Review: Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

Published by Harper Teen 2010

What if you only had one day to live? What would you do? Who would you kiss? And how far would you go to save your own life?

Samantha Kingston has it all: looks, popularity, the perfect boyfriend. Friday, February 12, should be just another day in her charmed life. Instead, it turns out to be her last.

The catch: Samantha still wakes up the next morning. Living the last day of her life seven times during one miraculous week, she will untangle the mystery surrounding her death--and discover the true value of everything she is in danger of losing.

♥♥♥♥♥

Before I Fall is Lauren Oliver's debut novel. Having read both Delirium and Pandemonium before this, I had high hopes. I wasn't disappointed and I loved it. Lauren Oliver is quickly becoming another one of my favourite authors.

Before I Fall tells the story of Sam Kingston. She has everything a girl could want in high school: she's pretty, popular, has a good-looking boyfriend and amazingly fun friends. Friday, February 12th starts out normal, but it turns out to be the last day of her life. She ends up having to relive her last day seven times, in which she gets the chance to make things right and evaluate the choices she's made in life.

Before I Fall was beautiful and inspiring. On the night of February 12th, Sam and her best friends: Lindsay, Ally and Elody go to a party being held by Kent McFuller in his house while his parents are away. On the way home from the party, Sam and her friends are in a car accident and Sam dies. The catch: she wakes up in the morning, seven times. Sam doesn't start out very likeable and is the typical high school mean girl. As usual, she is a bully along with the rest of her friends, and never questions it. She stays this way throughout most of the book, and I resented her for most of it. She realises that she's living the same day over and over, and she ends up doing what she likes and trying different ways to go about the day. This, I liked. I liked how even how the tiniest change or adjustment could change something dramatically, and I liked seeing how it would play out.


Of course, Sam does try to prevent her death in a few ways, such as staying home the night of the party or skipping school altogether. But even this has a dramatic outcome and something terrible would happen in the place of Sam's death. Sam continues to try other tactics, and she learns quite a few things along the way, growing as a character. Gradually, she realises that she needs to make things right before she dies with some of the people in her life. I think this really showed how much the little things matter in life, and Oliver created very relatable characters in both the bully(ies) and the bully. At this point, I was really rooting for Sam and she was likeable and relatable. This is also when the romance comes into play. It was sweet and touching, and Sam knew she was completely undeserving of him because she had treated him badly for years although he was always nice to her. It makes the ending all the more tragic.


Overall, this was fantastic and it really is a must-read for people in secondary school/high school. Before I Fall was full of drama, tragedy and startlingly relatable characters. It deals with the effects of teen bullying and suicide, how much everything means in life and how it feels on both sides.

5 stars 

Review: Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver

Pandemonium (Delirium #2) by Lauren Oliver
Published by Hodder & Stoughton 2012

WARNING: I can't review this book without spoilers from Delirium, so if you're thinking about reading it, it's best to not read this review.

I’m pushing aside
the memory of my nightmare,
pushing aside thoughts of Alex,
pushing aside thoughts of Hana
and my old school,
push,
push,
push,
like Raven taught me to do.
The old life is dead.
But the old Lena is dead too.
I buried her.
I left her beyond a fence,
behind a wall of smoke and flame.

Lauren Oliver delivers an electrifying follow-up to her acclaimed New York Times bestseller, 'Delirium'. This riveting, brilliant novel crackles with the fire of fierce defiance, forbidden romance, and the sparks of a revolution about to ignite.

♥♥♥♥♥

Pandemonium is set out very differently to Delirium, with the story being told in alternating chapters of "Then" and "Now". The chapters of "Then" refer to Lena's new life in the Wilds and how she adjusts, and the chapters titled "Now" refer to the present day and what Lena is currently doing. Pandemonium starts immediately after where Delirium ended, with Lena crawling through the woods and into the Wilds.

In the sequel to the amazing Delirium, Lena is faced with the challenge of adjusting to her new life in the Wilds, and what comes with being part of the resistance. There are many obstacles Lena has to overcome, and in the midst of it all, she finds new love.

Pandemonium is most certainly a better book than its predecessor. I think that choosing to tell the story in alternating chapters was an interesting and smart choice, and it definitely made for some amazing reading. In the chapters of "Then", we see Lena being introduced to a completely new life in the Wilds. I loved seeing her mature into the person that she presently is, and how she persevered in order to survive. I also really liked Lauren Oliver's descriptions of the Wilds and what it's like to live there. She showed the harshness and the hardship very well, and this was only strengthened by the number of deaths in the "Then" chapters. It was very sad and heartfelt. A whole host of new characters also came with Lena's new life. I enjoyed all these characters very much, and I liked how they were like a very tight-knit family; they looked out for each other and showed Lena the ropes. Lena also goes through the  grief of losing Alex while adjusting, and tears welled up occasionally as I read anything Lena thought or said that made her think of him. 

The "Now" chapters focus on what Lena is doing in the present day as part of the resistance. You can really see how much Lena has changed in terms of the way she acts and speaks. Life in the Wilds has hardened and defined her. She's no longer afraid to stand up for what she believes in, and overall she's very strong and smart. Oliver did the job of showing us how the resistance had managed to infiltrate the cities and "ordinary" life really well, and how many flaws there were in the government system. While doing work for the resistance, Lena meets Julian. It certainly is a forbidden romance, and at first, I couldn't really see how it was going to work. But work it did, and I enjoyed seeing their relationship grow. However, while Julian is a great guy, he is no Alex.

