Man, I really wanted to finish this book, but ultimately I didn't want to keep torturing myself and gave up. The 1 star goes to the effort of including poc and lgbtq characters, but that's it.

I really enjoyed the storyline in world building in the novel. I also really liked the characters. I thought this was a solid read, and I will definitely be reading more by this author.

I purchased this book for my high school library. My students have enjoyed it. and it has circulated well.

Rating = 3.5 Stars

This was a good book. I enjoyed the worldbuilding and storytelling elements. The plot moved a bit slow for my taste, but you'd enjoy this if you like character-driven stories. The characters were definitely the best part of this book. They all felt so real and I was really invested in their relationships with each other.

Overall this is an excellent book for younger readers and I'd definitely recommend checking it out.

I am disappointed with this book. I was expecting one thing and received another. It had potential but it was not well written.

Unfortunately this book left me wanting. The concept was so interesting... but the execution was lackluster and underwhelming. I don't feel like there was much of a plot at any point during the book. Every time something with the potential for being impactful occurred, it was resolved in 1-2 chapters.
I don't think I ever quite enjoyed the story and found myself whishing that it was over many times throughout the reading...

Yeah, this is a dystopian story with a whole plot, with a cool worldbuilding, but really? truly? For me, personally, this is a book about found family. And I mean that as a compliment. People coming together and fighting for one another is the most beautiful thing in the world for me, and this book delivers that in wonderful ways!
It also doesn't hurt that the romance is very lovely.

When I first picked up this book and tried to get into I unfortunately lost my cousin to COVID and couldn’t really get into it. I put all this down to my loss.
I recently picked it back up when I remembered about it to try again but unfortunately it really was not for me :( it took me a week to read and I’m an extremely quick reader.
I can see where this would entice lgbt young adults as it’s very much got a punch but it was lost on me :(

This book brought me back to the beginning of my reading journey. I've been reading my whole life, but really got back into it when I was 12. Dystopian books were all the rage at the time. This book was really fun to read and helped transport me back to a much simpler time in my life. I loved the plot and the characters. It took me a few tries to get into at first, but once I pushed through the first couple of chapters, the story got so, so much better. Thank you to the publisher, author, and Netgalley for allowing me to read this book early.

I just couldn't get into this one which sucks because I really liked the sound of it.

Might try and pick it up at a later date!

Fragile remedy is a dystopian book that involves certain people man created with unknown gene that creates healing blood called gems. Nate is a said gem and this book basically about him trying to survive with found family . I thought this book was good over all.

Fragile Remedy is set in a world where rich people have genetically engineered "bodies" that they can harvest for organs in order to protect themselves from lung-rot. Nate is one of these bodies -- but he is protected as he hides in the Withers, a region that is quarantined. Led by Reed, Nate becomes part of a small misfit gang who have no idea of the Nate's true nature. But then bodies start falling ill due to a genetic flaw and violence breaks out in the Withers. Nate then has no choice but to join a shadowy terrorist organisation to help keep him alive.

I haven't read a YA dystopian novel in a while but I'm glad I read this one! I loved the worldbuilding and the action, but I adored the characters more than anything. The found family trope is one of my favourites and it is on point in this book -- I love nothing more than a group of misfits who have no choice but to band together and start to trust each other.

If you're after a great dystopian read, look no further than Fragile Remedy !

Yeah, I'm a short way in, but I am not feeling these characters or this story. The dialogue seems juvenile for a 19 year old character to me

This diverse dystopian story is one of a kind. I loved the themes that it represented and the pacing of the story. It was an out of this world ride that I won't forget. The story was engrossing and the characters were some you could root for.

OMG this book is amazing. If I could be a member of Reed's gang and hang out with Nate and the rest of the team I would. Fragile Remedy takes place in a dystopian world where the wealthy are in Gathos City where they are taken care of and have little to no worries and the poor are kept in Withers which was a quarantine zone but now just keep the poor and impoverished off the streets of Gathos now that the danger from lungrot is no longer a worry. Reed's gang or rather family all live in Wither and they struggle to survive. Our main character Nate is a GEM (genetically engineered medical tissue) but his parents helped him escape Gathos City so he wouldn't be used or experimented on. Unfortunately, to survive he must take a drug called Remedy which you can only get from Gathos City. Fortunately his friends are able to help him get some until the gates to Gathos close and they must find alternative ways to keep him alive. This book is a story of friendship and perseverance and I can't wait to see what Maria Ingrande Mora does next.

4.5 stars


In a city left a wasteland, after the deadly lung-rot spread through it, Nate ekes out a living selling tech, to help his small gang of friends survive. None of them know he’s a GEM, someone genetically created for their blood to cure lung rot. If anyone knew what he was, they’d turn him back over to his creators, to be drained for the rest of his short life. Although, his life may be short anyway. Without a certain remedy, Nate and GEMs like him always die young and the remedy is running out.

I love a good dystopian book and Fragile Remedy managed to be both nail biting and just plain entertaining. I loved Nate’s gang of unlikely friendship and his complicated relationship with the man who took him in when he was first found. With the city full of people addicted to a drug called Chem, barely any food and ‘Breakers’ looking for people like Nate around every corner, the Withers, where he lives, is a dangerous, desperate place. The actions of the Chem addicted were a little over the top, but that’s the only real criticism I had.

Was Fragile Remedy a believable dystopian story? Not really. But was it fun? Absolutely!

