Delirium

Lauren Oliver opens her dystopian YA trilogy with a strong premise. In this version of America, love has been classified as a disease, and every citizen receives a procedure at eighteen that removes the capacity for it. Marriages are arranged by the state based on compatibility. The result is supposed to be a peaceful, orderly society.

Lena is excited for her procedure. She’s seen what love did to her mother. The book follows the months leading up to the day, when she meets Alex and starts wondering whether the official story holds together.

Oliver writes the romance with restraint. The fear and the discovery work in parallel.

This was one of the major YA dystopian releases of the early 2010s, and the worldbuilding holds up well. For readers who liked Matched by Ally Condie or Divergent by Veronica Roth, this sits in the same conversation. The first of three.