![]() This is the third time I’ve fallen asleep in her class this week. Fierstein, the twelfth-grade science teacher at Quincy Edwards High School for Girls in Brooklyn, Section 5, District 17, is glaring at me. I snap into awareness, to a muted chorus of giggles. ![]() “Alex,” I say, and then, a short scream: “Alex!” A hysterical feeling is building inside me, a shrieking voice saying wrong, wrong, wrong, and I sit up and place my hand on Alex’s chest, as cold as ice. “Look at me,” I say, but he doesn’t turn his head, doesn’t blink, doesn’t move at all. He is staring at the leaves without blinking. “I’m cold,” he parrots, from lips that barely move. I try to move into the space between his arm and his chest but his body is rigid, unyielding. “Give me your arm,” I say, but Alex doesn’t respond. My breath comes in clouds, and I press against him, trying to stay warm. And again I realize he’s right: It is snowing, thick flakes the color of ash swirling all around us. We are staring at the web of leaves above us, thick as a wall. There’s a basket at the foot of the blanket, filled with half-rotten fruit, swarmed by tiny black ants. “It probably wasn’t the best day for a picnic,” Alex says, and just then I realize that yes, of course, we haven’t eaten any of the food we brought. The leaves are almost black, knitted so tightly together they blot out the sky. The trees look larger and darker than usual. I am super excited to read the next book as I cannot predict how the storyline will evolve from here.Alex and I are lying together on a blanket in the backyard of 37 Brooks. I was fascinated by Raven, and enjoyed seeing how her relationship with Lena developed. Plenty of new characters are introduced as well, all Invalids living in the Wilds. I found Julian adequate as a love interest (I don't have a particular preference between him and Alex), although as per typical YA books, I do think they fall in love just a little too fast. Not that there isn't any romance in this book- Lena gets a new romantic interest, and the romance is pulled off quite well. The twists and turns of the plot were unpredictable, exciting and engaging, and kept my attention far better than the romance-centric plot of Delirium. Unlike the previous book, Pandemonium has far more action, especially as Lena herself becomes a much more active character. With the two new settings, the worldbuilding is expanded on, and while I still have many unanswered questions about it, the explanations and details we do get are sufficient enough for me to suspend disbelief and become engrossed in the story. The plot is split between "then" and "now", chronicling Lena's experiences in the Wilds and her time in New York, as an operative of the Resistance. ![]() She is no longer the meek girl we first met in Delirium. She has emerged from the hardships and tragedies she endured as a new person, strengthened mentally, emotionally and physically. Lena's time in the Wilds has helped her grow into an incredibly strong, smart, and resourceful young woman, a worthy YA heroine that young girls can look up to. After the lacklustre plotline of Delirium, I was not expecting how awesome Pandemonium would be. I liked where this book went, but there is a surprise cliffhanger ending. I knew, based on what was happening what was going on (I wasn’t confused there) and we were in one or the other, but in all honesty, it took me a while to figure out which parts had happened first, as I kept missing if we were “then” or “now”. It was a bit confusing at first, though, as the narration went back and forth in time between “Then” and “Now”, and with listening to the audio, it’s not easy to back up to see where we were. I listened to the audio and it was done well, kept my attention for the most part. I liked this and am happy to continue the series. When Lena is sent to follow Julian, they are both kidnapped. Julian has become a spokesperson for the cure. Meanwhile, back in the “regular” world, there is a teenaged boy with a health issue that has prevented him from getting the cure: Julian. After the first book, Lena has escaped into the wild, but has “lost” her boyfriend Alex (he died) along the way. This is the 2nd book in a dystopian series where people are given a surgery to turn off any remnant of love this is called “the cure”.
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