Requiem (Delirium #3)

First things first: THE COVER CHANGE!! why do authors change the cover in the very last book of a series? WHY? It makes me not want to display the books on my shelves and that makes me feel guilty about the books feeling left out. Gaaaaah!

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Lauren Oliver really redeemed herself in this book; it was full of action for the most part and I felt like the story progressed really well. As always, the defining quality of this book was how gripping it is.

What I liked:

- Lena being called out on her mistakes and faults; I think Lena’s worst quality is that she can be whiny and childish a lot of the time. I don’t mean to say immature because I don’t think that, I just think she has a problem with overreacting and behaving childishly in some situations.

-I mentioned in my Delirium review that a huge chunk of these books seems to have been “inspired” by The Uglies trilogy by Scott Westerfeld and while that continues to be true I liked that she veered off from what I expected in a key point in the story. I was really expecting Julian to end like a certain character in the Uglies books “Zane” and it was a pleasant surprise when it didn’t.

-Hana eventually turned up SOMEWHERE in this story, which leads me to my main objection about this book:

What I hated:

- That Hana was only now being mentioned. I felt like I had spent the entire second book wondering where Hana was and by the end of Pandemonium, I was sorta over her. I had accepted that she’s just not part of the picture anymore. Then exactly half of the third and final book is told from Hana’s perspective which I didn’t need. I felt like she was being introduced back at a time when there were other more important things to worry about and that bugged me.

-The ending: not the actual ending but the writing itself. There are a couple of paragraphs at the very bottom of the last page written in a voice that didn’t feel like Lena’s. It felt like the author was talking directly to me and it shattered some of the atmosphere, certainly broke the spell of fiction.

I could have done without the bottom half of that page.

Overall impression: I liked it quite a bit, actually. It was interesting and it made me read all the way to the end and that’s more than enough for me.

I had read Delirium and Pandemonium some time ago. I was a little fuzzy when I finally got a copy from the library (it took FOREVER… seriously), but after a while I remembered what I had read in the first two books. The book did not really give much detail as to what happened in the last books except when it was pertinent so it wasn’t like other books that give a refresher course at the beginning of the each book so you can make sure to be caught up.

In Requiem the focus was more on the building to a final stand between the Invalids and “Zombies”. The love story of Alex and Lena or Julian and Lena was there, of course, but it wasn’t the most important aspects of the book. In Requiem we follow Lena and her pack of Invalids (including her two confusing and equally hot boy toys) across the country as they search for a place to call their own. As their existence became known to the Cureds finally in Pandemonium the regulators start to take strides to eradicate all Invalids from existence. To the shock of the Invalids they actually are venturing out from behind their massive walls and extracting their heads from the sand to push back against the encroaching Invalids.

As Lena becomes more and more confused about her warring feelings for Julian and Alex, their lives become a series of strategic battles and all-out bloody wars. Lena had her heroic moments but it was always with some help. She was braver and more willing to bleed for her cause than she was in the earlier books, but she was by no means as strong a leader as Tack or Raven. I liked the fact that Oliver did not automatically stick her in a leader’s position because she got lucky in a few missions or was the protagonist of her story. She kept Lena as a strong battler, but not the figurehead of the rebellion.

Alex came out of the Crypts in Pandemonium and turned into their snarky asshat in Requiem. I understand he was a bit peeved off at the end of Pandemonium with some of Lena’s actions and choices, but did that mean he had to be as broody? I think not. I still liked Alex, don’t get me wrong. I was a fan of Lena and Alex since Delirium. I just didn’t think he had to react the way he did. I think he could have either accepted it and moved on or fought for what he wanted.

Julian. Poor, sad, forgotten, Julian. I felt for the dude. Throughout the story he was trying his damned to prove he was not like the Cureds and was made for the Wilds. This ruffled a few feathers and got to be a little desperate looking, but bless his heart… he was trying. Julian was a beta character that never did anything too stand-out-ish. Even in battle scenes he was normally forgotten.

The ending of this book felt like it was cut off at the knees. I kept expecting something more extravagant or at the very least more final. Hana, who was the other half the story, struggling with a sadist future husband and questions she shouldn’t be having, had no ending at all. She simply poofed out of the story. Okay? Hana? Where’d you go? What’d you do? I NEED ANSWERS!

