The first in the Chemical Garden Trilogy, Wither is the story of Rhine Ellery, a 16-year-old girl caught in a nightmare. The world is no longer as we know it due to a series of genetic mutations that took place many years ago. Now, girls only live until they are twenty and boys until they are twenty-five. Kidnappers called Gatherers force young girls into marrying rich men in order to reproduce. Ellery unwillingly marries Linden, the son of a wealthy doctor. Linden himself is caught up in his own turmoil, but his father is determined to come up with a cure for the world's problems and will stop at nothing to do so. The only bright spot in Ellery's life is Gabriel, a house servant that she befriends. Both Rhine & Gabriel suspect that bad things are happening in the mansion and that they are in great danger. But is it possible for them to escape?Karen
