The Midnight Star by Marie Lu
Book Stats:
Reading level: Young AdultGenre: Fantasy
Hardcover: 336 pages
Publisher: G.P. Putnam Sons Book for Young Readers
Release date: October 11, 2016
Series: The Young Elites, #3
Source: Library
Reviewed by: Kara
Order: Amazon | Book Depository
There was once a time when darkness shrouded the world, and the darkness had a queen.
Adelina Amouteru is done suffering. She’s turned her back on those who have betrayed her and achieved the ultimate revenge: victory. Her reign as the White Wolf has been a triumphant one, but with each conquest her cruelty only grows. The darkness within her has begun to spiral out of control, threatening to destroy all she's gained.
When a new danger appears, Adelina’s forced to revisit old wounds, putting not only herself at risk, but every Elite. In order to preserve her empire, Adelina and her Roses must join the Daggers on a perilous quest—though this uneasy alliance may prove to be the real danger.
The
final dark tale of Adelina and the Young Elites ends with sacrifice,
beautiful storytelling, and revelations for the deepest questions of the
heart.
I
can't say enough how I really like this series and how different it is
from other things that are out there in YA. Adelina's growth from a
scared girl who discovers she has power and influence to the
queen/empress responsible for death, destruction, betrayal, and abuse of
power should make the reader unsympathetic, possibly even to the point
of intense dislike for her. After all, how do you like a villain?
But,
this series is one of the few where I am surprised I DO like the
villain. Yes, she's flawed and consumed by her depth of ambition and
hunger for any brand of "justice", even one that crosses lines of
morality. However, she also shows an inner conflict, a mental
instability caused by her abuse and her powers (which could be symbolic
for a real mental illness), and a deep thirst for love, affection, and
acceptance, which due to her upbringing, she never received except from
her sister (who later betrays her thus causing more violent
consequences). I really love the conflict of Adelina's insanity and her
bloodlust rivaled with her desire for power, love, and the fear she
weaves into the hearts of others. It makes the ending that much more
powerful.
One
of the other fantastic things about this series are the characters. You
really remember Enzo, Raffaele, Teren, and the rest long after you've
read the series, and each of the Young Elites has their gifts but also
has their own loyalties and reads just like real people. When many of
the Young Elites have to band together to even begin to stop the horrors
occurring in the land, it is strangely a scene of forgiveness, of
common alliance at their similar fates, and still they mistrust each
other. It is symbolic of how something that benefits everyone could be
achieved if all parties set aside their hatred, their selfishness, and
their past trespasses to really work as a team. Usually in stories, it
is the heroes versus the villains, but in this case, it's the heroes and
the villains having to come to a middle ground to reach a common goal.
Very thought provoking and unlike other books out there!
One
of the things I loved most about this novel was that while it had an
entirely different flavor than the previous two which were increasingly
dark and felt reminiscent of Assassin's Creed, it also is the
most poetic of the three and really brought out the gift of storytelling
that Marie Lu has. I cannot say much more without telling elements that
are essential to the final bits of the book. I never could have
predicted that outcome; so wow! the twist was shocking, beautiful, and I
cried. But no spoilers here! The cover is lovely and at the end of the
novel, the reader must contemplate the cover and the title with the
novel's resolution. Let me know what you think of the ending!
