My Rating: ★★★★ or 4 stars
My Songs: It’s Time (Acoustic) by Imagine Dragons
These songs are personal to me, they remind me of this book (they may be songs that were popular during the time that I read this, with lyrics that relate to this book or it might just be random)
Synopsis: In an alternate United States, love has been declared a dangerous disease, and the government forces everyone who reaches eighteen to have a procedure called the Cure. Living with her aunt, uncle, and cousins in Portland, Maine, Lena Haloway is very much looking forward to being cured and living a safe, predictable life. She watched love destroy her mother and isn’t about to make the same mistake.
But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena meets enigmatic Alex, a boy from the “Wilds” who lives under the government’s radar. What will happen if they do the unthinkable and fall in love?
Review: This book is a journey. It is in my top ten books even though it only has a 4-star rating. When I first read this book, I was entranced and I loved it so much but after rereading it I realised that this book isn’t as amazing as when I first read it. The story is one that has stuck with me for ages so that is why it is my top ten. There is one thing that kind of let this book down otherwise it was incredible. In this book, love is a disease; when you turn 18 the government forces you to get an injection that stops you from feeling love and any other strong emotions. Magdalena (or Lena) is soon reaching the age where she is injected with the ‘cure’. She then meets Alex, an outlaw who is against the government system and lives in the ‘Wilds’. Alex and Lena meet however Alex doesn’t tell Lena that he is from the Wilds. When Lena is told, she is at first hesitant however she and Alex soon start growing closer eventually falling in love. She must keep her relationship with Alex a secret all the while figuring out whether she should have the ‘Cure’ or become an outlaw.
The actual story of the book is so exciting and gripping. I didn’t want to put it down! The plot line is great with some twist in there. I have read the full series and there are twists that are carried through each book. Lauren Oliver helps construct the world with children’s songs and rules. It really helps you imagine this world as if it were real. Some people have told me that it is incredibly similar to Matched by Allie Condie (I haven’t read this, I don’t know if I plan on doing so either because there’s a love triangle!) in the sense that people are matched with people for marriage. I actually found arranged marriage in YA books quite interesting so I searched into some more books like this and found ‘The Book of Ivy by Amy Engel and I loved this book. If you want a book kind of similar to Delirium I highly suggest this!
I mostly loved Lauren Oliver’s writing style. She described things with such accuracy and detail that you can imagine so clearly. The language that she uses helps capture the scene fully especially when there is scenery such as waterfalls. If Maine looks like how she describes, guess where is next on my travel list?! Seriously though, she highlights how they live in a severely monitored area and the urgency of some of the situations in for example (*spoiler alert skip to the next paragraph*) When Lena is at a party that gets raided by the police and then she is bitten by a rabid dog and seriously injured. This just shows how dangerous the society they live in is.
The only complaint that I have was that there was a lack of character development. I didn’t realise this until I reread this book. Alex’s character isn’t really described so I couldn’t really grasp Lena’s and Alex’s relationship as a whole. The only things that I know about Alex are that he has autumn leaf colour hair, amber eyes and is quite acute in his thinking. Other than that I’m afraid I don’t know much else. When I did realise this I was kind of disappointed. I had loved this book so much for so long that when I found a fault in this I was sad that it wasn’t as ‘amazing’ as I had thought. After a while, I accepted it and I still love the story of this so that is why it is still in my Top Ten Books.
Other than that this is an incredible book with a great plot line, the plot twist at the end… I was just…..ugh. It was so strong and powerful and also emotional – and made me into a mess. I think that you should still read this book even though there is an underdeveloped character, the book isn’t perfect but the story is amazing.
Diary of a Book Addict 