Delirium by Lauren Oliver

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 governments demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holway 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:

Have you ever sighed over the romance of Romeo and Juliet?  If so – you’re in danger of being infected, and as Lena will tell you, in the world created within the pages of Delirium, infection is the worst thing that could happen to you.

Lauren Oliver has created a world that is, in some ways, remarkably similar to our own, but in others drastically different.  From the excerpts of “accepted literature” at the start of each chapter, to the description of the “cure” procedure, I found it impossible not to be horrified by the life being created for the characters living in Portland, Oregon.

Delirium is a stunning book.  I loved it even more than I loved Before I Fall (which is saying something).  I was fortunate enough to get a copy of the e-galley from NetGalley so I could read it before it was even released (as I’ve been biting at the bit to do), but I plan on purchasing a copy to put on my own personal shelves.  Bravo to Lauren Oliver for giving romance and strong characters, both male AND female, in her Young Adult book, and still giving a story with substance and something to seriously think about when the last page has been read and the book closed.

Delirium by Lauren Oliver comes out February of 2011.  Put it on your wishlist, you won’t regret it.

Check out these review(s):

Presenting Lenore

Reading Teen