I liked the book, but I think it was read more like a middle book than the final book. The ending was unsatisfactory because it left a lot of stuff hanging. Cliffhangers with no chance of answers is horrible. It weighs on my heart and makes me grab fistfuls of hair and tug screaming “whyyy?!” Although, it was a good read, I needed a bit more than what I got. More resolutions and more romance would have made this book worthy of greatness.

Review Posted on: http://www.ladybugliterature.blogspot.com

For me, Requiem was a disappointing end to a good trilogy.

I liked Delirium and even loved Pandemonium. Lena had undergone a great character development and newly-introduced Julian was very likeable. I did not really like the character of Alex (her love interest in book 1 who was captured at the end) that much, but he was away the whole of book 2. Lena's life in the Wilds changed her character for the better.

But then Requiem... Of course the previous book ended with Alex reuniting with Lena, while she is now with Julian. The beginning of the book is almost entirely about how Lena is jealous about Alex' new relationship and how she is actually leading Julian on, because she is still in love with Alex. Later fortunately she turned by and got back to her old self, but only after Alex left. This really disappointed me, because Lena had become such a strong character in the last 2 books and this jealous girl was not. The rest of the book was a series of events that showed that rebels were gathering and the government was trying to stop them. Lena's long-lost mother also stops by, but this does not add much to the story.
Of course Alex was not very nice during this book, but what will you expect from someone who has been in prison to save the girl he loves only to find out she has found someone else when he comes back.
Julian is such a great guy, he gave up everything to run away with Lena to Wilds. He is always there for her, he does not deserve to be treated like Lena did. One time she is nice to him and the other she ignores him. This was a bit of a disappointment after their great relationship in Pandemonium, but it was sort of to be expected after Alex returning.
I liked the parts where Hana (Lena's best friend from before the Wilds) was narrating. She gave the reader the opportunity of experiencing the government-controlled cities, not only the Wilds. She has a strong character and she fights back against the Cure.


Then what I most disliked about the book was the ending. I was very surprised when I found out this was the end of the series. The ending was so abrupt, it seemed weird there was no next book.
The whole book the writer has been building up to a conclusion. And exactly when you think all your questions will be answered the book stops. What will happen to Hana, will she escape and will she and Lena live together in the Wilds? Who will Lena choose, Julian or Alex? What will happen to the revolution overall, will the Invalids win? All this was unanswered. Talking about an anti-climax ... The ending of the book kind of ruined the whole trilogy for me. What good is a nice story when there is no actual ending?

So, while Delirium and Pandemonium were great books, Requiem, mostly because of the ending, was not. I would strongly advise the writer to write a fourth book, because I am still full of questions. For now I am leaving it at 2 stars, for the rest of the book was OK.

http://www.evelinesbooks.blogspot.nl

After reading Pandemonium with that gut-punching ending, I cannot wait to read this book. But after reading some reviews when this was released, all those unsatisfied comments sort of dampen my excitement.

Oliver, once again, amazed me with her impeccable writing style and wonderful prose. She has a way with words. I definitely enjoyed reading the alternate POVs of Hana and Lena, which had a great distinction between the characters. You can definitely see the difference between them. Lena was defiant, stubborn and strong-willed while Hana was confused, guilty but surprisingly calm. I was particularly excited to read Hana’s part, especially now that she’s cured.

All the time I was reading, I was looking forward for the two girls to meet. Well, except knowing Lena’s choice. I was excited to see their reactions and if there still was friendship left between them, even a little. Unfortunately, the moment I’ve been waiting for fell short. Of course I was expecting a sort of dramatic event. They were best friends whose paths were separated after all. But I didn’t feel enough emotions on their scene except when Hana admitted to Lena that it was her who told the Regulators about 37 Brooks. It all felt bland and both of them, although wary of each other, seem nonchalant.

The build up of the war was also well-paced except for some unnecessary filler parts. Fillers are not bad, although I was expecting more action because of the upcoming war against the government. I definitely felt a rush reading those dangerous parts, not just on Lena’s part but also on Hana’s. The latter’s visit at the Crypt was also an interesting point, as well as the use of the story of Bluebeard, which I admit scares the crap out of me.

