hidden

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

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"Keep Your Brain Alive: 83 Neurobic Exercises" by Lawrence Katz

This is a quick-read but very interesting and practical. The gist of the book is to improve memory, you need to keep your brain active and use all of your senses. “Routines can be brain deadening.” Basically, learn to enjoy new experiences, change things around, interact with people and change up routines.

The most startling thing I learned from reading this book is: "Research has shown that watching television literally numbs the mind: The brain is less active during TV-viewing than during sleep!" (p. 117)

Gerard gave me this one for my birthday--thanks, honey!  You need to read it too!

(Karen's review--My rating: 5 of 5 stars)


Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

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"Double Booked For Murder" by Ali Brandon

Double Booked For Death—a Black Cat Bookshop Mystery by Ali Brandon is about solving the mystery of a popular author’s death when at a book signing in an independent book store owned by Darla.  This is a cozy mystery that Darla and her ex-cop friend, Jake, who also acts as her security guard for the bookstore tries to solve.  This is a fun read because it includes Hamlet, the bookstore cat and some interesting twists along the way as clues are eventually connected.  

I just couldn’t resist reading a mystery about a cat and a bookstore but was a bit disappointed the cat didn't have a bigger role.  Although the cat is on the cover, it really is incidental to the story.  The ending was really fun!  I’m not much on cozy mysteries, but this is the best I’ve read so far.  

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

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