Fever: The Chemical Garden Trilogy, Book 2

Shows what could happen when society breaks down, and could spark discussion about authors' many visions of dystopia. But there's also some bad science here: The author supposes that the continents have shrunken considerably by sinking into the ocean. A little reading about plate tectonics and the density of oceanic plates vs. continental plates will show readers this can't happen anywhere close to the extent the author devises.

Rhine's determination to reunite with her brother is admirable in a way, but she's not terribly resourceful and consequently puts friends in danger. Gabriel may be clueless about the outside world, but he helps Rhine hold things together. His only job seems to be as a silent support figure.

The first third of the book takes place in a brothel. Customers watch Rhine and Gabriel "perform" in a cage, though only the first kiss is described. It's supposed that they have sex, though, because Madame gives Rhine birth control pills. Every night Rhine hears lots of giggling followed by signs that girls are off in tents with customers, grunting and such. A mention that men can, for a cheaper price, get girls who are in the tent already dying from the disease. Since birth control pills are hard to come by, girls have lots of babies in the brothel, babies who are raised around its activities. Some kisses later between Rhine and Gabriel, and a minor character is always in a backyard shed having trysts with his many admirers.