They have tried to squeeze us out, to stamp us into the past.
But we are still here.
And there are more of us every day.
Now an active member of the resistance, Lena has been transformed. The nascent rebellion that was under way in Pandemonium has ignited into an all-out revolution in Requiem, and Lena is at the center of the fight.
After rescuing Julian from a death sentence, Lena and her friends fled to the Wilds. But the Wilds are no longer a safe haven—pockets of rebellion have opened throughout the country, and the government cannot deny the existence of Invalids. Regulators now infiltrate the borderlands to stamp out the rebels, and as Lena navigates the increasingly dangerous terrain, her best friend, Hana, lives a safe, loveless life in Portland as the fiancée of the young mayor.
Maybe we are driven crazy by our feelings.
Maybe love is a disease, and we would be better off without it.
But we have chosen a different road.
And in the end, that is the point of escaping the cure: We are free to choose.
We are even free to choose the wrong thing.
Requiem is told from both Lena’s and Hana’s points of view. The two girls live side by side in a world that divides them until, at last, their stories converge.
***
(This might contain spoilers of Delirium, Pandemonium or even Requiem.)
I can't believe the trilogy is over.
I mean, it can't be, right? You can't just end a trilogy like that. The ending is perfect, don't get me wrong. But damn, I already miss the trilogy, the beauty and the emotions tangled in the words. My mind keeps repeating the quotes time by time since I finished the book. I just can't take the fact that Requiem is actually the last book of the Delirium trilogy. It seems surreal to me. Or maybe it's just that I hope this will never end.
I always admire the beauty of Lauren Oliver's words. She's always got special skills. And now, in Requiem, her skills have enhanced into a whole new epic level. To the point where it becomes... it actually becomes OVERWHELMING. The beauty of the words and the depth of the emotions running through words, sentences and chapters is just extraordinary. For the first time, I actually have trouble breathing while going through chapters. When there's emergency, I just can't make myself breathe. When there's sadness, I feel like I'm breathing too fast. And when there's happiness, my chest swells, in danger of bursting. This has never occurred to me before. Not in Clockwork Prince, which, by the way, has the best technique in making people feel breathless. Not in Finale. Not even in Boundless. This time, I'm truly awed at what Lauren Oliver can do to me with just words. Such perfection.
Everyone who has finished Pandemonium knows that Alex is back. And you might think that there's an epic boy fight brewing up out of jealousy and anger that will last for a long time throughout the book. That's not the case though. Even though there's... resentment between the two boys, there's few annoying boy fights or cruel words or whatever the hell you think there will be. But just because there's no epic boy fight doesn't mean the love triangle doesn't exist. In fact, it is one of those few times I can't choose between the two boys (one is Shatter Me, the other is The Infernal Devices). Yep, clearly no one will forget the first love of the girl. But this time, none can forget the present love either. It's hard to choose. But I think after all the mess in Requiem, I will still be Team Alex (even though there are times where I want to switch to Team Julian).
Lena has transformed. Growing tougher and more mature. Yep, in this book she has to deal with not just the revolution, but the feelings she has for the two boys she holds dear most. She has to overcome the longing, the heartbreak, and more importantly, the jealousy (Why jealousy? Well, you will see once you read the book). Her success in overcoming all those thing once again prove that she is not the slightly scared and hesitant girl in Delirium anymore. I'm glad and a little sad for her at the same time. Glad, because Lena's truly an adult now. Sad, because she can never be the innocent girl we knew in Delirium anymore.
Julian is my favorite character in this book besides Lena. He's just... pure goodness and innocence. There are bits of him resembles the old Lena. He's self-sacrificing too. Well, not that he has done anything very epic, but still. He's gone tougher too, like Lena does. But I kind of feel sad for him. Because Lena will never be able to love him as much as she did to Alex. He deserves a girl who loves him with her whole heart.
Alex... well, there's a lot about him to say. But I feel like I will be damned by giving out too much spoilers. So well, I will try to stick at the first 85 pages as much as possible (because they are not spoilers anymore). It's safe to say I'm extremely angry with him. I mean, what the hell is with his attitude? I just can't take this even though I completely understand what this comes from. It's very hard to see your love hugging another man. And he has changed too. A lot. I think that's it for spoilers. You will have to read the rest of the book yourself.
(I will not talk about Hana here. Hana plays a big part in the book and I'm afraid I will accidentally give out too much)
The trilogy has ended. But if you love Delirium, you will never forget the ending of Requiem. And if you haven't read Delirium, you should definitely read it. It's worth your time and your money on this trilogy.
(And I think I will buy the final version of the book in March. Just to see what is different between the ARC version and the final version)
Now it comes to the million dollar question: Who will Lena choose?
Okay, I guess this is just THE question that everyone wants to know. So... here it is. Lena will end up with....
Nah, I'm not gonna tell you. You have to read it yourself. But I'm happy that she chooses the boy who is truly right for her. (Spoiler: the ending of the book is so open that you might be confused about her choice. But I feel satisfied. Things will work out, eventually. At least that's the way I think the ending means)
(If you are wondering if I'm gonna post a review of the final version of Requiem, my answer will be no. I don't think there's much difference between the ARC and the final version.)
Rating: 10/10 (It's hard not to give 10/10, right?)
No comments:
Post a Comment