Marie Lu (born Xiwei Lu) is an American young adult author.
She was born in China in 1984 (perhaps a sign of dystopian stories to come), and moved from Beijing to Baton Rouge, Louisiana in the same year the Tiananmen Square massacre happened. Eventually she and her parents settled down in Sugar Land, Texas—which she still considers her hometown.
She is best known for the Legend series (consisting of Legend, Prodigy, and Champion), novels set in a dystopian and militarized future. Legend was optioned by CBS Films 10 months before publication (and personally, I can’t wait to see it on the big screen).
She finished her first novel when she was 15 years old, but it took her second manuscript to acquire a literary agent. When that one didn’t sell either, she went off to college in Los Angeles and wrote two more manuscripts. Although those still didn’t sell, one of them did get her the amazing literary agent Kristin Nelson, who sold her fifth manuscript, the dystopian young adult novel LEGEND, to Putnam Children’s/Penguin USA at auction in a major deal. A new (this time) fantasy series, The Young Elites, is expected in Fall 2014.
Marie Lu graduated in 2006 from USC and currently resides in Los Angeles, where she spends her time stuck on the freeways.
Warcross was an exciting story, set in a world where technology took quite a few steps forward and games became a way of living. The plot follows Emika Chen, in a labyrinth of secrets and lies, struggling among friends and enemies, trying to conceive (what seems to be) the impossible. In the beginning she is … Read more
[spacer] Almost there! [spacer] This could have been so easily a 5 stars read for me. It is indeed a very beautiful story. The writing is as amazing as Marie Lu can write, the world is strongly built, the vivid images created by the powers of the Elites are marvellous, the characters are unique and fleshed-out at … Read more
[spacer] This is one of the best conclusions to a series! [spacer] The very best. *wiping tears* Seriously! And it felt so ..right, you know? Not all butterflies and cheers and happiness, but right and real and beautiful and raw. The action, the suspense, the dramatic romance, the bittersweet ending… every moment and every page, every … Read more
Reading the first pages of this book about how this story came to be, about how Day came to exist, and peeking into Marie’s thoughts made me shiver a bit. Really! It must give her such a nostalgic feeling to look back at all those bumpy roads she had to take until her story came … Read more
[spacer] What an AMAZING story! [spacer] It’s a bit unusual for me to like more the second book in a series, but as much as I liked Legend it will never compare with this lovely book… Because, you see, Prodigy is simply (and amazingly) good: great characters, strong world building, a lot more action and … Read more
You know those books you read that seem to get only better with time? That you like the first time around, love the second time, and then love seems only to grow to adoration from there? Legend is one of those. It was everything I wanted, it’s a book I will be definitely coming back to and I can’t wait to see how the story evolves from here.