Wither By Lauren DeStefano Published in 2011 Carlin Sewer Block 2B

Introduction The world has transformed into a surreal, illusory society, surrendered to the advancement of genetic engineering. Manhattan, New York is no longer the prospering, successful city it once was. Gatherers now wander the unsafe streets, capturing young women to sell to wealthy suitors, with sixteen- year old Rhine Ellery unfortunately one of the kidnapped victims. Rhine must discover an getaway route from within the towering walls of the new place she must call home, while evading the watchful eyes of those who inhabit it so that she can search for her twin brother Rowan.

Main Characters Rhine Ellery: A defying sixteen-year old girl whose life is turned upside down when she is kidnapped by Gatherers.ped Jenna: A collected nineteen- year old girl who befriends and assists Rhine as sister wives. Cecily: A stubborn thirteen year old girl who is the youngest of the three sisters wives. Rose: One of Linden’s wives which he loves greatly. She is similar to Rhine in some ways. Linden Ashby: The son of Housemaster Vaughn and husband of the three sister wives. Gabriel: A servant who resides and works in the mansion. Housemaster Vaughn: A First Generation who is the father of Linden.

Conflict The characters involved in the main conflict are the characters who reside in the mansion throughout the novel. A virus is affecting all women at the start of age 20, and age 25 for men, which often results in death. A cure for the virus is unreachable, but Rhine believes she can find a way with the limited amount of time she has left to figure out how to survive.

Minor Characters Rose: One of Linden’s beloved wives. She relates to Rhine and tells her about her time as a wife. Deirdre: Rhine’s stylist who she often turns to in times of emotional stress. Rowan: Rhine’s twin brother who separate with each other after Rhine is kidnapped.

Critic’s Review Publisher’s Weekly gave Wither a starred review, describing the novel as “harrowing, intriguing, and promising.”[1][1] Booklist states that “many [readers] will appreciate the intense character drama."[2][2]

My Opinion I found this novel as one of the most attention grabbing books I’ve read recently. The dynamic and role they give to each character gives the plot a lot of twists, and really resembles the overall theme of the story. However, I was a little disappointed by the sense of cliché I felt whenever a romantic scene came up. The relationship between a few of the characters felt a tiny bit obvious and predictable, to the point where I almost correctly guessed how everything would play out between them. With that aside, I would recommend this novel to admirers of the Hunger Games series and Divergent readers because both the feeling of an apocalyptic future, and the action of fighting for your survival are all thrown into this single story.