Delirium by Lauren Oliver Review

Title: Delirium (Delirium #1)

Author: Lauren Oliver

Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian

Page Count: 480 pages

Publish Date: January 1, 2011

Book Type: Kindle Special Edition

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

ISBN: 9780061726828

ASIN: B00526ZKYS

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: I think I can pretty much say that I adore Lauren Oliver’s writing. First, Before I Fall and now Delirium. I need to read the sequel like yesterday. To me, Oliver has a very poetic style of writing. I don’t know if that’s the right word, but it flows so well and it is somewhat elegant. Plus, both of her books that I have read were emotionally heavy. They sat with me for a very long time.

I also enjoy that Oliver really tries to have all of her characters have flaws. It can get kind of tiring reading about perfect characters, but you won’t really find that in Delirium... and it’s awesome. I am really anxious to see what some of my favorite characters are up to in Pandemonium. I should say anxious/scared. You’ll understand what I’m saying once you finish it. 


I feel like this review is super short, but I'm finding it really hard to say much without giving everything away. I'll leave it at awesome character development, fabulous world building, and beautiful writing.

I probably don’t need to tell you this, but you should read this book now. Warning: The ending is KILLER.

The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore Review

Title: The Power of Six (Lorien Legacies #2)

Author: Pittacus Lore, James Frey, Jobie Hughes

Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Science Fiction

Page Count: 406 pages

Publish Date: August 23, 2011

Book Type: Library Hardback

Publisher: HarperCollins

ISBN: 9780061974557

From Goodreads: I've seen him on the news. Followed the stories about what happened in Ohio. John Smith, out there, on the run. To the world, he's a mystery. But to me . . . he's one of us.

Nine of us came here, but sometimes I wonder if time has changed us—if we all still believe in our mission. How can I know? There are six of us left. We're hiding, blending in, avoiding contact with one another . . . but our Legacies are developing, and soon we'll be equipped to fight. Is John Number Four, and is his appearance the sign I've been waiting for? And what about Number Five and Six? Could one of them be the raven-haired girl with the stormy eyes from my dreams? The girl with powers that are beyond anything I could ever imagine? The girl who may be strong enough to bring the six of us together?

They caught Number One in Malaysia.

Number Two in England.

And Number Three in Kenya.

They tried to catch Number Four in Ohio—and failed.

I am Number Seven. One of six still alive.

And I'm ready to fight.

My Review: Like I Am Number Four, this one has a pretty cool cover. Very sci-fi. However, it did throw me because I assumed this book would be mainly about Six. I guess I didn’t read the description. Hah. Good one.

I’ll start by saying that I actually enjoyed this a lot more than the first in the series. I didn’t not enjoy the first one... I was just middling on it. This one I was actually pleasantly pleased with. Some of the aspects in the first that were a bit confusing made much more sense in this one and I found that I remembered many more details than I thought I would. I loved how this one had a lot more action and mystery. 

I also loved how the characters were fleshed out more, while we were still introduced to some new ones. I really like Six and I’m glad she was heavily featured. Sam will always be one of my favorite characters. He’s human and basically amazing. Four is such a flawed character, which is nice to see in a main character. He makes some really dumb decisions, but they are decisions I can kind of understand. Four, Six, and Sam make a pretty amazing trio. I’m kind of glad Sarah wasn’t around. Her relationship with Four is kind of mediocre to me. 

The Power of Six is told in alternating points of view--John (Number Four) and Marina (Number Seven). The writing style was very effective for this book. Just when something major would happen, the points of view would shift so the reader is left wondering what is going on with the other character. It kept me reading late into the night!

Overall, this is a pretty action packed book. There are numerous battles, adventures, and even deaths. Now I’m looking forward to the next one!

P.S. Bernie Kosar is still awesome. :)

What do you think of this series?

Long Gone by Alafair Burke Review

Title: Long Gone

Author: Alafair Burke

Genre: Adult, Mystery, Suspense

Page Count: 368 pages

Publish Date: June 21, 2011

Book Type: ARC provided by publisher for honest review

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

ISBN: 9780061999185

Picture from Amazon

From Goodreads: How well do you know your boss?

After a layoff and months of struggling, Alice Humphrey finally lands her dream job managing a new art gallery in Manhattan’s trendy Meatpacking District. According to Drew Campbell, the well-suited corporate representative who hires her, the gallery is a passion project for its anonymous, wealthy, and eccentric owner.

Everything is perfect until the morning Alice arrives at work to find the gallery gone—the space stripped bare as if it had never been there—and Drew Campbell’s dead body on the floor. Overnight, Alice’s dream job has vanished, and she finds herself at the center of a police investigation, with the evidence mounting against her. To prove her innocence and uncover the truth, Alice must undertake a dangerous search for answers that entangles her in a dark, high-tech criminal conspiracy and forces her to unearth long-hidden secrets involving her own family . . . secrets that could cost Alice her life.

My Review: Once you get to the end of the book, you really understand the idea behind the cover and I appreciate that. I’m not sure that it is super eye-grabbing, but it is nice! I really like the blurred image and once again, yay for red heads on book covers!

This book really reminded me how much I like a good mystery/suspense novel. Like many of my other favorite mysteries, Long Gone had many intertwining characters and plot lines. Sometimes it was hard to remember which character was which, but once I got a hold on who was who, it was easier. Every aspect of the mystery comes together, but not in super obvious ways. That is the nicest part. I was able to figure out some things, but others left me guessing! I thought some people were guilty and they ended up not being guilty and vice versa.

I know what it is like to be unemployed (granted, I am still in grad school), so I can only imagine how excited Alice was to be offered her dream job. Only for it to all be taken away from her. Ugh. That would be awful. I thought Alice’s emotions about this were pretty well developed and natural. Well done!

I’m really glad HarperCollins sent this book to me--I want to check out the other books written by Alafair Burke. Thank you! I definitely recommend this one to anyone who likes a good mystery.