Delirium (Delirium Trilogy, #1)

by Lauren Oliver

[clementine]

My thoughts on this book can be summed up with an emphatic hmmmm. I'm not entirely sure what to make of it, and I feel like a lot of that has to do with the billing of the book as dystopian. It certainly is set in a less than ideal world in the somewhat near future, but the world is a backdrop to the romance.

Normally I'm not a fan of romance in dystopia, as anybody who reads my reviews will know. With a very small handful of notable exceptions, I find the romantic subplots in YA dystopian to be unnecessary, irritating, and forced. However, I'm okay with it in Delirium, as it's the whole point of the story - Lena's descent into the "disease" of amor deliria nervosa, commonly known as love.

But that's why I consider this book a dystopian romance, focus on the romance, rather than straight dystopian - and why I think it should be marketed that way. For a lover of dystopian - I mean, actual, pure dystopian - it was a bit disappointing that the structure of society wasn't entirely explored, and that the focus was, of course, Lena's relationship with Alex.

That's not to say that I didn't enjoy it; as teen romances go, this is one of the best I've read. Lauren Oliver is really an talented writer, with the ability to describe anything in such beautiful, vivid terms. I actually liked the characters pretty well, although Alex was definitely a bit too perfect for my liking. There are a lot of reviews on here that are pretty harsh towards Lena, but I liked her - there was a lot of development there. I agree that Hana was an awesome character, but I think she would have been a less interesting heroine because there would have been much less development. Lena's also a nice change from the archetypal sassy, snappy dystopian heroine, which sometimes feels a bit unnatural, like everybody's trying to write their own Katniss Everdeen. Lena's timidity was refreshing to me, and I find it interesting, sad, and very telling that a lot of people think that makes her a weak character.

So, really my biggest criticisms are the character of Alex (although I will admit that, despite being too perfect, he was much more likeable than most dystopian male romantic interests, who are just awful) and the fact that the world wasn't developed quite as much as I'd have liked it to be. Don't get me wrong, it was described beautifully, but I think if you're going to call this book dystopian you need less of the romance and more of the dystopian.

I'll definitely read the next one, though, as I did enjoy Delirium and I have a feeling from the way things were left that there will be more worldbuilding in Pandemonium.