A review by amachonis
Fever by Lauren DeStefano

4.0

I wouldn't really say that I was sad that Rhine and Gabriel made it out of the mansion in book 1 (Wither), but I was sad about leaving the story behind there. I couldn't stop reading about the sadistic things that Vaughn was doing in the basement and the drama on the wives' floor. I was really wondering if Gabriel would find freedom worth it on the outside because I knew they would struggle. Though I found Madame pretty interesting, I hated the entire part of the book where they were in her red light district. They were drugged and made to do things against their will, and when Vaughn showed up, their escape was surprising in the sense that it wasn't very realistic. I did really enjoy Rhine's reading with the psychic, who knew about Rowan. When Rhine got to New York, I'm glad she was able to get Maddie, Lilac (or Grace's) child to her grandmother and safety. Rhine's home was destroyed, so that was a big letdown for her. I thought, though, since it had been a year, she should have been more prepared for something so catastrophic. I enjoyed the character of Silas in the orphanage and for a fleeting moment thought there would be a fling between him and Rhine. All this time, Gabriel has been more of a caregiver than a lover. He's devoted to Rhine especially when she falls ill. It seems Jenna warned him to take care of her since she realized Rhine was being experimented on as she was. Luckily, Rhine didn't decline as fast as Jenna did. The end of the book was riveting. Rhine goes with Vaughn willingly after she realizes how sick she's become. He reveals a lot to her -- that he was the one who made her sick with the candies she loved, how he killed Jenna (just a confirmation, really), and how he found her: a tracking device in her thigh. For a period of time (weeks? months?) she is put through test after test and kept heavily drugged. She sees her former domestic Deirdre and Cecily also finds out she is back. Cecily makes a big mistake in not telling Linden, who is still in his bubble of oblivion and holographs. Vaughn has lied to her and said that Linden disowned her (I never believed that since Linden is so tenderhearted. She may have broken his heart, but he's not a monster like his father.) Rhine is taken to a hospital where she begins to recover. The curtain is pulled back from Linden's eyes, though he doesn't 100% believe everything yet. There is a moving scene between husband and former wife at the end of the book. I immediately started the 3rd book upon finishing the 2nd -- the ending was just that good. So, even though I didn't love a lot of the book, overall is was well-written. Once you read the 3rd book, you appreciate things you didn't know about when you first read them....