Also, let’s not forget the boys. Reading the change in Alex was heartbreaking. He was like a lifeless soul that didn’t just change but was utterly broken. And although I wanted Alex, Julian’s moments and his adjustment to the Wilds was something that cannot be overlooked. Almost everything he does, he does for Lena, which is really sweet and adorable. I started to see his perspective and I cannot find any reason to be annoyed.

Who annoyed me? Lena. At the beginning, her choice was indeed obvious but I felt a bit of change in the middle. Her confusion between Alex and Julian was perfectly understandable but I hated the parts where she purposely threw herself towards Julian’s direction whenever Alex does something (ignoring her or having a fun conversation with Coral). There were also times when it feels like she’s choosing Julian’s side because she can’t be with Alex, like he’s her second choice. I thought she loved Julian?

Although I have a love-hate relationship with this book, it was still awesome in my book until the ending. Please tell me that my copy has a missing chapter or that there’s another book coming next year because that was not a freakin ending! I liked the thought of the last paragraphs, about not knowing things, I get it but would it hurt to give a conclusion? This is a conclusion to the series, for Merlin’s sake! With Lena’s internal speech about not knowing things, I expected an open-ending but that wasn’t ending at all. It only gave me more questions which was supposed to be answered and put to rest after reading the last book. What happened to Lena’s family? What happened to Hana? What about Fred? [spoiler] With Lena choosing Alex, I assume because of their exchange of I love yous, how did Julian react? [spoiler] Did Hana and Lena’s friendship stood a chance in the end? What about the war? See, questions.

To say that I am disappointed would be an understatement.

Steph's Review:
It may be a bad thing that I'm writing this review before I review Pandemonium, but trust me, I have A LOT more to say about Requiem. Warning: There will be rants, annoyance, change of hearts, etc. After I finished Pandemonium, I kind of had the "blank look of shock" until I immediately started grabbing for Requiem (which is why I never reviewed Pandemonium, lack of time spent reading and studying for exams). Both Delirium and Pandemonium were flat out amazing, and I finally found myself in love with this series. Requiem changed things a little...

I am so torn about this book. I didn't really know what rating to give it since there were parts I absolutely adored, but parts that really pestered at me. It completely lived up the high standards set by Pandemonium action wise, but the love story? In shreds. The ending? A big HUH?. I think its best to do a "The Good" and "The Bad" comparison. Minor spoilers ahead, view discretion advised.

The Good

Action
While I felt Delirium was lacking in the action, Pandemonium made up for it. Requiem delivers action right to our minds, spot on. The suspense is a killer, the betrayals and backstabbing are the ultimate twists. During the action sequences, my heart was racing with fear and anticipation, and most of the time I just hoped everything would turn out okay. I started to like Lena a lot in Pandemonium, and I wanted her to be lucky, and be happy (happier?). She's faced too much death since reaching the Wilds. The action is heart jolting, and is what really shines throughout the entirety of the novel. I think all this action shows Lauren Oliver's growth as a writer, because the plots and plans are so much more elaborate than before. I actually couldn't see through them this time. This is what mostly kept me engrossed the whole time (I'm a sucker for action!). The Resistance has amassed a huge number of followers, both within the confines of cities and out. The attacks and raids planned were startling and superb!

Hana's Story
Requiem is told in dual POV's, one Hana and the other Lena. In this installment, Hana has been cured of amor deliria nervosa and is prepping to get married to the to-be mayor of Portland, Fred Hargrove. At first I was kind of mad that Hana ended up succumbing to the will of the government, because I always thought it'd be pretty epic if somehow Hana managed to make it out into the Wilds too. From how she was in Delirium, this was a big change in demeanor and it was harder to make a shift from "past-Hana" to "present-Hana". Then I realized how dumb I was about that because Hana lived her whole life primped and primed to take her role in society. After I got past my initial anger, I ended up enjoying Hana's chapters more than Lena's. She is newly cured now, but can't seem let go of her old life completely: i.e. the cure didn't quite work all the way. She's a great actress though and can hide this from the press, her fiancee, her parents, everyone. Her story is one of discovery, about herself and about Fred... who's intentions might be much darker than what appears in the good-boy facade he emulates to the world. Most of the suspense is actually in Hana chapters. Lena gets the action, Hana gets the tension.

