WitherBy Lauren DeStefano
Published in 2011
Carlin SewerBlock 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]
Booklist states that “many [readers] will
appreciate the intense character drama."[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.