Review: Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Ninety-five days, and then I’ll be safe.

I wonder whether the procedure will hurt.

I want to get it over with.

It’s hard to be patient.

It’s hard not to be afraid while I’m still uncured, though so far the deliria hasn’t touched me yet.

Still, I worry.

They say that in the old days, love drove people to madness.

The deadliest of all deadly things: It kills you both when you have it and when you don’t.

Delirium had been on my list of books I want to read for years now. Not only because the plot sounded so unique and creative but also because I've read Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall and absolutely loved it.

Immediately, I was drawn by the little quotes above each chapter. They gave  a greater insight into the world and made it seem just that, a world, not just a fictional landscape. It made it even easier to be drawn into the world and characters by the writing style. It flowed so nicely and I felt like I was inside Portland and felt everything that Lena, our main character, felt. Often times in dystopian novels, it's hard for the world building to be done smoothly. Either too much detail is told at one time or not enough. But I think Delirium managed to tell the backstory of the society and world very smoothly and at a good pace.

We follow Lena during her emotional and physical journey. I think Lena's personality was mostly realistic within her world. There was that flicker of doubts that one can expect from anyone, especially a teenager, who questions what's placed in front of them while still seeing the effect of lifelong indoctrination in pushing those doubts back. The reactions of all the characters were very realistic and I think that's why the characters were such a high point in the book.

That being said, I still felt that Lena was bratty at some points. As I said, the way she acted and thought was normal, expected, but at times it felt as if she uses her insecurities instead of doubts to lash out. Then she would put herself in certain situations and villainize others while pretending she never had doubts in the first place. That was what I found frustrating especially because otherwise, her reasoning for her actions would have been valid and understandable. But she definitely got as the book went on. In fact, I really liked her later on. I think I especially enjoyed the oxymorons used to explain her shift in ideals because it made everything so much more powerful. I loved how there will still hints of her indoctrination because realistically - that wouldn't just dissipate, it would always be a part of her, a whisper in the back of her mind and that was perfectly conveyed. 

Lena's past is an important portion of the book and who she is as a character. To establish this, flashbacks are necessary and they are perfectly placed. Memories are placed at the perfect time - they either prevent certain scenes from being too overbearing or provide insight. The metaphors were also beautiful. They make sense and made the emotions that were meant to be portrayed clear and powerful. Another small but great part of the book was that things mentioned at the beginning are brought back throughout the book and I love how important they're made to be even if they didn't seem that way at first.

Fortunately, I really did enjoy the romance. Alex was my favorite character and I really think he gave the book life. I don't think I would have enjoyed it much if it weren't for Alex. His mysteriousness, humor, sweetness, selflessness. He felt like a real guy and I adored him. I also think it was easy to tell why the romance was happening/progressing. That means, it didn't feel like an insta love. It was more of an insta attraction but with reasoning. I thought the romance was really powerful, it was intense, passionate and really really cute. I especially liked the start of it, both when it started for Lena and for Alex. The fact that the relationship felt normal, even in this dystopian world was also a breath of fresh air; there was insecurity, jealousy, shyness.It was great to see how Alex made Lena feel better about herself, his care for her and the strength he gave her which goes along with giving the couple a reason instead of just feeling forced. In fact, I think that Alex and Lena are one of my favorite romances.

It wasn't just romantic love that was good in this story. The friendship between Lena and Hana was so good! I thought Hana was a great character and I would've loved to see more of her. Platonic love was just as beautiful and powerful as romantic love. Her relationship with Hana and even with her family was heartwarming and really important to fully show what love means.

I think the biggest downfall of this book, though, was how slow it progressed. A large portion of the book, nearly all of the middle section, was pretty much just waiting for something big to happen. At time I remember thinking "Ok...where is this going?" because while I liked how realistic the slow burn of Lena's conversion, there was little to no action because of how heavily it focused on that. Because of this, I didn't really feel that invested in the story or the characters - besides Alex. It starts picking up near the last 130 pages and that's when I started feeling more emotionally connected with the book and interested. However, I felt that way about the rest of the book and not just the beginning and end or with most of Alex's scenes because then this book would've definitely been a 5 stars. In fact, except for the end, the plot itself was kind of predictable. The only thing that made it easy to push through the book were the cliffhangers at the end of each chapter that made me want to keep reading.

The ending was unforgettable and saved the book, made up for the slowness of the middle portion. It was equal parts heartbreaking, empowering and breathtaking. I felt like I was right there watching it happen, I saw everything so vividly in my mind (thanks to the great writing style). I was emotional for a while after that, to be honest and I can't wait to read the sequel!

My favorite part of the book was the themes and topics addressed throughout the book. The importance of indifference, what it means to truly live, growing apart. They are so powerful and addressed so appropriately and real. It made the book what it was and I think it's a signature of Lauren Oliver which makes her the incredible author she is.