Lauren OliverCritiques

3.5 stars

This is book 3 of (I believe) a trilogy. The gist of this dytopian trilogy is that people are “cured” of a disease with a surgery when they come of age. That disease is love. They will no longer feel love. They are then paired with someone to marry. But there is a group of people who don’t want this to happen, at least to them. This book follows Lena and Hana, once best friends. Their points of view alternate.

Possible spoilers for previous books: Lena is living with a group of people in the “wilds”; she has not had the surgery nor does she want to. Hana has had the surgery and is slated to marry Fred. Fred’s father was the mayor, but he died in an uprising and Fred is now mayor. He emphasizes how much he despises the uncured. He was married previously to Cassie, but Cassie seems to have disappeared.

I listened to the audio and this was good. Once again, it took a bit for me to figure out who many of the characters were (though I knew the main characters). It was interesting to see Hana’s and Lena’s different viewpoints, given where they each were at this point in their lives. I found Hana’s POV a bit more interesting than Lena’s. I did like how it ended.½

In Lena's world, love is considered a disease - deliria. Her mother was afflicted with it and she killed herself - her last words to Lena were "I love you" - which, of course, are forbidden words. There is a cure for the deliria, though - and Lena is only months away from finally getting it. For some reason, you have to be 18 to get the cure. Anyway, she seems a little sad that she and her best friend won't have the same relationship anymore after they have been cured (because all their feelings will be deadened), but she is still looking forward to being safe from the deliria. After all, the cure makes the world a better place - peaceful...orderly...everyone is content. In this society, once you are tested/interviewed (pre-cure), you are given a future profession and a list of potential spouses - choose one, get cured, get married, have children, do your job, and live contentedly ever after. Of course, if this story really went down like that, it would have been awfully boring. And it isn't. And it doesn't happen like that at all. First of all, Lena meets a boy. Alex. Sparks fly. Could she be stricken with the dreaded deliria? Whatever will she choose to do? I could tell you...but I'm not going to. (insert evil/cheesy grin here)

Alex is a little too perfect, which was a little annoying. The potential spouse on Lena's list is a little too much the opposite of Alex, which doesn't make for any tension at all. Lena's friend is an interesting character - their friendship is written well. The aunt Lena lives with, Lena's sister, and the little girl who lives with Lena and her aunt and uncle are also good secondary characters. Lena waxes very, very, very poetic about her feelings sometimes - and since this is written in first person, I found myself thinking, "Really? Who talks like that?" But then again, this is a character who has never really been cared for or loved (well, since her mother's suicide when she was much younger), so all these new feelings would probably seem huge...overwhelming even...so, in retrospect, I guess her reactions to her feelings were probably pretty spot-on.

And then...there's the plot twist near the ending and the ending itself... Well, I can't give that away either, but I'll be purchasing the sequel. No doubt.

Gr 4–6—Cordelia Clay's father is a veterinarian for monsters, and she spends her days helping him nurse creatures
like filches, dragons, and squelches back to health. When her father disappears with their monsters, Cordelia is
determined to find them. Along the way, she meets new companions, rekindles old friendships, and learns who the
true monsters are. Oliver's invigorating tale packs a surprise at every turn and is a thoroughly entertaining read.

Representation: N/A
Trigger warnings: Death of a friend, blood, grief and loss depiction, physical illness, military violence and war themes, explosions, fire
Score: Six points out of ten.
Find this review on The StoryGraph.

Two years ago, I read the first instalment of the Delirium trilogy, Delirium, which I initially enjoyed but I later thought it as only okay after picking out the flaws. Two years later, I couldn't delay any longer. It was time to read the next part of the series: Pandemonium. The ratings were high, but in the end, Pandemonium underwhelmed me.

It starts (more like continues) with a character that needs no introduction, Lena, picking up after the events of Delirium, living in a new society away from the dystopia that is America. Speaking of, the worldbuilding is baffling to comprehend. All the government did is ban love. What for? The government allows everything else except love. It doesn't sound like a plausible dystopian world to me. Nothing happens in the first 300 pages save for Lena residing in her new residence. However, the last 40 pages quicken the pace as the government attacks the Wilds, but that begs the question: how did the government not know about the Wilds until the events of Pandemonium happened? I don't understand. It's not clear. The conclusion is shocking and finishes on a cliffhanger, but I'm undecided on whether I should read the final part, Requiem.

I can't do it. I read about 1/3 of the book and I can't continue. Perhaps I'll pick it up again and try to read it another time, when I'm desperate for something to read. The story, in a word, sucks. The only thing I am happy about is the fact that I caught this on discount and only paid $2.99 for it.

Mystery

Summary: Set in a small town, "Panic" follows a group of graduating seniors who participate in an underground game called Panic. With high stakes and dangerous challenges, contestants compete for a prize that could change their lives. The premise is intriguing, offering the potential for an intense exploration of fear and courage.


Pros:

A quiet, understated ghost story. Not scary, but a little boring.

