Review: Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver

Pandemonium 

by Lauren Oliver

"So what was your name before?" I say, and she freezes, her back to me. "Before you came to the Wilds, I mean."
For a moment she stands there.
Then she turns around.
"You might as well get used to it now," she says with quite intensity.
"Everything you were, the life you had, the people you knew... dust."
She shakes her head and says, a little more firmly, "There is no before. There is only now, and what comes next."
After falling in love, Lena and Alex flee their oppressive society where love is outlawed and everyone must receive the "cure" - an operation that makes them immune to the delirium of love - but Lena alone manages to find her way to a community of resistance fighters. Although she is bereft without the boy she loves, her struggles seem to be leading her toward a new love.

A Long Story Short!

Writing and character development are once again Oliver's highest scores, but this time she upgrades to (relatively) fast paced action as we saw her do at the very end of Delirium. After experiencing another huge cliffhanger at the end, though, I really hope for a mind blowing Requiem - everything else would ruin this series in the end!

Review for You:

What was missing (a bit) in Delirium, came with Pandemonium - that's what most people think, I guess, and I  can only agree. If you thought Delirium was too slow and sacrificed story for world building, you'll probably like the sequel better. This book is based almost entirely on plot - on Lena's story - but still not ignoring the wonderful aspects we loved in Delirium, writing style, characters, development, and quotability.

The most important element in Pandemonium is undoubtedly the Then and Now feature Oliver uses to continue telling Lena's story. This way, we can experience two exciting plots that made my heart rate speed up more than just a couple of times.

To change things up even more, we have to let go most of the characters we grew to know and love in the first book to make room for a whole bunch of new ones - most of whom are unique, different and realistic. 

Anyhow, although I loved Raven, Tack, Blue, Sara and of course Julian, I still think excluding the rest from this book completely was kind of harsh. I'd hoped to see some more of Lena's family and old friends. 

Besides, Pandemonium is sad - heart wrenching, even. Sometimes to the point where I found it a bit too harsh, too dramatic. Then again, sure, it adds to the page-turning factor.

As this is a book by Lauren Oliver, I don't think I have to talk writing, but I will do it anyway, because not mentioning it would come close to an offense towards the author. So - brilliant. Period. I don't think there are many authors who can reach that level of beauty. It's extraordinary.

All in all? Read Pandemonium. I know Requiem was a disappointment for many (haven't read it yet) but after reading this book I can't help but feel excited for the final installment.

What about you? Have you read the trilogy? Do you plan on doing it?