REVIEW: Wither

Wither

Lauren DeStefano
The Chemical Garden #1

Goodreads Description: Obviously, something went terribly wrong. Genetic mutations have festered, reducing human longevity to twenty-five, even less for most women. To prevent extinction, young girls are kidnapped, mated in polygamous marriages with men eager to procreate. Sixteen-year-old Rhine Ellery, a recent victim of this breeding farm mentality, has vowed to break loose from its fetters; but finding allies and a safe way out is a challenge she can only hope she will survive. A dystopian fantasy series starter with wings. Editor's recommendation.

My thoughts:  Why did I wait so long to read this?  It has been on my list forever, but I just kept pushing it back so I could read other newer releases.  I am so glad that I did get to reading this though, because it was awesome!  It wasn't really fast-moving, but I loved reading about all of the details and putting the pieces together.

Rhine was kidnapped so that she could potentially become a wife.  She was put with several other girls who were there for the same exact reason.  When a man comes to look through these girls, he picks three of them, one being Rhine.  Rhine soon realizes that she was lucky to have been picked, compared to the alternative.  She goes to this mansion and is pampered and soon marries Linden.  She becomes good friends with her sister wives, and life could really be good, despite being there against her will.  Rhine is not ready to settle into this new life.  She carefully plans her escape, and ends up spending 6 months there before finding the right moment to go back to her old life.

I loved Rhine.  She never gave up herself.  She was never rude to anyone and pretty well followed along with what she was supposed to do.  She seemed to start to fall in love with Linden, but she never forgot how she got there or what she left behind.  Her twin brother has no clue where she has gone, and she does not want to live without him.  Rhine is always thinking of others.  She has the perfect opportunity to escape, but she chooses not to because her sister wife is going into labor and she wants to ensure her safety.

At first, I did not like Linden because he was keeping the girls there against their will.  I realized later that he doesn't even know what is going on most of the time.  His father is in control of everything, and takes care of his son as if he is still a little boy.  Linden is very ignorant, and many times I wish Rhine would have enlightened him.

I loved the setting the most in this story.  Everything sounded so elegant.  Everything was always so descriptive, which made up for the lack of action.  It was nice to read something slower paced!

My rating: ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺ ☺