Pandemonium had masses of action in it, and quite often I was at a point where I wanted to immediately know what would happen next in each chapter. I literally couldn't turn the pages fast enough. And then, there are the last few chapters leading up to the ending and the ending itself. I was on the edge of my seat. There were a few revelations and all of them were quite explosive. I didn't see them coming. The ending literally made me scream -thank god I was at home when I was reading it - and I can't wait to find out what happens in the next (and final - sad face!) book. Pandemonium is a brilliant book filled with action, deep thought and romance. Lauren Oliver, you are an amazing, amazing writer. Requiem, hurry up and get published!

5 stars 

In My Mailbox (14)

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by Kristi @ The Story Siren, where we show all the books that we have received this week through buying, borrowing, etc.

I got myself some really good books this week! I haven't gone out this weekend as a result (I'm officially broke), but it was worth it.

All links take you to Goodreads.

Bought:

Pandemonium (Delirium #2) by Lauren Oliver

The End of the World (Skulduggery Pleasant #6.5) by Derek Landy (novelette written for World Book Day 2012)

Forgiven (The Demon Trappers #3) by Jana Oliver

The One That I Want by Jennifer Echols

I was so excited to see these come through the door, especially since two are part of my must-read list for this year. I love the cover for the UK hardback of Pandemonium; it's so pretty! I've been reading the Skulduggery Pleasant series since I was 11 years old, and I actually got to meet Derek Landy in September last year. He is awesome and I'm one of his many loyal minions. The One That I Want is also my first Jennifer Echols book, and I've got her other books on my wish list.

What's in your IMM? Leave me a link!

In My Mailbox (11)

In My Mailbox is a meme hosted by The Story Siren, where we show all the books that we have received during the week through buying, borrowing, etc.

This is a late birthday present which I got from my friend Lauren. Funnily enough, she is also called Lauren Oliver, like the author of this book!

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver; I loved Delirium so I can't wait to read this!

I also won a free ebook of Blue Sky Days by Marie Landry from a giveaway hosted by Giselle @ Xpresso Reads!

Blue Sky Days by Marie Landry (with thanks to Giselle @ Xpresso Reads and Marie Landry)

What did you get in your mailbox this week?

Review: Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Published by Hodder & Stoughton 2011

Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love -- the deliria -- blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the government demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holoway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy. 

But with ninety-five days left until her treatment, Lena does the unthinkable: She falls in love.

♥♥♥♥♥

There was a lot of hype surrounding this book when I first heard about it, and after reading the blurb on Goodreads, I was instantly intrigued. It's an interesting premise, love as a disease, and I wasn't sure how it would pan out. 

After having read it for myself, I now understand why there was so much hype. The writing is incredible and beautiful and the author handled the story really well. Lena was an interesting character and I enjoyed watching her come into her own and realise things for herself. The supporting characters each play a significant role and have their own place in helping tie the story together. Alex was also a swoon-worthy love interest and I fell in love with him myself while seeing how Alex and Lena's relationship developed. Lena's cousin Grace was from the start a very interesting character, and I have to say that she is one of my favourites despite her lack of speech. The cure for love that scientists developed creates a sense of detachment from others, and Lauren Oliver showed how the cure affected people very nicely and with detail, which made the book seem more real to me. Although, the book's premise doesn't really sound very real to me, the story made it seem real. However, the book did take some getting into; things didn't really start happening for a fair while. Nonetheless, the book was very enjoyable and once I did get into it I was turning the pages in earnest. The ending also did make my eyes well up a bit (I don't really cry unless someone actually dies in a book) and the cliff-hanger Lauren Oliver has left behind for the next book is unbearable. There's so many questions hanging in the balance and I can't wait for them to be answered in the next book, which is out next year. 

4.5 stars 

In My Mailbox (1)

In My Mailbox is hosted by Kristi at www.thestorysiren.com. Here are all the books I managed to buy this weekend and last weekend (I always buy my books because I love the smell of new books and I start thinking about germs (I'm a bit of a germ freak) when I pick up library books). I usually buy 2 books a week if I go out so this is pretty standard for me. I've had a good couple of weeks book-wise.

Crossed (UK paperback) by Ally Condie
I loved loved loved Matched, can't wait to see what happens next!
Enthralled: Paranormal Diversions by Melissa Marr and Kelley Armstrong (editors)
This book features stories from top YA writers such as Rachel Caine, Claudia Gray, Ally Condie, Kami Garcia, Margaret Stohl and more, all with the common theme of journeys; sounds interesting.
Heist Society (Signed UK paperback) by Ally Carter
Ally Carter was at the Bluewater branch of UK book retailer Waterstones a couple of weeks ago but I couldn't go because it was during a school day :( Luckily, Waterstones had her sign a few copies of Heist Society for sale and I got my hands on a signed copy; made my week!
Delirium by Lauren Oliver
I've heard nothing but good things about this book, so I'm giving it a go!

Really looking forward to reading all of these!