Wither: Lauren Destefano

     This is the first book of a trilogy...I didn't realize how many trilogies I've been reading.  Hah! But, as I read the book it brought up a lot of issues I'd never thought of in a 'utopian' world.  So the setting is in a future where the previous generation (the first generation) was artificially inseminated and the embryos were genetically altered to have no disease and to improve the life of coming generations.  Well, it worked well for the first generation, but when they started to have children they soon found out that their offspring wouldn't live long.  Females would live to 20 and males would live to 25.  But rich men would marry young women and sometimes multiple women at once.  And some of these 'women' are as young as 13. These girls are often kidnapped and pretty much taken to an auction and bid on.  It was appalling at first, but as I continued reading the book I realized it wasn't as sick and sadistic and it is in today's society.  I mean in the future if you can only live to 20... 13 or 14 is a good age to get pregnant.  But still a 20 year old man having sex with a 13 year old is still a little weird.  But anywho, I do understand that science behind it.  

     This girl named Rhine is kidnapped by Gatherers and is taken in a van and is eventually chosen to become this man's wife. The biggest reason she's chosen is because she has this rare genetic defect, where here irises are different colors.  Vaughn is her soon to be father-in-law and he's desperate for a cure to the premature death of this generation.  It seems noble on the outside until you realize how cold this man really is. She is constantly figuring out ways to escape this mansion that she's been 'whisked' away to.   They wives are forced to stay on one floor of the mansion for most of the book. 

     It was an...okay book.  It had parts that I liked, but at the same time I wasn't completely taken by it.  I was curious how it would end, but that's about it.  I felt that at places it was dry and it was just so....blah.  I don't know if it was the fact that the setting was pretty much the same throughout the whole book or what.  As I read, I grew tired of hearing about Rhine's nightmares, that were often the same.  And about her crying so much.  I mean, sure if I was kidnapped and taken from my twin brother I'd be upset too, but for an entire year it goes on.  I won't talk about the end of the book because I don't want to give it away, but I wish it was different. Hah!  But I did feel this constant pull between the 'love' interests in the story.  Part of me pitied her forced husband and the 'other guy'. I mean perhaps that will play into the coming books, who knows. 

Characters to know:

Rhine: The book is from her perspective.  Her twin is Rowan and orphans after their geneticist parents died in a tragic accident.  She's kidnapped and forced into marriage after replying to an add to give bone marrow to help find a cure.

Rowan:  Rhine's brother, she misses him dearly while she's forced into marriage.  He's left in New York while she's taken to Florida and he has no idea what happened to her.
Cicily:  She's 13 and one of Rhine's sister wives.  She's glad to be in this marriage, all she's familiar with is being in an orphanage, so this is a huge opportunity for her.  She's glad to be there.

Jenna:  She's another one of Rhine's sister wives, she's 18.  She hates it in the mansion.  When she was kidnapped, she was with her two sisters.  She was picked as a wife and her sisters were shot in the back of a van as Rhine, Cicily and her were taken away to be married.  

Linden:  Linden is 20, he's married and loves his wife, but she's sick and is about to die and his father wants him to get married so he can have children and try to find a cure.  He's an architect...well I'm assuming that's what he is.  He falls for Rhine completely.

Vaughn:  He's Linden's father, and he's searching for a cure to help his son live.  His wife died giving birth to Linden.   He also had to watch his first son die because of the virus.

Gabriel:  He's an orphan and has been at the mansion for a long time working in the house.  He's a slave, for the most part. He and Rhine start to talk and enjoy connecting with her.  He's terrified of Vaughn, and after something happens with Rhine he's taken to work in the basement.

Rose:  Rose is Linden's first wife. She was also forced into marriage, but she did love Linden.  They grew up together and when her parents died she came to live at the mansion. Linden adored Rose and he was heart broken when the virus tragically took her.