Review - Pandemonium

Title: Pandemonium
Authors: Lauren Oliver
Publisher: HarperCollins (February 28, 2012)
Format: Hardcover
Genre: Young Adult
Source: Purchase
Series: Delirium #2

When I first began this book, I was concerned. The first one-third of the book did not draw me in. Whereas Delirium ended with my heart somewhere in my throat, Pandemonium just laid there, almost as if Lauren Oliver did not know what direction to go in or what story she wanted to tell.

By the middle of the book, the story settles down a bit and you are right there with Lena and Julian as they fight for their futures. But the last 100 or so pages, you heart is right back there in your throat as you turn the pages and wonder along with Lena what the future could possibly hold. Then bam, you are at an ending that I did not see coming, but fully wondered if it was possible.

In book two, Lauren Oliver sends you in a slightly different direction; Lena is now emotionally alone in the Wilds and with the help of a ragtag group, moves along to her new future still mourning her past life with Alex. Told in a then and now style, the reader sees where Lena is in her present day and shows slowly and methodically how she got there. How Julian, the son of the DFA leader, can be both her nemesis and her salvation. How Lena must open her eyes and realize that not all people are as they appear, that she is being told only little bits and pieces of the whole story and that quite possibly what she thought was the truth might just be part of an even bigger lie.

An author can make or break a trilogy with the second book. They may know where they want to end, but getting from part A to Part C is a challenge. By the climax of this book, I think that Ms. Oliver served her characters well. The resistance is growing, characters are coming in and out of Lena’s life that influence her in innumerable ways, but most importantly, Lena is discovering that if she tries, there might be a life for her after Alex -- that was, until she heard the voice from behind the door.