Book Review: Delirium by Lauren Oliver

They say that the cure for love will  make me happy and safe forever. And I've always believed them. Until now. Now everything has changed. Now I'd rather be infected with love for the tiniest sliver of a second than live hundreds of years suffocated by a lie.
There was a time when love was the most important thing in the world. People would go to the end of the earth to find it. Even kill for it. Then at last they found the cure. 

Wow is the only word I could think of when reading this book. I have no idea why it has taken me so long to get round to reading it but it is a book that will be staying on my shelves forever.
Our protagonist is Lena Haloway and she in ninety-five days from the cure. The cure for Amor Deliria Nervosa, otherwise known as love. Lena lives in a quite similar looking world to our own but in this world love is a disease that people are routinely cured of by their eighteenth birthdays. Lena's older sister has had the operation which removes part of the brain and is now living her life as one of the cured. Lena's mother is not spoken about; she received the procedure three times but again and again it failed. She took her own life, Lena is counting down the days until her own procedure as then she will be safe.
However, Lena does not bargain on meeting Alex. She does not plan on becoming sick with the Deliria but suddenly she is no longer counting down the days to her procedure with excitement but with abject horror instead. How will she live forever without this feeling, without Alex and all he has come to mean to her?
This book just blew me away. It is a fantastic concept and expertly delivered by Lauren Oliver. Although officially young adult fiction, this book is definitely one that is capable of crossing over. Oliver's writing is truly beautiful and I felt that she conveyed love in so many different ways. It is not just about love for another person but a love of life, beauty, music, literature and so many other things that we take for granted every single day.
Lena is an extremely interesting character, her reaction to Alex is fascinating; she has had so much fear instilled in her about falling in love that she is almost frightened of him at first. But in some ways love really is like a disease as when it truly happens, you are powerless to stop it. Alex is also a great character and entirely believable. I liked the fact that Lauren Oliver did not try to over sell him as some YA authors seem to do with their male characters. Alex is very ordinary, he loves Lena even though he is aware of the danger that places them both in.
I can't really say much more about this book without giving the plot away. I do urge you to read it though. It has made me think so much since I finished it and i don't think that a book that has the ability to do that should be missed.

Dot Scribbles Rating 5/5