Review: Wither

Mar •  7 •  2011

Title: Wither
Series: The Chemical Gardens #1
Genre: Young Adult- Dystopian
Author: Lauren DeStefano
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
Release Date: March 22, 2011
Book: ARC sent by publisher

“What if you knew exactly when you would die?

Thanks to modern science, every human being has become a ticking genetic time bomb—males only live to age twenty-five, and females only live to age twenty. In this bleak landscape, young girls are kidnapped and forced into polygamous marriages to keep the population from dying out.

When sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery is taken by the Gatherers to become a bride, she enters a world of wealth and privilege. Despite her husband Linden’s genuine love for her, and a tenuous trust among her sister wives, Rhine has one purpose: to escape—to find her twin brother and go home.

But Rhine has more to contend with than losing her freedom. Linden’s eccentric father is bent on finding an antidote to the genetic virus that is getting closer to taking his son, even if it means collecting corpses in order to test his experiments. With the help of Gabriel, a servant Rhine is growing dangerously attracted to, Rhine attempts to break free, in the limited time she has left?.”

This book is the BOMB DIGGITY! For real. It totally exceeded my expectations and left me with wanting more. Not only was this book one unique read, it totally captured every part of me as I read it. I held my breathe as my eyes raced across the pages reading every emotion, every secret, every betrayal.

For Rhine everything is fake. She is forced to be a bride to a man she has never met or know. Forced to lived in a nice prison with other sisters wives. Though her time is short, she will not live this way. She longs for her freedom and just wants to be home safe. With danger lurking around every corner, Rhine learns everything and anything, plays the role she needs to play in order to get out.

This book is just WOW. It blew me away. Literally. I was so engrossed in the book, so connected with Rhine that I felt her angry, her pain, her longing for freedom. She was so strong. How she manages not to fall apart completely is beyond me. Poor thing had to just keep picking herself up and keep going. Rhine played her role so good, at times I thought that maybe she was giving in. That she would comply and just live the life she was given. But no, she always came back to remind herself of what is really at stake. Gabriel was nice touch to the book. He let Rhine true self come out and I loved learning about her through him.

I don’t want to give to much away, but man this book is just unexplainable. You just have to read it in order to understand what I am trying to say. Ms. DeStefano, your book is complete and total awesomeness. It is the best book of  2011. Ms. DeStefano did what books are supposed to do. Take you away for an adventure of a lifetime. And this adventure, is one that I will never forget.

I give it 5 BITES!

Happy Reading!

Photobucket
Posted by on Mar 7, 2011 in 2011, Lauren DeStefano, Review, Young Adult | 15 comments

15 Comments

  1. Cindy
    Mar 7, 2011

    Great review! Isn’t it really good? I loved this book too.

  2. Two Readers Reviews
    Mar 7, 2011

    Excellent review! I loved this book so much! I can’t wait for the next one.

  3. Jenny
    Mar 7, 2011

    I really enjoyed this one too! I thought Rhine was great, I loved her and reading about her relationships with the other girls:) I wish we got more history on the virus itself since it was such a drastic development, but overall this one I thought was fabulous. Nice review Savy:)

  4. bibliophile brouhaha
    Mar 7, 2011

    I am so looking forward to this book! I think I’ve maaaaaaaybe seen one bad review on it! Very nicely done, Savy!

  5. Elodie
    Mar 7, 2011

    I want to read it even more now !! I need to order it … SOON !! Thanks fro the review !!=)

  6. ComaCalm
    Mar 7, 2011

    I’m dying to get my hands on a copy of this, I read the Galley and it was AMAZING. I want a physical copy to squeal over!

  7. Darkeva
    Mar 7, 2011

    Hi Savy! Haven’t read this one but have been hearing very good responses so far! It sounds like a bleak, dystopian vision, and very Atwood-esque, but I’m glad it sounds like you enjoyed it!

    Darkeva

  8. Mariya
    Mar 7, 2011

    I loved this book. I am already dying for the next one 8)

  9. Missie
    Mar 7, 2011

    LOL! Glad you liked it, Savy.

  10. BooksforCompany
    Mar 7, 2011

    So excited to read this! Glad you loved it! =)

  11. justpeachy36
    Mar 7, 2011

    I have this one on my list to review. It looks really interesting and I’m looking forward to reading it, especially after your glowing review!

  12. Melissa (Books and Things)
    Mar 8, 2011

    YaY! I have this one on my tbr this month so I can’t wait to get to it! 🙂

  13. Smash Attack!
    Mar 8, 2011

    This books is getting much praise. Thanks for the insight!

  14. Larissa {Larissa's Bookish Life}
    Mar 8, 2011

    this looks so awesome! Thanks for the review Savy!

  15. Nic @ Irresistible Reads
    Mar 8, 2011

    Awesome review and I am so glad you loved it. Unfortunately for some reason I didn’t enjoy this one. Maybe, it was my mood. I might have to go back and try again 🙂