I was all set to give it four stars, but I wasn't a fan of the ending. No real resolution, especially for Hana.

Nonstop peril. Which made you feel exhausted for our heroine, but it was still enjoyable.

I should have really disliked this book, because (1) it’s YA, which usually wallows in feelings I left behind decades ago, and (2) it’s mostly written in first-person-present-tense, which I usually hate with the heat of a thousand fiery suns. I was convinced to give it a try by two excellent reviews from people I trust, and I decided to go with audio as the FPPT style is usually less obnoxious when read aloud.

And… I truly enjoyed it. It’s well-written, and the FPPT style actually fits with the story, and I could get over the adolescent drama, because getting over it is really what this book is about. I won’t go into plot details, because that’s been done elsewhere by more skilled reviewers, but I will mention the few flaws that made this a 4 star read for me. The mawkish romance toward the end felt like an obligatory addition to the plot, because apparently, all YA must include a love story and a teen girl’s life is incomplete without it. And the love interest was a male version of the manic pixie dream girl, and the only truly unrealistic character in the book.

A word of caution: As the book starts out, the main character is a truly unpleasant person, and I felt crazy impatient with her and her friends. I might have DNF’d if I hadn’t known that this was the point of the story. I’m glad I stuck with it.

Audiobook, via Audible. Sarah Drew provides an excellent performance.

*I got this book for early review from the publisher for my honest thoughts*

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the mystery of this book so much. I read this book in about two days. It was a very fast read. I really grew to love the main characters. I would consider these characters to have moments of being "Unlikable" but they grew on me and by the end of this novel, I really enjoyed them. I love the duel timelines and how we got both past and current timelines. I loved how this book hinted at toyed with fantasy elements in some ways. It thought these characters were so well crafted and the world building was so strong. The mystery was hard to predict and I loved that. If you like mysteries like PLL or don't look back, you should def check out this book in october!!

I loved the formate of this story. I was equally invested in both sides of the story. I think i enjoyed this story so much because of how I read it, one chapter from each side. I really loved the whole cast of characters and hope in the next book (final book) we delve into the main characters as tad more. I loved the world building in this novel and also how it was so hard to predict the twists. It was a very fast pace story but so heartbreaking at points. I hope to read book 2 soon. It was the first lauren silver book that made me want to come back to the world and i hope to try out more of her other books in the future.

so good...

*I got this book for early review from the publisher for my honest thoughts*

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the mystery of this book so much. I read this book in about two days. It was a very fast read. I really grew to love the main characters. I would consider these characters to have moments of being "Unlikable" but they grew on me and by the end of this novel, I really enjoyed them. I love the duel timelines and how we got both past and current timelines. I loved how this book hinted at toyed with fantasy elements in some ways. It thought these characters were so well crafted and the world building was so strong. The mystery was hard to predict and I loved that. If you like mysteries like PLL or don't look back, you should def check out this book in october!!

I loved the formate of this story. I was equally invested in both sides of the story. I think i enjoyed this story so much because of how I read it, one chapter from each side. I really loved the whole cast of characters and hope in the next book (final book) we delve into the main characters as tad more. I loved the world building in this novel and also how it was so hard to predict the twists. It was a very fast pace story but so heartbreaking at points. I hope to read book 2 soon. It was the first lauren silver book that made me want to come back to the world and i hope to try out more of her other books in the future.

so good...

Maybe it's the fact that it's been 2 years since I read the last book and I'm kind of over this series now, but I found myself bored throughout most of the book. Which is a shame because I still remember how much I loved the first book, I even got one of my friends to read this series. Even though the first book leaves you wanting more, I kind of wished we were denied that and Delirium was a stand alone. I thought book 1 was great, book 2 not so great but ok, book 3 had me thinking "what was the point of that?" Seriously, why bother writing another book if I have to make up the ending in my head anyway? I would have much rather have only Delirium and make up more own ending for what happened after Delirium than to trudge through 2 more books whose purpose seems like it was to throw in a love triangle to add more drama.

The one thing I did like about this book was getting to see Hana's perspective after she's been cured. I found myself more interested in Hana's story than Lena's. It was interesting to see how she's changed and how she views the world now and some of the things she still struggles with even after the cure. Seeing Hana's perspective is probably the only reason I'm giving this a 2 stars. This book just left me with too many unanswered questions.

**SPOILERS AHEAD!!!**

Questions I still need answers for:
1. Did the bomb go off at Fred's house? (I don't think this was made clear)
2. Did Fred actually stay inside the house? Was he killed? (I hope so)
3. What will happen to Hana now? Will she go back to living with her parents? Will she get another match?
4. What happened to Grace's family? Are they dead?
5. What is Lena going to tell Julian now that she knows Alex still loves her and she loves him?
6. What's going to happen with ALL of the characters now? Where will Lena and Grace go?
7. Will they stay with Lena's mom? What's Lena's mom going to do now? Will she continuing moving all over the country helping the resistance fight wherever she can? Will Lena and Grace join her?
8. Will Alex join Lena and Grace? Will any of them go back to the wilds?

