I went into this expecting something very similar to [b:Legend|9275658|Legend (Legend, #1)|Marie Lu|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1333909141s/9275658.jpg|14157512] - which I really enjoyed - and was more than pleasantly surprised to find something completely different. The Young Elites was darker, more complex, and more mature, but kept all the things that I really love about Marie Lu's books. It's the senior year to Legend's admittedly spectacular freshman year.

Mostly because it was presented on the cover in a similar way to Legend, I was expecting a futuristic dystopia, but instead was presented with a historical fantasy which I LOVED. There were twists and turns that I didn't see coming, and a fantastic pacing that sucked you in. Adelina was a fantastic protagonist, filled with complexities and insecurities.

The thing that really stands out to me about Marie Lu's writing - and it's something that we don't see enough of - is the brilliant way that she writes characters of colour and queer characters. That is, they're just there. She uses the fantasy setting to re-design a society to her choosing and I absolutely love it. The complex relationships between the characters, particularly between Adelina, Enzo and Raffaele, took everything that we love about love triangles and similar tropes without actually being a love triangle (thank goodness).

In short, make sure you read this. And I can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy.