The Haven by Carol Lynch Williams

The Haven by Carol Lynch Williams is a not so distant futuristic novel. Shiloh lives in Haven Hospitals and Halls, an institution where students learn, eat, and sleep with minimal social interactions, in fact the mere act of being too near or touching makes its residents sick to their stomachs. Shiloh is obedient. She is a rule follower who takes her daily tonic, only there is something different about her. She remembers. Only she isn't sure what exactly it is she is remembering, that is until classmate Gideon shatters Shiloh's disillusionment. Gideon tells Shiloh the truth and soon Shiloh is remembering and with remembering comes questioning. I don't want to spoil the big reveal of this book as it kept me turning pages for quite a while. I feel that the ending could have been stronger as it was a little vague and not necessarily in a good way. At first, Shiloh's obedience and dreams are confusing until about chapter 12 when we find out just what kind of institution the Haven is. Then it begins to make more sense. Apparently, there is a similar more popular book with the same premise out there, but I haven't read it. I love the ideas presented, I just think more could have been done with it.