Wither by Lauren DeStefano

Wither by Lauren DeStefano

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Warning: Some spoilers...

WITHER was a different kind of dystopian novel. I really loved and yet I'm still not quite sure what to think about it. I felt that it was too short. What I initially had thought it would be like turned out to be fairly different and in a good way, but there were certain characters and relationships that I felt were still undeveloped.The ending felt like it was lacking for me also.

For instance, there was such an important relationship between Rhine and Gabriel and yet at the end, I felt like there was still something missing. Perhaps it was Gabriel's development in the story. I still feel like we don't know very much about him. I do know that this is a trilogy and that more information will be given in the sequels, which I can't wait for, but I still really wish she could have told us more about him.

Now that I've given my reasoning for that one missing star, I can say just how much I loved everything else about this book. It was really beautifully written. Rhine was a lovely character, with hopes and dreams, and this insatiable need to be free. Everything about her was admirable. Housemaster Vaughn was perfectly creepy and his "experiments" in the basement were enough to create that desired ominous effect fort this reader. I grew to Love Governor Linden as well. I had a lot of conflicts, just as Rhine did, on how I should feel about him, but in the end I've come to the conclusion that I feel just as she feels; he is an oblivious, yet lovable and kind person that was raised in a corrupt fashion. I even think that Rhine really did fall for him in the end, which leaves me wondering if he will become another interest in future books. As for the sisters, I loved them too. While Cecily was difficult to love and quite annoying at times, I can't help but feel a pinch of compassion for her in this twisted world they live in. Jenna was absolutely beautiful and such a wonderful person that I came quite close to crying at one part in the book. Basically, all of the characters were amazing. Even Deirdre, Adair, and Elle. I felt reader's love for all of them.

I'm still thinking about this one, which makes it great, but I'm still stuck on this feeling of it being too short. I want more and the ending wasn't as satisfying as I'd hoped. Perhaps it was because it seemed to play out so easily when I expected a dramatic mess that would have left me on a cliffhanger for the next book. Either way, I'll definitely be reading the sequel next year.



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