Delirium (Delirium, #1) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Sep 12, 2011 D.G. rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: reviewed, young-adult, dystopia

**4.5 stars**

What an emotional read.

Ever since I realized what was going on in this book, a feeling of dread settled in my stomach. I kept thinking of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and my devastation at the loss of a wonderful person. Because this cure for love was none other than a lobotomy that would deprive a person of their personality, their quirks, their essence of self and I cannot imagine a worst end.

I felt for Lena. I understood her pain and her desire for a panacea that would help he **4.5 stars**

What an emotional read.

Ever since I realized what was going on in this book, a feeling of dread settled in my stomach. I kept thinking of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and my devastation at the loss of a wonderful person. Because this cure for love was none other than a lobotomy that would deprive a person of their personality, their quirks, their essence of self and I cannot imagine a worst end.

I felt for Lena. I understood her pain and her desire for a panacea that would help her forget or at least, help her not to care anymore. When you have gone through what she has, it's not impossible to imagine. And that's why her rejection of everything she's always wanted was so powerful...it came by degrees, as she slowly discovered the lies and the love. Oh God the love.

Alex was a wonderful character. At first I had my suspicions about him - he just seemed too good to be true - but he turned out exactly what he seemed: a sweet, romantic, happy, heroic man who recites poetry and was willing to risk everything for love.

My only problem with the plot (and this is a recurrent theme for me with YA dystopias) is that we don’t know how this movement came into power. A new society that revers both religion and science is a really interesting twist and I really wanted to know how that came to be. Specially because the theme of this story is not so far fetched as it seems. Maybe society will never mandate for us to cut our emotions but today, some people are doing that willingly with the help of drugs. Used by over 31 million Americans, antidepressants are now the most widely prescribed class of drugs in the US and most of the users are not even receiving care from a psychiatrist.* More and more people are now taking drugs to cope with everyday things like SAT tests or job interviews...so is it really that far fetched to think that in the future people would just numb themselves to avoid all pain?

Overall, a great read with a thought provoking plot and great characters. I already pre-ordered the sequel...I cannot wait to see what happens next!

*Antidepressant Use in U.S. Has Almost Doubled ...more

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Jan 11, 2013 Yz the Whyz rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013-reads, lauren-oliver

In a world where love is considered a disease, Lena did the unthinkable just a few days before she gets the permanent cure. She fell in love.

Lauren Oliver's Delirium turned out to be a wonderful read for me, even thought I'm slightly mad at its ending. Oliver's prose shines with lyrical imagery, almost begging to be read aloud, even as I willingly ride the maelstrom of emotions her heroine is going through. All throughout, despite the happy moments, I was filled with dread...knowing...that somet ...more

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May 30, 2018 Marla rated it liked it

Shelves: young-adult, zz-2018, audiobook, zz-2018-ammp-fairytales, award-winner, challenged, library-audiobook, romance, adventure, completed

Intriguing premise that love is a disease and a Cure has been found and is required when you turn 18. I wasn't a huge fan of Lena to start, but I liked Alex, though you only get to know him through Lena's eyes.

Abandoned:
After 2 books, but accidentally borrowed the 3rd audiobook from library. I thought this book was okay. I was bored and underwhelmed by the next book. So decided to not read the last book which had very mixed reviews. (2.5 stars from me for both 2nd and 3rd books, so not worth it ...more

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Feb 19, 2011 Cheer Papworth rated it really liked it

Shelves: dystopian, ya

I really liked the premise for this book...a world without love or passion; a world that "fixes" teens in order to anesthetize them from love for it is the root of all of the world's problems...war, suicide, depression...but seriously why would you want to exist in this environment? I would give this book 3.5 stars...I thought the premise was better than the characters themselves. I just want a story with characters that I can stand-up and cheer for and this wasn't it. Still, I will read the nex ...more

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Oct 24, 2010 Samantha rated it liked it

Shelves: ya, 2011

It's the same with Lauren Oliver's last book, Before I Fall….everyone seemed to rave about it and while I found it readable, I was never sucked into the story. Lena and Alex aren't any different. Somehow I don't find the characters relatable, but instead a bit too immature and naive, or maybe I just like my characters a little more rough around the edges.
The idea behind the society also didn't ring true. Everyone is 'cured' at eighteen, which means they have brain surgery that allows them to no ...more

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Dec 13, 2010 Logan rated it really liked it

Shelves: dystopian-post-apocalyptic, young-adult, movie-tv

First impressions: The premise of this book is what grabbed me right away. A world where love is feared and abhorred? Let's see where this takes us! Lena is authentic and vibrant, but I felt her world was missing something.

Lasting impressions: The writing is what I will remember most about this book. Oliver is truly talented and some passages were so achingly beautiful that I re-read them several times. Without losing Lena's voice, she seamlessly integrates moving observations on the world arou First impressions: The premise of this book is what grabbed me right away. A world where love is feared and abhorred? Let's see where this takes us! Lena is authentic and vibrant, but I felt her world was missing something.

Lasting impressions: The writing is what I will remember most about this book. Oliver is truly talented and some passages were so achingly beautiful that I re-read them several times. Without losing Lena's voice, she seamlessly integrates moving observations on the world around her and what she is feeling. In a story where no feelings are good feelings, these passages truly amplify what Lena is going through.

Negative impressions: My only complaint is that I didn't quite buy into the world Oliver created. I didn't believe that parents could raise children without love or that people could experience emotions for 18 years and then willingly accept the robotic after effects of the treatment. I'm sure other readers will have different experiences, but for me, I just wasn't able to accept these facts as possible (or perhaps I didn't want to?).

Overall impressions: I thought this was an extremely well-written book with an interesting concept and fabulous characters. I was particularly fond of Lena's relationship with her best friend, Hana, as I thought Oliver did a fantastic job representing two friends who are on the brink of growing apart forever or solidifying a lifelong relationship. She deftly handled the subtleties of how two teen girls interact in an environment of trepidation and rebellion.

Oliver also does a marvelous job of progressing Lena's relationship with Alex that seemed appropriate to their circumstances. While the ending has somewhat of a cliffhanger as to where this relationship goes in the future (book two of the trilogy will be released next year), it resolved enough of the action to satisfy me and provided an adequate ending to this chapter in their lives.

Despite my reservations with accepting a world without love, the quality of Lauren Oliver's writing cannot be commended enough. This is a great story of first love and friendship. ...more

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Aug 28, 2010 PJ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: pass-me-a-tissue, 2012-books-i-ve-read, ya-dystopian-post-apocalyptic

Update: I'm updating my rating to 5 stars. I've read a lot of YA lately and the plot/characters of the Delirium series has really stayed with me. I can't wait until Requiem comes out.

...more

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Feb 05, 2011 Deyara rated it liked it

Interesting idea, didnt love the execution but it gave me enough issues to think about to myself, so fair enough. Havent read anything else by this author before, not sure if I will in the future.

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