"Orleans" - Sherri L. Smith

Hello fellow bibliophiles! Today's throwback review comes to you from an ARC I received from Goodreads giveaway a couple years back. Thanks Goodreads & Putnam Juvenile Publishing! At that time, this book was way outside my normal genre but has now become something I'm very interested in. Orleans by Sherri L. Smith was really different. A good different. I was transfixed with this book from the moment I received it. Here's why:

"First came the storms.
Then came the Fever.
And then the Wall.

After a string of devastating hurricanes and a severe outbreak of Delta Fever, the Gulf Coast has been quarantined. Years later, residents of the Outer States are under the assumption that life in the Delta is all but extinct... but in reality, a new primitive society has been born.

Fen de la Guerre is living with the O-Positive blood tribe in the Delta when they are ambushed. Left with her tribe leader's newborn, Fen is determined to get the baby a better life over the wall before her blood becomes tainted. Fen meets Daniel, a scientist from the Outer States who has snuck into the Delta illegally. Brought together by chance, kept together by danger, Fen and Daniel navigate the wasteland of Orleans. In the end, they are each other's last hope for survival. "

Needless to say, the book has an interesting concept to it. The beginning half was a little slow going for me, but I think that is entirely due to me learning about the different tribes and how Orleans and the world "now" operate. The book was something different than anything I had read at the time and I really liked the whole concept. To me, it was a fantastic idea and a little scary at the same time as some parts of the book are potentially possible. I liked the blood type/tribe aspect of the book which is how people are now classified and segregated. I thought it added a new angle and different direction than other dystopia books. The two main characters, Fen and Daniel, have well-written story lines and I liked how they interconnected throughout the book. Overall, it's a good story. I wish it had turned into a series. I would have liked to learn more and see how the world would progress! As always, feel free to share any comments, suggestions, or recommendations!

Happy reading fools :)