Legion Lost

PARANORMAL/SCI-FI/DYSTOPIAN:  In a dystopian world, families live underground, hiding from the System now ruling above. When her family comes under attack by the dreaded System, one girl must try to survive on her own, on the surface. To do so she adopts the name and personality of a boy, Raja, and tries to find solace with the Legion. Children can leave their pasts behind there, and start life anew. If she submits herself to the Legion, she will be granted full citizenship within the System at age 20. 

The majority of the book focuses on Raja while she’s in the Legion, the friendships she forges, and a heavy dose of romance too. However, while Raja’s personality traits work and she behaves like an actual human being, some of the other characters don’t. Their personality traits are often so out of proportion that they seem more like stereotypes of how characters should behave, rather than actual people. This was particularly so for the band of teenage soldiers, the South Tower Rejects. The characters are diverse, which is to be applauded, but their personalities didn’t seem very realistic. Despite that, the plot is interesting, and the ending entices readers to find out more. The dystopian world K.C. Finn has crafted offers unique world-building, whereas most dystopian books have a rather generic world system, which makes it stand out as well. Nicely done! 

Majanka Verstraete