Alex is back everyone!
Yes, I was always an Alex girl. Julian was such a wimp...and he never really grew on me. I always though Alex was better for Lena. He joins Lena's group, meaning we've got a 3-way love story going. His and Julian's silent treatment of each other was actually quite amusing. There are parts of "Alex" I was really angry about though, but I'll get to that in the bad under "The Romance".

Annabel
This is Lena's mother, who also goes under the name "Bee" in Requiem. She doesn't have a huge role in the book, but I think her character is a good representation of sacrificing yourself for those you love. She has a noble concept, and I couldn't help but really like her despite not knowing much about her character.

The Bad

Romance
*sighs*. I'm an Alex girl. And he annoyed me for the first half of this book. He's broken on the inside, but I don't take that as an excuse to push everything and anyone he ever cared about away. It wasn't fair to Lena, not fair to himself. I wanted him and Lena to get back together and happy, because even Lena admits she's never loved anyone more than Alex (besides her mom I guess). Julian is messing the whole thing up to me. I don't like him, I think he switched sides to fast, and well he's a wimp. I'm into alpha-male type characters, and Julian...is not. Lena's indecision swamped me too. She clearly was still in love with Alex, couldn't break it to Julian, then decided that if she couldn't fess up she must love Julian. Ack. Her back-and-forth mindsets really annoyed me. There are no more stolen moments in this book like there was in Delirium and Pandemonium. The romance the reader gets come from mentality only.

The Ending
If this ending wasn't so awkward, I could've gotten over myself about the romance issues and given this book a good pat on the back cover, rate it 5 stars, and be done. I honestly don't know what to make of it. Lauren Oliver didn't write the ending to feel like a close of a series, It honestly felt like there was a 4th book on the way or something. There are so many questions unanswered, and the knots are not tied. I don't want to spoil anything, which is hard and leaves this part a little vague, but if you read this book you will understand. There isn't really an ending plot. Lauren basically leaves us with this inspirational comment about love, life, and fighting for your deepest desires, but it wasn't a closing. There was no finality, and the ending of this book really made me feel like I was hanging somewhere. It really disappointed me because we never find out the imminent futures for the characters, no definite HEA, just...emptiness. I don't know if she's trying to say "you can never predict your own future, so I'm not going to give you anything to predict my character's futures" or something like that. There just wasn't a good resolution to the conflict, which just made the ending to this series discouraging. It was a wonderful read until I realized that there was not more left of it when there should have been.

You might have noticed I didn't talk much about our protagonist, Lena. I just don't know where to put her on this spectrum since she was overall just "meh" to me in Requiem. I liked her during the action, I despised her during the romance. She was just okay.

Overall, this book is great while you are part of it, when your reading it, but once its over you feel like you've been crudely ripped away from a world you wish you could stay in longer. I do recommend it to Delirium fans, though read at your own risk.

From Steph @ http://awalkonwords.blogspot.com/

I really wasn't as disappointed by the ending as most people seem to have been. I think it was a pretty satisfactory ending for the series overall. A lot of loose ends were tied up and answers given, and it left me feeling hopeful for the world's future.
However.
I was pretty disappointed by the ending situation with the boys. I would have much preferred a definitive answer and that Lena ended up with the guy I liked best. Instead, nobody wins and it's just a "we'll see what the future holds" situation.

Well…that was a disappointment. Requiem is another unsatisfying conclusion to an otherwise great series. I fell in love with Delirium, and still enjoyed Pandemonium, although not nearly as much. I was hoping that the ending would return me to that initial love stage, but it didn’t. Honestly, all three books are extremely different. If it weren’t for the fact that they are the same series, I wouldn’t know that they are, since they each read totally different.

The POV once again has changed. This time it alternates between Lena out in the Wilds and Hana back in Portland. I oddly found Hana’s chapters more interesting. I use to think that the cured people would be robotic, but after reading Hana’s POV, I see that’s not entirely the case. They still have thoughts and feelings, but they seem more…detached, but aware. It’s almost like they know something is off, but convince themselves that it’s clarity. It’s hard to explain, but it’s just strange. But, then again, Hana may not be a typical cured.

