Delirium by: Lauren Oliver

Delirium by: Lauren Oliver
Publication Date: February 1, 2011, Special Edition - August 1, 2011
Publisher: HarperTeen
Page Count: 441
Format: Hardcover 1st Edition
Series: Delirium #1
Buy the Book: Amazon

Summary from Goodreads:

Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love -- the deliria -- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the government demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holoway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.

But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.

My Review:

Disclaimer: The cover above is the Special Edition cover, just because I love it so much. The one I own is the first edition, though.

I read Delirium shortly after the release date. I just decided it was so amazing that it deserved a review. It dragged me in, hook, line, and sinker! The writing style of Lauren Oliver is officially one of my all-time favorites.  She described the dystopian version of Portland, Maine, so majestically and really captured all of the drastically transformed elements of society that come with dystopia.

The setting of Portland in itself is something I really enjoyed in itself. Even though it was a fenced town and an overall dystopian environment, I loved all of the coves and beaches mentioned and visited in the book.

Lena is an incredibly strong character. Sure, she complies with all of the terms of the procedure and the laws at first and she had all of her life up until the events of the book, but still, she has the spirit of a fighter. I love female characters like that. 

As far as the genre goes, this was on of the heaviest dystopian books I've read, and I love the genre.  It was a lot more graphic in certian parts about the consequences of the law being broken. I think that when Lena realized the true nature of the government and their intentions, she was more eager to rebel, and then when she met Alex, it was the domino effect from there.

Alex and Lena's relationship gradually came into being, which I appreciated. I feel like, too many times in YA books that the relationships happen too fast, but this one was perfectly paced. 

The ending was a moderately large cliffhanger. I think, when I finished it, I literally slammed shut the book and scrambled to the computer to find the release date of the next book, foolishly hoping it would be the next day. This book comes highly recommended, just in case you are some uncivilized person who hasn't read this yet.

Official Rating:

Five Un-Birthday Cakes!

              Sara