I'm not gonna lie, I had some issues with this book. But there are a lot of things I loved about it as well, and I really enjoyed reading it. It took some reflection on my part before I was ready to write this, but I decided that I really did like it a lot. 
 The world is thoroughly original, and takes on a life of its own (as all good dystopians do). She hasn't just created a hook from her idea, she has really fleshed it out and imagined the world in a believable way based on those circumstances. If no one lives past 20, they never see their children grow up beyond 6 or 7 years old. Many are orphaned much younger than that. If you don't have a first generation relative (one of the "perfect" generation before kids started dying) then you are abandoned at quite a young age, leaving you in the care of overcrowded orphanages. There are no imports, because worldwide disasters and war have wiped out most of the other continents. Without a population of adults to keep society going, factories are forced to use child labor. Add to this the violence between those researching a cure and those that think humanity should die out. 
 All of this is to say that the world is extremely dark, with very few redeeming qualities. Darker even than Suzanne Collin's world in The Hunger Games. Although DeStefano doesn't kill off as many characters... a few, just not that many. It is a world where truly the only thing of beauty is freedom; death and grief are treated honestly and with maturity. I thoroughly enjoyed it, but it's not for everyone. 
 (I did find the world a little implausible on a scientific level, though. Not that I'm a scientist, but it does seem a bit far-fetched. Hey, it's fiction, who really cares? Also Rhine references things she's not supposed to know about in her thoughts, and then talks about how she doesn't understand first generation references like Hell, Atlantis, etc. A bit inconsistent.) 
 The romance here is slow-building and completely believable. The relationships between Linden, Rhine, and Gabriel all fit completely within their world. Love is hesitant and begrudging when you know how long you have to live. And the romance takes a back seat to the plot, for the most part, as it should in this environment. This is a rare talent in this genre, I have found, to suppress the romance as it surely would be in this situation. 
 That being said, I did take issue with Rhine's thought processes and behavior much of the time. She really seems to be rather bipolar, and as the narrator she gives the story as a whole this feeling as well. One minute she is full of hate for Linden and resolve to escape, and the next she is enjoying his company and the companionship of her sister-wives (who are very well-developed). I understand why she feels this way, I might myself if I were put in this situation, but it doesn't make it easier to read. I felt a bit jerked around emotionally, and this is the main reason I didn't grade this novel higher. 
 Regardless, it's clear that Lauren DeStefano is a very talented writer with a lot to offer the genre. I enjoyed the characters immensely, especially the dynamics between the sister-wives, and the rich descriptions of settings and cool technologies (holograms are heavily used - very cool). Her writing is comfortable and fluid, very easy to read, and lends itself well to the darkness of the world she created. 
 This isn't really a spoiler, because I won't tell you what happens at all, but I just need to say, briefly, that the ending of the story did not mesh with the rest of the plot. I almost feel like at the beginning of the second book Rhine must wake up from a dream because it was so different from the rest. The story and the action kind of lulled in the middle (as stories are wont to do), but the mood changed completely in the last twenty pages. I was left a little baffled. It is also not an ending that encourages me to read the second book or leaves me hanging at all. (Though I will read the second because I like her writing.) 
 All in all, a great read. If you're a fan of dystopian or well-done YA romance, this is definitely a must-read. Looking forward to more in The Chemical Garden trilogy.