Just Finished Reading...Delirium

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

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 thoughts~ 

At the time I am writing this Delirium has 365 four and five star reviews on Amazon alone. Everybody loves this book. So what can I say that hasn’t been said already? Probably nothing…except this eloquently written book was not for me. *ducks as angry mob throws rotten tomatoes*

I know I say this all the time but Lauren truly is a gifted writer. Her settings are perfectly described, we get all the supporting characters and she gets you right in the head of the main character. So well you know her every thought and feeling. This may sound strange but that is where it lost me.

These characters are extremely likeable and I obviously cared for them enough to finish the book, but it was too wordy for me. I found myself skimming a good portion of the story in efforts to jump to the action. I think I would have liked it more it were about 100 pages shorter. Don’t get me wrong, I love getting to know my characters but this was too much.  Here is an example. This falls in the middle of a pretty important scene.

Instead  I keep my eyes locked on the front door, noticing for the first time that the screen has three large holes in it, near the upper right corner. No wonder the house has been full of insects this summer. Grace brought it to me, cupped in her tiny palm. I helped her carry it downstairs and release outside.

The book is full of these passages. That may be how the human brain works, wandering off like that, but I personally did not need it. It did not forward the plot or have anything to do with what was happening.

If you like character driven books where you learn the ins-and-outs of the characters every waking thought this book is for you. But if you need a more even balance of character and action… be prepared. If you give it a try I say borrow it from a friend or library.