Sixteen-year-old Nate is a Gem - a Genetically Engineered Medical Surrogate - created by Gathos City scientists as a cure for the elite from the fatal lung rot ravaging the population. As a child, Nate was smuggled out of the laboratory where he was held captive and into the Withers - a quarantined, lawless region. He manages to survive by becoming a Tinker, fixing broken tech in exchange for food or a safe place to sleep. When he meets Reed, a kind and fiercely protective boy that makes his heart race, and his misfit gang of scavengers, Nate finds the family he’s always longed for - even if he can't risk telling them what he is.

But Gathos created a genetic failsafe in their Gems - a flaw in their DNA that causes their health to rapidly deteriorate as they age unless they are regularly dosed with medication controlled by Gathos City. When violence erupts across the Withers, Nate's illegal supply of medicine is cut off, and a vicious attack on Reed threatens to expose his secret. With time running out, Nate is left with only two options: work for a shadowy terrorist organization that has the means to keep him alive, or stay - and die - with the boy he loves.

So I really enjoyed this book. I first want to mention that there is a Trigger Warning for Drug use and addiction and even though it’s mentioned in the description I felt the need to mention it again.

Now onto the actual review portion. I really enjoyed reading about these characters and this world. The city is very dark and filled with violence but was interesting to read about because of the small amount of history we got that made you question why the city is still the way it is.

Nate is a great character who is easily likeable and has a great personality, he’s definitely not perfect and has major flaws that we see but is interesting to read about because of the way he thinks and how he preserves everything that comes his way. I love how fiercely protective Reed is over his friends at first I was slightly skeptical about how I would like Reed but slowly I began to like him. The found family in this is so amazing and I would love to be a part of this group of people. The only other character I have something specific to say about is Alden and all I have to say is I loved him so much. Anything else I would say would be spoilers.

I quickly want to say that I really enjoyed Nate and Reed’s romance arc in this book, definitely a fun one to read about.

I will say that the plot and villain weren’t amazing. This definitely is more character-based and about the characters growing than a strong plot. But it’s still very enjoyable. The same goes will the villain, the villain is more or less the city itself than any specific character.

I laughed, I cried (more than I’d care to admit) I was happy and I was sad. This book made me feel so many emotions and I enjoyed that.

Loved this queer YA dystopian!

So I usually avoid dystopian novels, but since it had queer rep, I decided to give it a try, and I'm glad I did! I really enjoyed getting to know the characters, and the world building was really detailed and unique. And thankfully, though this is definitely a dystopian future, the story focuses on the found family dynamic instead of the horrible world around them.

Would definitely recommend for all fans of found family and dystopian YA books!!

4/5⭐️ to Fragile Remedy by Maria Ingrande Mora! Huge thanks to Flux Books and NetGalley for an egalley to review!
Although this book may have been a bit different to what I was expecting, and I may not have been in the very best headspace for this book, I really enjoyed it! It’s a post-pandemic dystopian with a stunning, diverse cast, found family, with some life-and-death action and a scheme that causing so much harm to a vulnerable population. It was very immersive from the first page, and I found our MC, Nate, to be quite likeable! He is a GEM, which in this world means there are many people who would like to take & abuse him/his healing abilities for their own gain. It means he has to keep his identity a secrecy to protect him & his people, but he also needs a medicine called Remedy or his body starts deteriorating, with major awful side effects. He is torn between his group, where he has found safety, family, and purpose, and an old flame, who is super toxic, but is the only one who can get Nate Remedy. I really felt his fears and emotions. I felt the grit of this dangerous, lawless land. Nate’s group has some absolutely fabulous characters, and they would do anything for each other! I fell the pacing of the book was done well and balanced world building and action. I didn’t find that the whole scheme with GEMS & remedy was super predictable, I felt it worked well and made sense for the story. At least for me, it kept me engaged and turning the pages. I loved the final chapters of the book! So full of emotion and so touching! I also got a pretty good feel for what it meant for Nate to be a Gem and how they could be used & abused. However, there were some moments where I felt a little lost, and would have loved more of a history of GEMS, how they were discovered & created, and more of Nate‘s backstory. Finally, I just wanted to say that I think this book provides really good commentary on how vulnerable populations are unequally hurt by government decisions, homelessness, gang violence, drug addiction, illness, and food insecurity.
If you’re a fan of dystopian/pandemic/sci-fi books with queer found family and a touch of romance, this is the book for you!

I am so happy to see Science Fiction making a comeback in young adult literature. I truly loved Goddess in the Machine by Lora Beth Johnson and Fragile Remedy gave me a taste of what I was missing after I finished that novel. The science what Nate is is super interesting and immediately grabs your attention as a reader. This debut novel does a fantastic job of immersing you in the world of Withers and showcasing all of its dark corners. This author certainly knows how to set a dark, anxious mood. The people on Withers are also a product of where they live and Maria perfectly writes these characters and their lives which helps to boost our understanding of all of the dark things they have to go through. I really felt bad for Nate during this novel and I so very much wanted him to find his place in the world and be safe. However, this story has such different plans for him. Nate as a character was written very well and I found myself genuinely caring about him and what sort of ordeal he was going to get himself into next. Also, did I mention that there was queer rep in this book? The queer rep in this book fit perfectly along the found families theme that is also present here. These parts of the books definitely made me smile and it made me happy seeing this rep in this novel. Overall, I would definitely recommend picking Fragile Remedy up if you miss the young adult science fiction you used to read in middle school.