“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.”
This is the first time that I’ll be writing a trilogy or series review so bear with me. This review will be filled with spoilers but I’ll try my best not to spoil too much.
Also before jumping to the review, I would like to mention that this is also my May wrap-up because I only read these books in May. So without further ado, let’s get into the review!
RATING: 🌕🌕🌕🌕🌗 (4.5/5 moons)
Published: November 29, 2011
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Format: Hardcover (305 pages)
SYNOPSIS: From different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths…
Until June’s brother is murdered, and Day becomes the prime suspect.
In a shocking turn of events, the two uncover what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths to which their country will go to keep its secrets.
RATING: 🌕🌕🌑🌑🌑 (2/5 moons)
Published: January 29, 2013
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Format: Hardcover (371 pages)
SYNOPSIS: Injured and on the run, it has been seven days since June and Day barely escaped Los Angeles and the Republic with their lives. Day is believed dead having lost his own brother to an execution squad who thought they were assassinating him. June is now the Republic’s most wanted traitor. Desperate for help, they turn to the Patriots – a vigilante rebel group sworn to bring down the Republic. But can they trust them or have they unwittingly become pawns in the most terrifying of political games?
RATING: 🌕🌕🌕🌑🌑 (3/5 moons)
Published: November 05, 2013
Publisher: Putnam Juvenile
Format: Hardcover (369 pages)
SYNOPSIS: 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.
THOUGHTS:
Back in the days when dystopian genre was at its peak, this trilogy is one the most love trilogy at that time but it never really piqued my interest. Like any other dystopian book, it has the element of controlling government, kick-ass rebel characters and the inevitable death of their love ones yet I never picked it up back then.
I really enjoyed the first book with its world building, plot twist and a bit of romance. Marie Lu has painted the world and its government perfectly in my mind. I have envisioned the world that June and Day walk into every single day. There are also quite a few plot twist here and there but some are quite predictable. However, I am not a fan of Day; not that he isn’t great or anything but I’m not attached to him. That’s probably the reason why the blow that he received in this book does not affect me that much. Nonetheless, the first book was enjoyable. I immediately read the second book after because that’s how much I love the first book. But then when I started reading…
I was really disappointed with the second book, hence the 2 moons rating. While the first book is fast-paced, the second book was dragging. The pacing is too slow and the build up for the climax and the climax itself felt flat. It was predictable to the point where as the story builds up and as the chapter goes on, you just want to reach the climax and get it over with because you already know what will happen. What fuels my frustration even more is Tess. I liked her in the first book and I feel like her character had been ruined for me in this book. I really don’t get the forced love triangle in this book. Plus the main characters’ character development went down the hill for me or maybe it’s just their POV that does not feel like them, if you compared it with the first book, especially with Day. And the ending is so dramatic & frustrating at the same time. To be honest, it was a struggle for me to finish the second book.
After reading a lot of dystopian books, I know that the black-hole in every trilogy is the second book so I haven’t given up with this trilogy after that. I was hoping and wishing for a revival for this trilogy with the last and final book but it did not meet my expectation. However, there are good parts in this book compared to the second book and also the first book. But there are also bad and very bad parts that sealed my decision for a 3 moons. Let’s talk about the bad and very bad point of this book first…
The first thing that I do not like about this book is Day. Yes, he has his moments here and there but I feel like his role as a whole is more of the damsel in distress rather than the knight in shining armor. He is a liability rather than an asset, he is a decoy rather than the main act. And let’s talk about that ending. I am not one of those people who found that ending heartbreaking and the epilogue as heartwarming. It is a common story line in Philippine TV dramas – (a.k.a. teleserye) most of its plot twist is the cliche kidnapping of the main character or the poor main character will have an amnesia, becomes rich and seeks revenge to those who belittle him/her – which is why it does not impress me. It’s not an appealing idea as well that June is the only one carrying the burden of the past event that transpire in the whole story. I would rather see them heal on their own separately rather than play the amnesia card.
Well the good thing about this trilogy, which I have not seen in any other dystopian book, is the relationship of the main character with the government. The story started with a feud between the government and the main character, June & Day; but as the story goes on, they realized that what they hate is not the system itself but those official seated in the government. And as the story progress and their new elector carry out some changes that causes the rebellion, they figured out that their enemy does not lie inside their country anymore but outside. Furthermore, in this final book, they stand with their government to fight the bigger enemy that threatens to destroy the country that they know and love; and that is probably the reason why the trilogy as a whole stands out with the other popular dystopian series/trilogy. Moreover, we can see the aftermath of the transition of the new elector and the effect that it caused in the government and the people.
I think that I read these books in the wrong time. If I have only read it back in the days where dystopian was at its peak and I’ve been so obsess with finding something that could match my love for The Hunger Games, I am 100% sure that I would love this trilogy as much as The Hunger Games.
I still recommend this trilogy to anyone who wants to read dystopian or looking for a recommendation after reading The Hunger Games, Divergent, Shatter Me, The Darkest Minds, etc.
And thank you so much for reading this super long trilogy review.
Till next time!
Maria ❤
A Daughter of Parchment and Paper 