Review: Wither by Lauren Destefano

by Brittany Geragotelis

photo credit: Simon & Schuster
Books for Young Readers

Since I was designing my own book cover recently, I've been paying extra close attention to the cover of novels. There seems to be a distinct style that I like (either the peek of a person where you don't quite get to see their whole look, or bright and fun, colorful covers)...and like I've mentioned on this blog before, I do judge a book by its cover. At least enough to help me decide whether I'm going to pick it up and read it.

Wither was sent to me recently and though the cover wasn't exactly like the ones I tend to gravitate toward, I was instantly sucked in. How beautiful is it?!?! It's such an interesting photo, gorgeous as well as harrowing, and slightly sad and mysterious. And all of this conveyed before you even open the book!

photo credit: The CW/ANTM

I might have also been drawn to it because the model on the book reminded me of Jane—one of the contestants on "America's Next Top Model" cycle 15. What do you think? Don't they look alike? At one point I was scrutinizing the pic to see if it actually was her (I don't think it was)!

Anyway...once I got past that first page and started to read the contents, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the story actually reflected a lot of the elegance and beauty of its cover. The language of Wither is what really drew me into the story; besides being well-written, this sort of dystopian future-tale of a girl who's kidnapped and force to marry a rich man and become one of his many wives, had me excited to pick it up chapter after chapter.

Here's the description:

In the not-too-distant future, because of genetic engineering, every human is a ticking time bomb—males only live to age twenty-five, and females only live to age twenty. To keep the population from dying out, girls are kidnapped and sold into polygamous marriages.

When sixteen-year-old Rhine is taken, she enters a world of wealth and privilege that both entices and terrifies her. She has everything she ever wanted—except freedom. With the help of Gabriel, a servant Rhine is growing dangerously attracted to, Rhine attempts to escape before it's too late.

Though it's not as fast-paced or action-packed as other dystopian books (it's no Hunger Games) I truly enjoyed reading Wither. If you're looking for an interesting read with beautiful use of the English language (and an even more gorgeous cover), you can pick it up in March when it hits bookstores!

5x5,
B.