November 26

‘The Young Elites’ by Marie Lu

17984141Malfettos are survivors of the plague known as the blood fever, cast aside by everyone, even their loved ones, hunted down by inquisitors, all because they are marked, but some of these malfettos have manifested powers. They are called the young Elites.

The Young Elites is set in a medieval fantasy world at a time after a tragic plague has struck the land and follows one of the survivors named Adelina Amouteru on her journey. Adelina grew up with an abusive father a mother and a little sister, Violetta, in a wealthy home. When she was young, her mum, her sister and she were all infected with the blood fever. Only she and her sister survived costing Adelina an eye. Because her little sister and she were marked, her father’s business suffered, which would lead to her father constantly hurting and teasing her.

The story starts off showing Adelina eavesdropping on her father having a conversation, were he bargains her off to a man. This was the last straw for her. She ran off starting the adventure that is The Young Elites. Without spoiling too much of the story, Adelina is captured by the Inquisitors and the leader of the Young Elites saves her life. He reveals himself to be the son of the king, Enzo, who was banished from the kingdom for being a malfetto. He reveals to her his plans to overthrow the new king who has ruined the kingdom. From this point Adelina is trained by the Young Elites to use her powers of creating illusions as part of Enzo’s master plan.

The story of The Young Elites was different and more entertaining than my usual reads, and although it is set in a fantasy world, the characters’ interactions and emotions were very grounded. Everything they did had an affect on the main plot. The main character also made this story very interesting. Instead of having a cliché protagonist they have a realistic and dark hero with a tragic past. I would recommend this book to people who like good character interaction, a little edginess from their books, fantasy and action.

Gil T., Year 9

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Posted November 26, 2015 by marjk in category Adventure stories, Dystopian fiction, Mystery, Student Reviews

About the Author

Teacher-librarian at Aquinas College, Southport, Gold Coast, Australia

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