Requiem

Starred review from January 1, 2013
Fraught with high-stakes action and gripping emotion, the final chapters of Lena Haloway's journey will have readers breathlessly turning the pages. But it is not Lena's story alone this time around. Her story alternates with that of Hana, Lena's "cured" best friend, lending depth and intrigue to the novel through the latter's firsthand account of life in a world vaccinated against the destructive powers of love. Hana struggles to come to terms with both her role in Lena's disappearance and her own upcoming marriage to a powerful and increasingly frightening young man. Having fled to the Wilds with a band of resistance fighters that includes the only two men she's ever loved, Lena is faced with struggles of her own. Now that the government can no longer deny the existence of the Invalids, revolution is inevitable, and Lena must reconcile her passion for the rebel cause with her deeply conflicted heart if she hopes to survive. A soldier, a lover, a cousin and a friend, Lena is a rich and achingly human heroine whose strength and vulnerability will earn her a permanent place in readers' hearts. Before starting, readers should turn off their cellphones and wipe their schedules clean, because once they open the book, they won't be able to stop. A dystopian tour de force. (Dystopian romance. 14 & up)

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November 1, 2012
Grades 9-12 Following Delirium (2011) and Pandemonium (2012), this trilogy ender changes things up by splitting the narrative into two first-person perspectives: Lena, who continues to fight for freedom with the Invalids in the Wilds, and Hana, Lena's old best friend, who was cured of amor deliria nervosa (aka love) and is closing in on her arranged marriage to the city's rotten new mayor. Lena's story grinds through the motions a bit, with a somewhat forced love triangle (or square?) alternating with various resistance maneuvers starring our band of scrappy heroes. Hana's story line, though, is a winner, bringing back to the fore what was so inspired about the first volumethe idea that longing is in itself something important to long for. This is one of the premier preoccupations of paranormal romance, and no one has distilled it as cannily as Oliver. The happy/angry, wealthy/poor balance of both plotlines is satisfying, as is their final collision. And is there a theme more perfect for YA readers than choosing what you want from life rather than being told what to do? HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: This hugely successful trilogy should go out with a sizable bang, including advertising, appearances, a mobile campaign, and plenty of good old-fashioned chatter.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)