Out in the Wilds, Lena and her companions just keep running into crisis after crisis. There’s no shortage of action, something completely missing from the first book, but it gets super repetitive. They reach a new homestead or safe house, regulators show up shooting, people die, then they move on to a new homestead or safe house. Lather, rinse, repeat. All the while Lena is using Julian for comfort while pining after Alex who seems to be bonding with another girl in their group. It was all very blah. Everything I loved about Delirium has just been lost.

The ending was probably the worst part of the finale, which makes it worse. I had to read the last few pages twice, because I thought I had missed something. There’s war and chaos and death everywhere, and then it just ends. It feels like a cliffhanger with the promise of a fourth book rather than an open ending. Absolutely nothing is resolved. It just ends. Did the Resistance overthrow the DFA? Who’s in charge now? Is Lena going to form a relationship with her mom? Does she end up with Julian, Alex, or neither? How are the cureds and uncureds going to live together? What happened to Hana? I have no idea!

It makes me so sad when a series starts out strong and leaves me with a feeling of utter excitement only to steadily head down hill and fizzle out. Requiem was almost three stars for me, but then that abrupt ending happened. I don’t mind open endings, but this one just feels unfinished.

I totally loved the whole trilogy and I can't wait to also read the three short stories that go along with it :)

My feelings for Requiem are mixed. It’s been months since I read it, and I’m still not sure how I feel. I put down Requiem and felt satisfied. I was content with the ending – I’m a firm believer that there was no perfect way to end this series and I think Lauren Oliver did a good job with the ending.

But I just wasn’t able to get the same emotion out of Requiem that I did out of Delirium and Pandemonium. I was sobbing – legit straight up sobs – while reading the first two books and I had essentially no reaction to Requiem at all. That could totally be my own problem, but it kind of lessened my enjoyment of it.

Overall, I was satisfied with the ending to the series and I’ll definitely be rereading all three books in the future, but I still wish I had gotten more feeling from Requiem.

Well…that was a disappointment. Requiem is another unsatisfying conclusion to an otherwise great series. I fell in love with Delirium, and still enjoyed Pandemonium, although not nearly as much. I was hoping that the ending would return me to that initial love stage, but it didn’t. Honestly, all three books are extremely different. If it weren’t for the fact that they are the same series, I wouldn’t know that they are, since they each read totally different.

The POV once again has changed. This time it alternates between Lena out in the Wilds and Hana back in Portland. I oddly found Hana’s chapters more interesting. I use to think that the cured people would be robotic, but after reading Hana’s POV, I see that’s not entirely the case. They still have thoughts and feelings, but they seem more…detached, but aware. It’s almost like they know something is off, but convince themselves that it’s clarity. It’s hard to explain, but it’s just strange. But, then again, Hana may not be a typical cured.

Out in the Wilds, Lena and her companions just keep running into crisis after crisis. There’s no shortage of action, something completely missing from the first book, but it gets super repetitive. They reach a new homestead or safe house, regulators show up shooting, people die, then they move on to a new homestead or safe house. Lather, rinse, repeat. All the while Lena is using Julian for comfort while pining after Alex who seems to be bonding with another girl in their group. It was all very blah. Everything I loved about Delirium has just been lost.

The ending was probably the worst part of the finale, which makes it worse. I had to read the last few pages twice, because I thought I had missed something. There’s war and chaos and death everywhere, and then it just ends. It feels like a cliffhanger with the promise of a fourth book rather than an open ending. Absolutely nothing is resolved. It just ends. Did the Resistance overthrow the DFA? Who’s in charge now? Is Lena going to form a relationship with her mom? Does she end up with Julian, Alex, or neither? How are the cureds and uncureds going to live together? What happened to Hana? I have no idea!

It makes me so sad when a series starts out strong and leaves me with a feeling of utter excitement only to steadily head down hill and fizzle out. Requiem was almost three stars for me, but then that abrupt ending happened. I don’t mind open endings, but this one just feels unfinished.