Fever

De: Lauren DeStefano

Narrado por: Angela Lin

Lauren DeStefano’s Wither was called a “thought-provoking debut, reminiscent of The Handmaid’s Tale” by Kirkus Reviews. Its chilling follow-up, Fever, continues 16-year-old Rhine’s tale - set in a dark future in which men and women die by age 25, and young girls are sold into marriage to keep the population growing. Rhine has finally escaped her marriage. But what hope can the outside world offer when death looms ever closer?

©2012 Lauren DeStefano (P)2012 Recorded Books, LLC

Loved it!

Would you consider the audio edition of Fever to be better than the print version?

Didn't read the print version so it's hard to compare.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Fever?

When she sees her brother on TV.

Which character – as performed by Angela Lin – was your favorite?

Not sure.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

Any additional comments?

I could easily see this series becoming the next Hunger Games in terms of popularity.

Such a Weird Trip

This is such a twisty, bizarre story, a bit psychotropic.Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed every second of it, even if there were some stretches that felt a bit slow (helpful hint: they aren't that slow when you listen to the audiobook at 3 speed).

I guess what I'm trying to say is that this isn't standard, which is probably why it held my attention so well. I would have liked a bit more to happen in book 2, but I'm also not unhappy with the weird journey we took. It was definitely unexpected, which is at the very least, refreshing.

Also, the narrator does a great job!

suspense.

i couldn't stop listening. an amazing story of suspense and excitement. i would recommend it to anyone. a mix of romance and science, sad but exciting. i love the characters you cannot help but get sucked in to the beauty and horror.

A Good Read For Book #2

If you could sum up Fever in three words, what would they be?

Longing. Regret. Caught.

What other book might you compare Fever to and why?

Its similar to Uglies and Partials, because of the Dystopian feel.

What about Angela Lin’s performance did you like?

All of it!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Everything will come full circle!

Any additional comments?

I didn't care for the beginning part of the book because I felt the author was just flooding the main character with awful luck. That didn't really change actually. But the book got better! I also felt the main character was a lot more stupid in this book. I don't like stupid characters. I noticed 90% of dystopian books that have female main characters are portrayed as dumb. Unless they have a male author. Why do woman make fictional woman seem dumb? You would think it would be the opposite.

Hmmm...

First book. loved it. second book hmmm. Dont like the beginning too much but towards ending it picked up.

Be careful with this one

I finally got to this one and I found the audiobook on Hoopla before I bought it on Audible. It was an easy read, which I’m grateful for.

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Fever is the follow-up to Lauren DeStefano’s novel “Wither”, which is called a “thought-provoking debut” by Kirkus Reviews. This novel is set in a future where women die by the age of 20 years of age and men die by the age of 25 years of age.

Girls are sold into marriage to keep the population growing due to the virus that kills people at such young ages. Rhine has finally escaped her marriage to Linden but what hope does she really have in the outside world when her death looms ever closer?

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I wish there was a trigger warning for the close call sexual assault that occurs in this book. It’s a trigger for me, for sure, and I was freaking out in public. Not a good look, right?

I can see the protests when the president announced the rebuilding of the labs happening again. It reminds me of the fallout from the death of George Floyd during the COVID pandemic.

This entire trilogy reminds me of what happened when the COVID pandemic was at its worst when things were first shut down. I don’t like the post-apocalyptic novels because of that.

It reminds me too much of what can easily happen if we are left to our own devices after something catastrophic. I don’t like thinking about that, as I wonder what I’d do in that situation.

I feel so much empathy for Rhine, as I have a lot of the same personality traits that she does. I put other people before myself to my own detriment. I help people before I help myself and I see a lot of myself in Rhine. That really hurts.

I hate that Rhine finally returned to Manhattan after a year away to find that her brother burned their home down. I know she’ll have what I hope is an HEA at the end of the next book but I still felt a broken heart.

When she starts dying at the end of the book, my heart sank again. I was hoping that she would have more time. I know there’s a third book to come but my heart still sank. I can still feel my heart sinking. lol

I would hate to see Maddie going through the world truly on her own without both her biological mother and Rhine. I know she still has her biological maternal grandmother but I feel like that’s not the same.

I’m truly cautious when it comes to recommending this book because of the sexual assault that almost happens about halfway through the book. I don’t want anyone to be triggered like I was. It’s a shame too because the premise is quite promising.

Wasted credit

I rather enjoyed the first installment of this trilogy. It wasn't the best listen ever, but I was curious as to what happened next. Well, I feel as if I'm still waiting to find out. I couldn't even finish Fever though God knows I tried. I really did. Even the boredom that comes with laying in a hospital bed for 2 weeks couldn't force me to continue with this book. The narrators voice became torture because it just seemed to drone on & on but go nowhere. I'm stunned that I quit the middle of a 3 book series but I had no choice. Listening to an audiobook should be a pleasure, not a task. I may eventually give book 3 a try just to see if the series was redeemed but it will be later, after the taste of book 2 is fully gone from my mouth. Sometimes a middle book or movie is little more than a bridge to connect the beginning and end. The best I can say about Fever is that perhaps such is the case here.

I… I have no words for how bad this sequel is

The disappointment I felt from reading this and the second book after the absolute gem that is the first book was immense. Im actually devastated. Don’t buy the sequels man.

Low Grade Fever

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Probably not. The loose plot and unbelievable ending left me wanting as a reader.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

This is a classic mistake of trying to make the sequel bigger and better. DeStefano spent too much time creating the carnival world and too little time creating intimate moments between Rhine & Gabriel to make this love story believable. It's difficult to pull for a character who vacuously and blindly wades through situations. The rich detail and easy flow of her writing is pleasing and creates an enchanting & horrifying world, but the characters need more life. The reader is left wondering why everyone keeps helping and/or searching for Rhine with one exception. We find out Vaughan only wants to test her for her special features. Not a spoiler alert, obvious from novel one.

What about Angela Lin’s performance did you like?

She embodies the intelligence of Rhine and although her voice sounds more mature, I feel she commands a character who's experienced tragedies, yet is still young. She does a solid job with intonation of all characters.

Could you see Fever being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Yes, I think it could be better than the books. Look at True Blood and Vampire Diaries.

Rhine: Imogeen Poots
Gabriel: Steven R. McQueen
Linden: Anton Yelchin
Vaughan: Richard Gere or Willem Dafoe

Any additional comments?

Given all the negative comments above...I would actually still listen to the third. I do like the world created by the author and believe she could make the third book interesting. She is talented, just needs to inject more emotion into her characters and insert believable, almost tangible situations and dialogue between the characters.

too dark

book one was so good. but there is no hope in book two, just darkness and pain. I finished the trilogy with much reluctance just so I could close the story. but really I should have trashed book two and stopped there.