Annabel (Delirium #0.5) – Lauren Oliver

Lena's mother, Annabel, has always been a mystery—a ghost in Lena's past. Until now. Discover her secrets in Lauren Oliver's brilliant original digital story set in the world of New York Times bestsellers Delirium and Pandemonium. Lena Halloway's mother, Annabel, supposedly committed suicide when Lena was only six years old. That's the lie that Lena grew up believing, but the truth is very different. As a rebellious teenager, Annabel ran away from home and straight into the man she knew she was destined to marry. The world was different then—the regulations not as stringent, the cure only a decade old. Fast forward to the present, and Annabel is consigned to a dirty prison cell, where she nurtures her hope of escape and scratches one word over and over into the walls: Love. But Annabel, like Lena, is a fighter. Through chapters that alternate between her past and present, Annabel reveals the story behind her failed cures, her marriage, the births of her children, her imprisonment, and, ultimately, her daring escape.

It’s a short story so I’ll just give some quick thoughts!

So far, I’ve loved these little short stories that give us more info about the characters in the Delirium trilogy. When I read HANA, I was left wanting a bit more from the story but reading ANNABEL kind of filled in some gaps and made the whole trilogy that much richer. Not only do we get to hear about Lena’s mother Annabel before Lena was even born, but we also get a little bit more background on the new set of rules and regulations surrounding the cure and how society is changing once and for all. I thought it was great to see how similar Lena and her mother are yet they’re still two very distinct characters.

As always, I love Lauren Oliver’s writing. The beauty of it just touches me and makes me dive head first into the story. It gave me a little taste of her writing again before I’m able to pick up REQUIEM, and if you’re wondering, NO I did not read the REQUIEM teaser at the end. If I start that, I’m just going to want more. I’ll wait (I’m)patiently for a copy!

Annabel: Annabel is fierce and strong, making decisions for herself and not just going with the flow like the rest of the world. I loved her determination and her spirit. Lena is truly her mother’s daughter! I really think this little piece of Annabel will really help shape the rest of the series.
Conrad: YES, we even get to hear more about Lena’s dad! I actually found this to be one of the more interesting points of the novel and how Conrad and Annabel ended up being together when she was not cured and he was. Very great addition.

Buy it!

If you like the DELIRIUM trilogy, I would recommend this novella. I really love learning more about the backgrounds of these books as well as meeting old characters to create a new story. This one was fascinating!