Marie Lu author page

Marie Lu biography

Marie Lu is an American author recognized for her contributions to young adult science fiction and fantasy literature. Born in 1984 in Wuxi, Jiangsu, China, she moved with her family to the United States in 1989. Lu pursued higher education at the University of Southern California, where she studied political science and biology. Following her studies, she worked as an artist at Disney Interactive Studios before transitioning to a full-time writing career.

Lu’s debut novel, Legend, was published in 2011, initiating a dystopian series that includes Prodigy (2013), Champion (2013), and Rebel (2019). The series explores themes of political intrigue and societal division. She followed this with The Young Elites trilogy, comprising The Young Elites (2014), The Rose Society (2015), and The Midnight Star (2016), which delves into the complexities of power and morality.

In 2017, Lu released Warcross, the first in a duology set in a near-future virtual reality landscape, followed by Wildcard in 2018. She also authored Batman: Nightwalker (2018) as part of the DC Icons series and contributed to the Spirit Animals series with The Evertree (2015). Her standalone novel, The Kingdom of Back (2020), presents a historical fantasy narrative inspired by the life of Nannerl Mozart.

Lu’s more recent works include the Skyhunter duology—Skyhunter (2020) and Steelstriker (2021)—as well as the Stars and Smoke series, with Stars and Smoke published in 2023 and Icon and Inferno slated for release in 2024. Her adult fiction debut, Red City, is scheduled for publication in October 2025.