Wow, what a sequel. If you thought
things were crazy in the first book, wait until you read this one.
Everything just plays out so intricately with all of the pieces coming
together.
This book shows more of what happens in the Wilds. Lena essentially has
the role of Alex in this book because she leaves the old Lena
behind and has to survive in this foreign environment. After the
heart-breaking conclusion of the first book Lena
has a lot to recover from. This is no easy recovery either; she did a lot
of damage to herself in the escape attempt and has much to grieve for.
I think the format of the story is done very well because through most of the
book the chapters alternate between Then and Now. This allows you to see
how exactly Lena became the person that she
now is. She slowly but surely becomes a real member of the group and the
Resistance. It's great to get a better glimpse of how exactly the
Resistance operates.
The leader of the group that finds her and takes her in is Raven. Raven
is a real hard-boiled woman who tries her hardest to keep everyone safe,
together, and help them forget about the past. Their commune type living
arrangement shows Lena how hard it is out in
the Wilds but also leads her to learn more of what exactly they are striving
and fighting for. I liked the characters of this group because they added
some nice touches to the story and will undoubtedly play a larger role in the
next book.
I love that Lena's character learns so much
and is much more competent about the world. The new assignment she has is
not as easy as she first thinks and leads to a slew of complications.
These complications though help the reader see how much she has changed and
leaned from her experiences.
I like the mystery of it all because just when I thought I had a twist figured
out, it turns out that I was wrong and there's actually much more to it than I
imagined. My only issue with Lena's
character is that she seems to get knocked unconscious an awful lot.
Though head injuries aside I guess this actually adds to the air of confusion
that Lena feels as the story unfolds.
Nothing in this world is as cut and dry as it first appears and once
again Lena finds this out the hard way. She is right in the
middle of plans that are bigger then she even realizes. In the midst of
this plan though it seems that Lena may just have found love again and
if I may
paraphrase the great singer Meatloaf, Lena
would do anything for love.
Love, betrayal, and an ending that may just leave you cursing means that this
book is a definite must read/buy/build a shrine for kind of experience. I
for one so cannot wait to see how this series ends because if the ending is any
indication there is going to be some serious turmoil ahead for Lena and everyone that she loves.
The first sentence from each chapter of Delirium, it's a mini summary of what you can expect to read.
* Spoilers are highlighted like so:)
"It
has been sixty-four years since the president and the Consortium
identified love as a disease, and forty-three since the scientists
perfected a cure."
"The smell of oranges has always reminded me of funerals."
"My
aunt insists on walking me down to the labora-tories, which, like all
the government offices, are lumped together along the wharves: a string
of bright white buildings, glistening like teeth over the slurping mouth
of the ocean."
"By
the time the nurse admits me into the waiting room, Hana is
gone—vanished down one of the antiseptic white hallways and whisked
behind one of the dozens of identical white doors—although there are
about a half-dozen other girls milling around, waiting."
"That night, I have the dream again."
"That evening I can't concentrate."
"I was named after Mary Magdalene, who was nearly killed from love: "So infected with deliria and in violation of the pacts of society, she fell in love with men who would not have her or could not keep her."
"During
the summers I have to help my uncle at the Stop-N-Save on Mondays,
Wednesdays, and Saturdays, mostly stocking shelves and working behind
the deli counter and occasionally helping with filing and accounting in
the little office behind the cereal and dry goods aisle."
"That night, even after I'm in bed, Hana's words replay themselves endlessly in my head."
"I'd never understood how Hana could lie so often and so easily."
"Here is a secret about my family: My sister contracted the deliria several months before her scheduled pro-cedure."
"One hot evening toward the end of July I'm walking home from the Stop-N-Save when I hear someone call my name."
"When I get into the house it's even hotter than usual: a wet suffocating wall of heat."
"I once
saw a news report about a brown bear that had acci-dentally been
punctured by its trainer at the Portland circus during routine
training."
"The next day, a Saturday, I wake up thinking of Alex."
"After that I find a way to see Alex almost every day, even on days I have to work at the store."
"August makes itself comfortable in Portland, breathes its hot and stinking breath over everything."
"The lights from the guard hut get suctioned away all at once like they've been sealed back behind a vault."
"One
of the strangest things about life is that it will chug on, blind and
oblivious, even as your private world—your little carved-out sphere—is
twisting and morphing, even breaking apart."
"By some miracle, I must make a good enough impres-sion on Brian and Mrs. Scharff to satisfy Carol, even though I barely speak during the remainder of their visit (or maybe because I barely speak)."
"When I was in fourth grade, I went on a field trip to the Crypts."
"I have a sudden dread of going any farther."
"Even
after the iron gates clang shut behind us and the Crypts recedes in the
distance, the feeling of being penned in on all sides doesn't go away."
"Hana's already there when
I arrive, leaning up against the chain-link fence that encircles the
track, head tilted back and eyes closed against the sun."
"It's cold when I make my way toward 37 Brooks sometime after midnight, and I have to zip my nylon windbreaker up all the way to my chin."
"When I wake up again it's because someone is repeating my name."
"I've
known time to stretch out like rings expanding out-ward over water;
I've also known it to rush by with such force it leaves me dizzy."
Loved
this book so much. It reads like a classic fairy tale and I know it’s
something that I plan to read over and over. The story is full of
strong characters, mystery and magic. This is my kind of ghost story,
it has more hope then sadness or scary times. It deals with death and
the afterlife in a rather unique way that is once again more hopeful
then sad.
First
of all, the illustrations are fantastic and really bring the story to
life. I wish my drawings using crayon could look half as good as these
do. Having kind of child-like drawings add more of an air of whimsy to
this well-written book.
The
characters in this story are intricately intertwined and every single
character is important. All the pieces fall together and it feels like
the story couldn't have gone any differently. The multiple perspectives
and intriguing locale really help the reader immerse themselves even
further into the story.
The
story starts with Liesl who is locked in the attic, she’s been locked
in there for a long time now. She's not doing well at all because her
father has recently died. The atmosphere perfectly fits her mood. The
world is dark and grey because the sun has not been seen in over a
thousand days. Then one night Po and Bundle are drawn to her. These
two appear and she quickly accepts them even though they are ghosts that
she can barely see.
Events
are quickly set into motion when a fateful mistake leaves Liesl
unknowingly with the greatest magic in the world. This magic has an
effect on everyone but remains elusive to those who search for it.
Liesl's
quest quickly brings her into contact with a whole host of characters
as she tries to bring peace to her father. Every single event is
important and every character has a part to play.
This is a magical story filled with darkness and ghosts but also full of life. The tone reminds me a bit of Coraline.
Lauren Oliver writes so eloquently that you'll find yourself caring
about the fate of all the myriad characters. These characters just
burst of the page and you'll find the pages just flying by. I highly
recommend this story and can't wait to read more of Oliver's books.
It looks like there are a lot of fun extras with this book that can be found at:http://www.lieslandpo.com/extras Check out the beautiful book trailer:
