Sever

This is the book where everything comes together. We get the history, we get the dots and we get the lines connecting everything. And boy do the dots connect. A lot more dots than I thought were there. As a conclusion I thought the book did well. I like the first two books the most, but this one is just as good at keeping you on the edge of your seat and entertained. There are still some unanswered questions but the book makes a point that sometimes you have to pick what you want to discover. Not everything is always revealed in life. The ending upset me a little, but I think it was suppose to and I’m not sure how things could have worked out if the events hadn’t happened. Still some things I found confusing. ‘Why’ is what I wanted to say. It was too quick, too unexpected. But then the whole series was a long unexpected journey. That’s what made it the intense story it is. I enjoyed watching Rhine throughout the series; I’m glad I found it. And I’m sure the series will stay in my thoughts for a long while.

I'm not sure how I feel about this book quite yet. I felt like the beginning was a bit slow, but it did pick up and the ending was quite good, even if it was a bit rushed. I liked how the characters were more fleshed out, but my problems surrounding the world still remained.

I also felt like Rhine didn't have as much as a prominent role in this book. Cecily, Linden, and Vaughn were the stars and kind of overpowered her. Gabriel still doesn't make sense as a love interest and Rowan's entrance in the novel was a bit disappointing. Wasted potential there.

I think if you went into this book expecting the plot to move forward and things to be revealed, then you might need to change your mindset. Yes some important details are finally revealed, but I found Sever to be more of a character driven novel. Linden's journey as his eyes are opened to the world he never saw. Cecily's journey as she tries to survive. Vaughn's story as he tries to find a cure and protect his family. Rowan's journey to help the world in his own way.

There are no good guys, or bad guys in the novel and I like how DeStefano showed this. Everyone is simply trying to find the cure in their own way, even if some people get hurt in the process.

And Rhine....well who doesn't do much, but mention that she needs to search for Rowan.

Let me explain. The book starts off with Rhine wanting to find her brother and stop him from bombing hospitals and buildings. While she wants to escape, she, along with Linden and Cecily, go to Linden's uncle's house and stay there for a few months. Or maybe it was a few weeks? I don't remember, but it lasted for half of the book. Also, the uncle's role in the book serves no real purpose until one thing near the end.

After staying there for half of the book, Rhine remembers her brother, so she, along with Linden and Cecily, hop in a car and search for him.

And here is where my problems about the world come back. The way Wither described the world, it seemed like everyone was getting raped, abducted, and killed. The streets are not safe. And yet whenever we're shown the outside world, it seems pretty safe. Sure some people abduct, rape, and kill people, but it really doesn't seem all that different from the world we're currently in.

This seems odd to me, since Rowan, who we know is blowing up buildings, doesn't seem to have some sort of police force trying to capture him. So I guess that's the only difference. Here is a known terrorist who is bombing places, making public appearances, and hasn't been sniped yet.

Perhaps there are no police in this world. But then why is there a president?

Anywho...The three of them get kidnapped, somehow make it back to Madame's carnival or prostitution and make friends with her. Turns out she's Rose's mother, but she never knew her daughter was alive.

Madame helps them escape, Rhine sneaks off while Linden and Cecily are sleeping and finds Rowan at a rally. Seriously now, he's not even trying to hide himself. Where are the police?

When she finally finds Rowan, we're actually right back where we started. The book ends, the loose ends are tied up, but the book never felt like it truly started or ended for me.

There were two deaths in the novel, but the more important one belonged to Linden. I felt like the death of Linden was sad, not because I liked the character. I mean let's face it, he was sheltered, naive, and ignorant about everything in his life.

But Sever changes that and I do feel bad that his entire world shatters in this book. I thought that once he lost hope, he'd come out a stronger man. Instead, while he's struggling with his feelings, he ends up dead.

The way he dies didn't really make much sense either.

So did I like the book, yes and no. I'm still confused about my feelings. I liked seeing the characters grow, even if Rhine did nothing, but the world still doesn't make sense to me and main plot, the plot that has been the major theme throughout the trilogy, only really moves forward at the end. And even then, it feels like an afterthought.

This book isn't about Rhine's struggles, it's about Linden and Cecily seeing the world for what it really is. Those two really were the driving force of the novel.

As for the score...I dunno. I'm still not sure how to grade this. I'll have to think about it some more.

Edit: I'll give it a three for now, but that might change.

Great ending I wish there was an epilogue I would so read it

Absolutely compelling and satisfying conclusion to this dystopian trilogy. I really enjoyed The Chemical Garden Trilogy; it offered something different than the usual YA dystopia. In a world where females died at age 20, they are coveted for their reproductive abilities and lead lives of prostitution or lives of luxury as forcible sister wives to one man. The characters of the women are really stressed and though there are male characters they do take a back seat to the women; Rhine and Cecily become the main focus in this last volume. Their characters have developed tremendously since the opening book, from the experiences and hardships they suffered they have grown strong, in different ways, and ultimately the hope they both once had and lost is returned to them. An amazing end, and a cautionary tale for our society seeking perfection in the human condition. I look forward to DeStefano's next work and am hoping for a standalone to see if she can carry a novel with as much success. Recommended for YA dystopia fans looking for something a little different than the common fare.

A smidge better than the first two, and I was finally able to get into the characters and understand them more. Still, not my favorite trilogy.

This did not end at all how I assumed it would end, but it was still brilliant and amazing.

I deeply loved the moving sections between Rhine, Cecily, and Linden. I loved the tenderness shown between every single set of three here, especially as they walk the very grey and wobbly lines between what is *family* and what is *love,* what chance be changed and what is for good. I love the changing shift of sisters all throughout the book and especially at the end. I was moved so many times by the simple tenderness and empathy between Rhine and Linden.

The twists, oh god. The twists. The things we never knew about Vaughn. The things we never knew about Rose, and how that connected to book 2. The things we never knew about what was going on with Gabriel and why. I spent a good half to two-thirds of this gap-jawed. I definitely liked this book a lot more than the second one, after all.

I have been waiting for this book ever since I read the first installment, Wither. Not even kidding. This world has been terrifying to me from the start, probably because it doesn't seem all that out there. I could see us messing with genetics and diseases and inadvertently discovering that we have created a virus much worse than any disease we currently face. A disease that decreases our life spans significantly.

Besides that I have really loved watching the characters in this trilogy evolve and develop so much. Cecily is the best example of that. The annoying Cecily found at the beginning of the trilogy is nowhere to be found in Sever. Honestly, I really think that out of the ridiculous amount of dystopian trilogies published in the last decade, this is by far one of the best.

Enough gushing about the trilogy. You're reading this because you want to know whether or not Sever was a worthwhile conclusion. I'm here to tell you that it most definitely was! Sure, there were some things that really bugged me and one thing that may have made me a tad angry. (If you've read Sever then I bet you know what made me the angriest.) With that said I think everything was resolved so nicely. I'm very satisfied with this conclusion! That's all I can without spoiling the ending, so you better just go and read Sever!

So, a lot of people didn't seem to like the way the book ended. I'm not one to post spoilers in my reviews, so I'm just going to say that I wasn't upset. I like books that don't end the way you think they're going to. I like series that tie things up, but don't tell the whole future, just infer a promise of something better being possible on the horizon. It was sad, I'll give them that, but it's a dystopian book, come on. There's bound to be some death, there's bound to be some twists that don't make everyone happy. I liked some of the shocks in this book, how we come to find out that seemingly random things were actually all tied together from the beginning. I have a new found hatred of Vaughn...I didn't think it was possible to dislike him more, but DeStefano has created an epic villain here. I enjoyed the whole series and it was definitely a series that I wanted to keep reading each book, had difficulty putting them down, and that is something I crave when I'm reading.

There are so many feels for this book. Seriously, the emotions run freaking high! I love this series, and can't believe it's over.

The characters, as usual, are remarkable. Rhine is such a strong character. Although I did get annoyed with her about 75% in. I couldn't believe her actions. But her determination is absolutely amazing. Linden's whole view is forced to change in this book. He finally sees the truth of some of the things his father is capable of. If you remember, I absolutely could not stand Cecily. She annoyed the mess out of me, and I saw nothing but a whiny brat. She grows so much in this last installment, and now holds a special place in my heart. Vaughn as usual is my favorite character to hate. Although, I can actual see why he does the awful things he does. But mostly he's still horrible. Nessa, and I actually had a few conversations when I finished this book. We agreed on most fronts. Especially when it came to Vaughn. Reed is a new character. And I freaking love him. He's the same type of person that Vaughn is, except he uses his intelligence for good things. He finds ways to create.

My emotions were all out of whack when reading this. I was sad, mad, freaking out, and terrified in other parts. There are also some shocking things that come up. We get to see how a lot of these people are connected to each other. And just, wow! The suspense, and intensity of the plot are great. I didn't want to put it down, at all. I stayed up until the wee hours of the night to finish. (I was also very zombie-like the next day.) The events that take place really change the way you view the world, and characters in this book.

I can't recommend this series enough! I'm sad to say goodbye to these characters and world, but I'm looking forward to seeing what this author has for us next.

Oh, yeah, grab some Kleenex. You'll need them.

4.5 stars. What an ending to a fabulous series.

This final installment dug into the meat of the history of this dystopia. Up to this point DeStefano has only ever hinted at the research that was being done to find a cure. In Sever she is able to fully explore the history of Rhine’s parents, the virus and even Linden and his father’s relationship. I loved having the chance to learn about the background of the characters. We also got the chance to see main characters, like Linden, deepen and show more layers. Cecily was such an insipid, annoying girl in the first two books, but in Sever she becomes a strong woman who stands up for herself and her family. For the first time I final cared about Linden, who waffled through the first two books, skimming the surface but rarely leaving a lasting impact. Seeing both Vaughn and Linden’s motivations lent a much-needed sympathy to the characters. I loved Reed, Vaughn’s prickly brother. I felt like Sever did so much to flesh out the characters. I was frustrated at times with Rhine’s passive nature. It seemed like she kept waiting for someone else to take action. She was along for the ride instead of fighting for what she wanted. She would hold her tongue in situations where it seemed vital that she explain why she was doing what she was doing.BOTTOM LINE: The trilogy was just what I wanted, fast reads with enthralling plots. There are definitely pieces that feel like they come straight from another dystopian trilogy, like the constant primping of the girls by attendants (Hunger Games) or the brother who becomes a supporter of the villains’ plans (Divergent), but overall I was entertained. I didn’t like them enough to ever re-read them. The characters were often too wooden, the plot too predictable, but they are great for a reading break when you need one. “I didn’t dare touch her. Loss is a knowledge I’m sorry to have. Perhaps the only thing worse than experiencing it is watching it reply anew in someone else – all its awful stages picking up like a chorus that has to be sung.”

A good conclusion to the series, which reaches a satisfying conclusion and ties up the major plot-lines much better than I expected. (Sometimes when I'm reading fiction like this, I play a game of trying to figure out how the author will resolve the plot-lines, & I'll admit at a few points in this book, I was worried a good resolution was not going to happen.) I didn't like a few of the characters - I really wanted Rhine to bash her brother Rowan's head in a few times - and I wish more justice would have been handed out to a few (not naming names). Overall, a good ending to the Chemical Garden trilogy.

Not a horrible wrap up to a series, but it also didn't seem like they got any where. Every time they left, they just ended up back where they started. And while the relationship between Rhine and Cecily was strong, I didn't get the same link between the others.

Excellent. Not the ending I was expecting.

Plot: 3 stars
Characters: 3 stars
Style: 3 stars
Pace: 3 stars

I find Rhine annoying, the plot too slow to develop without enough tension to draw you along and predictable, and the rest of the characters stupid and shallow. Even as the pieces started lining up, and connections were made between other events and people, I found I never really cared about what happened. Even when Momentous Events happen, it never really punched any emotional buttons, leaving me underwhelmed.

I am SO PISSED at you, DeStefano!!! See, you completely destroyed me with this book. My heart is nothing but a shredded mass of pulpy muscle entirely useless to me now. I feel the weight of dead characters’ bodies bearing down on my chest and forcing the breath from my lungs. You are a manipulator of emotions and attachments, an evil genius. I want to talk about the writing in this book, the very words themselves. This is full of beautiful prose. Creepy and disturbing at times, yes, but still beautiful. I fell in love with the way the words were molded into carefully crafted sentences formed into gripping paragraphs and ideas that bloomed like orange blossoms in spring. This series was addicting. Good thing I bought all the books before I even started reading the first one because I didn’t want to put these down at all. And you know what? I’m still in love with Linden. And though I marginally warmed to the idea of Gabriel, there’s still a part of me that doesn’t see him in a romantic light. And Rowan? I spent the series growing so attached to Rhine’s idea of her brother that when I actually encountered him in the story, I was sadly disappointed. I didn’t really like him. Pretty much the only time I did like him was when he was comforting Rhine. And the end was so shocking I audibly gasped and clutched my temples in disbelief. The mantra of no, no, no, this can’t be happening, no, no! was repeating in my mind. I’m still crushed by it. I have yet to reinflate my soul. Feels, man. While I’m not happy about how it ended, I feel like it was appropriate. Throughout the entire series we’re shown how the world as Rhine knows it is unfair and cruel and that’s kind of how it all ended, to an extent. I mean, there was a little bit of hope, but it was mostly as jarring and sudden as everything else that happened in the books. You may have diminished my spirits this time, DeStefano, but I’ll be back to tackle your next series soon enough. You are a word wizard and brilliant writer.RATING: 5

I wish I could give this book three and a half stars. Goodreads-- get on that.

At any rate-- I liked the ending far better in this book than the last I read. However, I feel as though DeStefano rushed it. In an attempt to come to a conclusion quickly, she precluded certain other information. Everything seemed like it raced to the ending without stopping to analyze what happened after, for example, a certain someone vanished from the scene.

But I do like that dead characters stayed dead. I wish she'd resolved Rowan's problems and really addressed what happened after the cure. But alas. I'm not quite satisfied with this ending either.

This was probably the best book in the trilogy. The series was slow most of the time and bleak. But this last book wraps up everything nicely. It had a different concept than many of the books I have read of dystopian fiction. It was more mental and at times creepy. Not my favorite series, but interesting. The author has great vocabulary and is very descriptive.

I went from complete interest to you gotta be kiddin me with this series. Things started to just fall apart in the second book and this one just dragged for me. I appreciate fantasy/sci fi but I need for it to be a world that I can envision. The things the characters say and things that they do can't seem so damn stupid. The plot and the characters have to be believable. This series began to lose that in the 2nd book and in the 3rd and final book I found myself just putting my face in my hands. Such potential...wasted.

A satisfying conclusion to the trilogy, lots of stuff wrapped up yet we still meet new characters who are awesome. Also, some things really aren't what they seem so I was still surprised, even as there were fewer and fewer pages left to read. I cannot wait to see what DeStefano writes next.

Of course this review is intentionally vague because, well, of course.

Pro: We final find Rowan
Con: This guy is ridiculously dumb

Pro: The Carnival is back
Con: I still don't see the point of book 2 beyond introducing the Carnival

Pro: And they lived happily ever after
Con: The least passionate love triangle ever written

Pro: Mad scientist is really an evil genius?
Con: Vaughn should have been flushed out more

So I still feel like book 2 was a large bit of fluff and extra walking. And I still feel like the love triangle was forced. Rowan doesn't really love Linden and she doesn't even think about looking for Gabriel. It's Linden who suggests it almost 200 pages in .

I think this book is worth reading to see how the story ends, but just be prepared to be underwhelmed.

This review is also posted on my blog: Mommy's Reading Break

the whole reason I picked up the Chemical Garden trilogy when I did was because I kept seeing angry tweets about Sever and had to know what all the fuss was about, so I was very excited when I finally got my hands on Sever! It was a beautiful ending to the series. I’m amazed that almost two weeks after finishing it, I still find myself thinking about the events that took place in Sever and still having a hard time processing my feelings for it.

Sever has the same slower pace as its predecessors, but I felt that it was a good slowness, like Wither, as opposed to the frustration I experienced while reading Fever. At the beginning of Sever, Rhine is getting out of the hospital and going to stay with Linden’s uncle Reed. As she learns more about Reed and Vaughn’s past and tries to figure out how she’s going to find her brother, everything seems almost mundane on the surface, but knowing that Vaughn is still out there and able to manipulate almost every situation to his benefit, I found a constant undercurrent of tension. Even happy moments left me with unease, knowing that at any moment, Vaughn could pop in and ruin everything.

What I loved most about Sever is that old characters that you may have forgotten about come back, and several times, they are tied together in crazy ways that I never saw coming. I loved how Lauren DeStefano was able to make everything make sense, even things that seemed completely unrelated. Even the biggest villains seemed to be slightly humanized over the course of Sever. Don’t get me wrong, they were still villains, but there was a bit more understanding on my part for the reasons behind their actions.

I also really loved seeing the interactions between Rhine, Linden, and Cecily. I think this is what I missed most while reading Fever. Though Linden seemed to be the bad guy for a lot of Wither, we quickly find out that he’s just as trapped, albeit in a different way, as Rhine. It’s amazing to see their relationships and individual personalities grow.

I knew going into Sever that chapter 24 was going to be heart-wrenching, and I spent most of the book trying to figure out what could possibly be so heartbreaking. I won’t spoil it for you, but it absolutely was heartbreaking. I sobbed while reading this and subsequent chapters. I could not have predicted what would happen, and I’m still not over it. In all honesty, I’m a little mad at Lauren over it. However, I’m also far enough removed to realize that I don’t think any of the very important events that occurred after chapter 24 could have happened without it. It definitely set up the rest of the book. There’s a lot more I want to say about it, but unfortunately, I can’t do that without spoilers, so I guess I’ll just let you read and see for yourself!

Overall, I really loved Sever. I thought it was a beautiful conclusion to the series, and it was definitely full of emotions. Over the course of reading Sever, I was happy, sad, amused, confused, surprised, proud, and devastated. It was definitely a roller coaster ride of emotions, but I thought that it was so well written, and everything made sense. I was going to take away half a star for my heartbreak, but I realize in writing this review how necessary it was, and I’m giving Sever a full 5 stars!

::SPOILERS::

I really loved it. I do wish Linden would have lived, I loved his character and I hate that he died. It made Vaughn seem more human, but regardless I really cried when he died. I am glad there was a cure, it was hard to come out of the Chemical Garden world- back to reality~

“I try to hate you. I’m trying right now.”—LindenWhile the first book Wither was really amazing, I really can't say the same for its sequel Fever. It was honestly a disappointment, and it clearly had that second-book-syndrome. However, while I'm still curious about Rhine's problem with her only 20 years lifespan, and also the never-ending Vaughn's threats in her life, I decided to continue with Sever to find out.Sever began as Rhine was once again in the grasp of Vaughn and she just learned that her brother was well and alive, and was now leading a terror bomb attack to research institutes all across the state. And that he thought she was dead.But when hunting down her brother to make him stop the bombing led Rhine to the truth about the virus, her past, and the connections between them all, will she be able to make her decision?From the plot line, it was slightly improving compared to Fever. It still felt plot-driven, but on some points, I began to feel that the character's personality played their part on the story too. The characters were even more glowing as well, and the side characters which were previously a bit undeveloped, really showed their true personality here. We also get to see a glimpse of Vaughn's humanity as well, as well as other characters.Rhine Ellery, our main protagonist, was still the same as previously. And that, while a constant personality was nice, it was at the same time not really nice if it's too constant. And that exactly what the problem was with Rhine. She was still a strong, wise, and independent girl from before, and yet she didn't really changed at all, and if not for the recently-shining side characters, I would've probably put this down simply because Rhine is too still and said things all too matter-of-factly.One character I found really interesting was, surprisingly, Linden Ashby. His characteristic was so developed and really brand-new compared to when he first make appearance, yet still stayed true to his initial traits. He also manage to show his seemingly-dependable character when talking to Rhine about believing his father ill-nature, yet also showed his weak and naïve personality, which were caused by the reclusive way he grew up in. His characteristic was very layered and have a nice depth, and overall he was really easy to portrayed as well as three-dimensional.Cecily, Rhine's sister wife, was really growing too in this book, and it's a nice surprise that I actually became her fan, where in book one, I really just want her and her whiny-annoying-irritating personality—while it was actually unique and something totally her—to just die and go away. From one incident that nearly cost her life, she underwent a major personality change and became braver, wiser, and more daring. It's really lovely to see that her change flowed well and felt really natural, and now that I looked back, her god-awful personality from before really portrayed her childish 14-year-old attitude as well.Vaughn Ashby, finally, took up some white and became a shade lighter than he was before—all black personality and honestly boring. He was shown to be more human here, and finally again, we get to see what fueled his madness for discovering the cure. What made him to be so obsessed with it. And with him being a little more human, I could finally see the reason behind his action, and understand that it come from somewhere inside him, not just a way to propelled the story.The things that I still dislike from this book was—still and not changing—the romantic chemistry between Rhine and Gabriel. If I felt it was real enough, I would obviously care about what happened to Gabriel, and what would become of their relationship? And yet, I don't. Which showed just enough how much the chemistry between them are. None.And when there's no chemistry, it also became quite hard for me to understand why would Rhine do things for Gabriel's sake? And in the end, the missing romance between them made me just thought 'The story must go on, so yeah, Rhine has to do it'.I also don't really like how every single problem in this book was somehow connected to Vaughn. When something happened, Vaughn was involved. When someone goes missing, Vaughn was involved. And when someone died, of course like obviously, Vaughn was involved. It seemed that wherever we turned, we were served by Vaughn-induced problem, and it was just like, was Rhine's world consisted of only her and Vaughn? And Vaughn and Vaughn again? Geez.Overall, Sever did give us a satisfying conclusion to The Chemical Garden trilogy as its stunning finale. While it was still a bit lacking from some aspects, it was done nicely enough, and really worth the read. If you love dystopian story, and would love to read something new, I recommend you this one. Although the second book wasn't quite good, the first was absolutely amazing, and the third was great to conclude it all.

The final conclusion to the Chemical Gardens trilogy was not one I expected honestly. SPOILER ALERT!! From the very first page despite having not read Fever since last year, I was still drawn into the story and knew what was going on within the novel. Rhine is taken back under Vaughn's wing, along with her sister wife, Cecily who is once again pregnant with child, less than a year after giving birth to Bowen. Surprisingly enough, Linden starts to believe Rhine that his own father is not everything he seems to be so Linden agrees to help Rhine escape so she can be on her way to finding her brother Rowan. Left to stay with Reed, Vaughn's brother who he long ago cut ties with, Rhine learns that Reed isn't completely mad in the head, and there's a charm to the simple life in which he leads. While staying at Reed's is when Rhine learns about the riots and terroristic bombings of labs and government buildings, and that her dear brother is not far behind the cause of them. Once Rhine finally does set off towards Rowan (with Cecily and Linden in tow) she really begins to heavily reflect on the fact that, despite being twins, their relationship can never go back to the way it was a year ago, before Rhine got Gathered, that a lot has happened in the time spent apart from one another. And despite hatred for Vaughn, Rhine learns that there's an entire world that Vaughn has been keeping secret, even from his own beloved son that has never even been touched by the virus, and it's Hawaii, a place that so many people thought was destroyed long ago. And within reach, there is a possible cure to the virus but first Rhine and Rowan must comply to the studies that their parents bred them for. And before they can return "home" with Vaughn, Linden dies falling out of Reeds airplane and injuring himself, just moments after Rhine confided in him the secrets about Hawaii and how she finally had hope again aboht finding a cure and the book ends with Vaughn being shot to death by sweet Cecily, and Gabriel, Rhine, Cecily, her son Bowen, and Rowan trying to pick up the pieces of their life once it is all said and done, determined to stay strong and maybe even possibly heal after everything they've been through. An amazing read, I'm very sad the series has ended, and I'd definitely recommend it.

Great ending to an amazing series! Loved it.

In the conclusion to The Chemical Garden trilogy, Rhine struggles once again to escape the machinations of Vaughn as she tries to reunite with Gabriel and with her brother, Rowan, who has started bombing pro-science research labs. Rhine also learns more about her parents' research and the questions surrounding the genetic virus are answered. I enjoyed "Sever" because the fast-paced story kept me interested, but I wish there had been less cat-and-mouse between Rhine and Vaughn--too much of it felt like filler. That being said, the Chemical Garden Trilogy is a great recommendation for teens who like dystopian/science fiction novels.

Just to be up front with everything, this will be more of a series review than a Sever review, because, honestly, not much actually fucking happens in Sever. It's a boring, largely plotless mess, and most of what's frusrating about the characters requires prior knowledge of the series as a whole. There will be swearing, gifs, and spoilers up in this bitch, so if you're not up for that, check out of this review with a swiftness.Maybe, to start, we should talk about Sever just a little bit. Sever picks up with Rhine desperate to locate her twin, like she has been since they were separated at the very beginning of Wither. She's planning to leave immediately to find him, because he's apparently become a radical and is bombing shit. For OVER A HUNDRED PAGES, she plans to go find him, during which time she dicks around with Linden's uncle and thinks angsty thoughts about Linden. Seriously, nothing happens during all of this except that DeStefano pretends to kill off a character and doesn't.Then, Rhine, Linden, and Cecily go look for the brother, which involves stopping by the torture carnival (which I will address later), the sole point of which is learning that Rose, Linden's first wife was Madame's daughter. Whoop-di-do. They do find the brother, and he's working for Vaughn and really doesn't do much of anything except serve as a reason for Rhine to be in Vaughn's clutches again.Seriously, the only plot arc to this series is Rhine trying to do something and getting captured by Vaughn. That's all three books. Even better, Rhine accomplishes nothing in either Fever or Sever. Congratulations, Rhine, I give you the award for most useless heroine; it comes with a nice shiny gilded cage and a cookie wand. Enjoy.What makes me so fucking pissed off about this series is the purity myth that it's putting forward. Slut-shaming isn't something I regularly cite, because it doesn't often, in what I read, feel like the driving force of the book to me. However, in this case, I will make an exception, because, though I don't recall the word ever being used, this series runs off of horror movie logic: if you have sex, you will have a fucking horrible life and probably die.Rhine, our boring, stupid Mary Sue of a heroine lives in a world where women are used as breeding chattel, because they die so young that babies are needed as early as possible. Her brother protected her at first, but she left (because she's dumb) and got sold to wealthy Linden as one of his four wives. Linden doesn't have sex with her, because he wants her to love him (more on this later); Jenna and Cecily have sex with Linden (one of them dies and one nearly dies - THIS IS WHAT YOU GET, RIGHT?). Rhine escapes from the house with one of Linden's servants. They wash up at a Carnival of prostitution run by Madame. A gorgeous virgin comes to this Madame and what does she do? Sell her virginity to the highest bidder because that's what would totally happen? Of course not. Instead, she dopes Gabriel and Rhine with aphrodisiacs so they can be sexually turned on enough to make out with one another. Apparently in this world, men will pay money to watch other people make out while scantily clad (not even naked, mind you). Now, I know voyeurism is a thing, but THAT is bullshit. She would at LEAST have to bang Gabriel. In Sever, Rhine remains eternally innocent, which, apparently, means she gets to be cured for some dumbshit reason which I really give no fucks about. She and Gabriel make out and she stops him and that's pretty much it for their reconciliation.Listen, it's not so much that I want to see Rhine raped or having sex or anything. However, if you create this particular world, then you have to follow things through to their logical conclusions. The world building is minimal enough as it is, so to completely ignore what there is of it is monumentally frustrating. In Sever, when they see the ferris wheel of the carnival in the distance, Rhine moans about how awful it was there. Yes, you poor, poor girl. Forced to make out with your boyfriend like a brazen hussy. Please, tell me more about how traumatizing that was for you.That's one thing that upsets me. Another thing is Rhine's relationship with Linden. She and two other girls, Cecily and Jenna, are picked out of a line up by Linden and his father, Vaughn. They're rich, so they can afford to purchase Linden some wives. Neither Rhine nor Jenna want any part of it, and Cecily's like 13, so doesn't know any better than to be excited. Rhine sort of develops feelings for him over time, but wants to get away more than anything. That's in Wither, and I sort of liked it, because it rang of Stockholm Syndrome in an interesting way.By this point, though, the acknowledged Stockholm Syndrome-ishness of it is gone, and we're apparently supposed to think Linden is a prince among men. Rhine's obviously much more attracted to him than to Gabriel, and she alternates between jealousy of Cecily and being glad to be freed. All throughout this damn book, all Rhine can think about is what a stand-up guy Linden is, how she's mistreated him, or how she owes him for something or other. THIS attitude may almost be unhealthier than the purity myth thing, because it's subtly putting in this idea like Rhine is beholden to Linden. Rhine doesn't owe Linden SHIT.Linden may not have been the one to order the rest of his possible wives killed (that's his dad) and he didn't perform creepy ass experiments on them (still dad), but he's just as culpable. It's not like Vaughn was all that fucking sneaky. He's got his house full of locked doors like Bluebeard on steroids and Linden's not going to be like "Dad, what the fuck are you doing in the basement?" He's ignorant of what's happening, but he remains that way purposefully, so it really doesn't let him off the hook.Even if you don't lay any of that on his head, he still FORCED three girls to marry him. Obviously, they did go through with the vows, but it's not like they had a whole lot of options, considering that they knew the other girls were killed and were just going to be raped or murdered by someone else if they said no. He's an attractive man with pockets well-grown, so there's no fucking reason he needs to pick up women from the slave trade. From the very beginning of Wither, he was a creepy bastard and I do not find it even one iota acceptable to have him romanticized. At the very end of Sever, Rhine says this of Linden: "'It's because he was better than me . . . He never wanted to hurt anyone. I didn't want to hurt him either.'"This attitude straight up disgusts me and I cannot believe we're putting these thoughts in front of impressionable minds. Linden is NOT a good guy. In my opinion, Rhine should have found a weapon and taken Vaughn and Linden out, because they are both disgusting human beings. What could have been a thought-provoking look at Stockholm Syndrome turned into yet another instance of turning a creep into a viable love interest.Don't even get me started on the fact that DeStefano concluded the Linden-Rhine-Gabriel love triangle by killing off Linden. Gabriel and Rhine obviously have absolutely no chemistry, so Rhine was totally going to go back to Linden someday. I guess I'm glad that somewhere along the way the author and/or editor realized her ending up with Linden would be unhealthy, but, rather than fixing the relationship dynamics between them somewhere along the way, Linden is killed off, which pretty much ensures she will always love him martyr-style.On top of that, the ending is just as bad as one might expect. Rhine and Vaughn go for a pleasant stroll. She inquires about why he's a crazy bastard and he responds with villainous infodumps. Then Cecily shoots him. I come through ALL three of these books for this? Remind me why Rhine is the heroine again? She never does anything. The fourteen-year-old mother of one who just miscarried and only just got off of bed rest is the one who takes out the bad guy. Are we for real with this shit? I never liked Cecily but at least she's got balls. Rhine never did anything during this whole series but be speshul and get people to help her do things. Not a single useful thing did she ever do on her own.There's probably more I could say about this dreadful series, but I don't want to waste any more of my time or energy on it. These books are boring, full of shoddy world building, written in a pseudo-poetic style that mostly falls flat, and perpetuate seriously unhealthy concepts of romance. You're welcome to read them if you want, but you could do so much better. Reading The Handmaid's Tale instead would be an excellent life choice.

In short: Fever was disappointing in that it was lacking a bit in plot, character development, and believability, but I still cannot help but be swept away by Lauren DeStefano's beautiful prose.I loved Wither when I read it in 2011; it was a darkly atmospheric and beautifully described dystopian and I loved the enigma of the mansion. Fever was a rougher read for me as I felt it had lost a lot of the intrigue that had carried Wither. I had my suspicions that I would feel the same way about Sever as I did Fever, but as I am not someone who ditches series lightly, I felt committed to seeing the series through. Unfortunately, my suspicions were confirmed: like Fever, a significant portion of Sever felt disappointingly aimless and pointless and this nothingness in the plot killed any tension. There were a number of twists introduced and I appreciate the effort to add interest, but unfortunately, they all seemed forced and predictable due to heavy foreshadowing.I am left disappointingly unimpressed by Rhine's character and her romance with Gabriel - they are just SO bland. I was also incredibly frustrated with Rhine's questionable decisions and her inaction for much of Sever. Opportunities came her way to say something, do something, and make a difference, but she seemed to just let them all pass her by. My main interest actually lies with the secondary characters of Sever: the fiery Cecily, the clueless but sweet Linden, and the cunning and villainous Vaughn are all infinitely more intriguing to me than Rhine and Gabriel.One of my biggest offenses with The Chemical Garden Trilogy lies with the world building and premise of the disease. That is, it makes no sense. I found myself questioning how realistic it was after each new piece of information was revealed. The bio major in me was pretty frustrated at the silly and flat out inaccurate explanations presented about the disease. It was very apparent to me that Lauren DeStefano knows next to nothing about immunology and epidemiology and made no efforts to understand it. This likely won't bother most readers, but as someone with a heavy science background, the lack of scientific accuracy was a major problem for me.The one real saving grave of Sever - as well as for Fever - is Lauren DeStefano's writing. She has a real talent for sculpturing this dark and dreary atmosphere that makes you feel like you are drowning in the gloominess. And yet, she somehow is able to find beauty within the terribleness and it's so absorbing that it's hard not to to get sucked in and swept away by it. So overall, I was pretty disappointed with the lack of plot, character development, and believability of the premise in Sever, but could at least still appreciate Lauren DeStefano's beautiful prose. Though I was frustrated at the unrealistic science, I do think the ending felt "right" for the story and it was satisfactory overall.

Concludes the Chemical Garden trilogy. Rhine has escaped from Vaughn, and Linden and Cecily follow, staying at Vaughn's brother Reed's house. Rhine is determined to find her brother, but suffers setbacks (her own illness, Cecily's loss of the baby). When she does find him, she discovers he may be working with Vaughn to find a cure for the virus. Torn between what she knows of Vaughn and what she learns from her brother, Rhine must decide whether to continue fighting him or help.