And now for some of the major questions:

9. What will Portland look like now after this attack?
10. Will all the cureds leave and find somewhere else to go?
11. Will the city become nothing more than a ghost town?
12. Will the invalids/resistance take control and start running things? If so, what would the new structure look like?
13. How would they go about implementing change and convincing the rest of the surviving cureds that love isn't a disease and no one should be made to get the cure?
14. Will the resistance be able to take over other cities and towns until the whole country is free or will an army of regulators come in and massacre everyone again?
15. Will the cureds find help from other cities and towns and take Portland back?

I get NO answers to any of these questions. I think you can see the frustration.

You could totally skip this one and you really wouldn't be missing much from the series. Hanna story is told from Hanna's POV during the time she and Lena were in a fight and not speaking to each other. It shows what she was doing/going through during that time. It wasn't anything super interesting or special and I really didn't care about her story.

Annabel's story is the only one in this book that sort of caught my interest and made me want to read it. We don't really find out anything new but I thought it was still interesting to see what Annabel went through in the crypts and how she escaped. I also really liked seeing more of her past and how she met Lena's dad. Annabel's story is the only one I wished was longer and I wished I could have learned more about her. Her story is the only reason I gave this a 2 stars.

Raven's story really didn't interest me at all. I didn't connect with Raven in the 2nd book (Pandemonium) and I don't connect with her in this book either. I really didn't care about her story and it was probably my least favorite of the three.

I almost DNF'd this one, and I'm still surprised I didn't. I was waiting for this book to get to the actual mystery of Dara's disappearance. I thought most of the book would be about Nick's search for her sister and how her sister's disappearance is connected to Madeline's. Turns out most of the book focused on the animosity between the two sisters and we don't begin to see the mystery until the last 1/3 of the book. Then when we finally do unravel the mystery, it ends up being a big disappointment. The climax was very underwhelming and I was bored throughout most of this book. The twist wasn't bad, but unfortunately it's been done before and done much better. If you're expecting a fast-paced mystery/thriller, this book is not it.

I just finished this book today so I'll do a review of some of my initial thoughts but I might reread it and review it again sometime next year just because at the time that I read this book I wasn't in the mood to read so I'm not sure how much of a fair review this will be. When I started this book I was kind of falling into a reading slump and I hadn't been in the mood to read for a couple of weeks which is why it took me 3 weeks to finish this book and because I read this book so slowly there are things I've probably forgot about. I will say it was a good book and it was interesting and there's a lot more action that happens in this book than in the first one. I didn't like how this book was set up. It goes back and forth between the past and present and I usually don't like it when books do that, every now and then it works but in this book it just didn't work for me. I liked the new characters, even though I didn't like Raven at times but by the end of it I was ok with her. I did like Julian's character but I didn't like that Lena moved on so quickly and gave up on Alex. I was spoiled on one of the "surprise" twist at the end so it didn't surprise me, though I'm not sure it would have even if I wasn't spoiled. The other twists at the end of the book I predicted early on and I'm surprised it took Lena so long to figure out what was going on. Though this book attempts to surprise you with its twists/reveals, I feel like they're pretty predictable so it took the surprise out of the reveals. Lauren Oliver does like to leave us hanging off of a 50 ft cliff so I'm definitely interested in seeing how this series ends. I've already got a few predictions, time to see if any of them are right.

3.5 stars. This book was really good but not quite what I expected. I had high expectations of this book and I was hoping to really love but I don't. I like the book, but I don't love it. There are moments in the book that are really exciting and keep you on edge but still not as much action as I would have liked. Overall, I did still enjoy it.

Second book I have enjoyed by this author. She has a way of being able to capture emotion and put it into words very accurately and beautifully. Excited to read the next in series!

7/10, now that I look back at this book I definitely wouldn't consider this a masterpiece anymore considering that I've read better books than this but this was still enjoyable. The worldbuilding is so ridiculous that it made me laugh however it wasn't the biggest aspect of the story but it still bothered me because in the book they banned love because it was a disease however they didn't ban anything else and I thought why ban that and nothing else and I was perplexed by the author's decision. This set up the whole story when the main character Lena Haloway at first obeys the anti-love dystopia and after a few pages later she meets a boy named Alex from the north of the United States called the Wilds but before then it was called Canada and guess what, they fall in love with each other despite the government banning love which built up some suspense which I liked. Towards the second half of the book Lena and Alex continue to develop their attraction to one another yet I simply didn't care for them because they weren't really that well written and felt more like archetypes than actual characters but in the end the government discovers that she has broken the one rule she wasn't supposed to break and there was a big chase between her and the police and she escapes into the Wilds with Alex and it all ends in a cliffhanger. I would like to read the next two books in the series and fortunately my library does have them and overall this was an interesting book but if the author tried a little bit harder on it this would've been an even better book and if you like dystopias read this book.

Really enjoyed it as a holiday read.