Not a bad concept but something of a mediocre presentation. The bulk of the plot is actually less about the realities of this dystopian society than it is about extreme poverty and the realities of the class divide. Perhaps its an extreme divide but their neighborhood could exist in a lot of places in the modern world. Its a forcibly isolated place, kept poor and oppressed by a plague. The fear and poverty are complicated by Nate's identity as a GEM. But that part of the threat doesn't fully develop until nearly halfway through the novel. And even them poverty remains the primary conflict. If the characters were better developed it would be a much stronger read.

This was a story wrapped in tragedy and hard times, where a boy, created from love, but abandoned is constantly running for his life.

Nate is a GEM (Genetically Engineered Medi-tissue), people developed by scientists to fight a human disease that was killing by the masses. But, now that disease is all but gone, leaving no need for GEMs, aside from the fact that they are used now to make Chem, a drug that is extremely addictive. All Nate wants is to survive, but GEMs don't live to adulthood... not without Remedy.

After his parents died, Nate bounced around a bit, learning how to become a Tinker who is great with electronics and things of that sort before he ends up with Alden, and then ultimately with a group of thieves, lead by Reed. While Alden consistently fed off of Nate for Chem, he decided to keep his GEM identity from Reed and his group in order to protect them. Not only does Reed not know about Nate's true identity, he doesn't know about Nate's love for him either. How could Nate put the person he loves in danger? Scary people are always looking for GEMs.

While this book focused more on character building, the world building was quite incredible. And this story as a whole was quite sad. Nate only wants to do right by the people he cares about, but he is constantly getting sick without Remedy, a thing that is becoming more and more scarce in the dingy, dirty part of the world they are living in. And, while Alden was a drug addict who was feeding off of poor Nate, he was my favorite part of this book. Terrible circumstances make people do terrible things, but Alden protected Nate always, even if that caused himself harm.

The cast of different characters in this book is wide and varying. You don't know who is good or who is bad, and neither does Nate. All he wants is to protect the people that he cares about, but at the same time, he is terrified and doesn't want to die.

This was such a wonderful book that I am still trying to wrap my head around. Addiction and the human condition were written so incredibly in this tale. It left me feeling sad, but with somewhat of an understanding that some people are bad and some are good, even though you do not always know which. And that even when Nate thought he was at his worst, he still protected the ones he loved, or at least tried his damnedest.

Arc provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am a little torn about his book. For one thing I did love the premise that had so much potential. There were twists and turns that I hardly expected. Sadly, what felt lacking was the character depth. All of them merged together until I could barely remember who was the love interest and who was the main character. I really wish we got to see more about each character. I really would have loved to know more about the two girls that run with their crew. It would have been nice to know a little more about them since both of them seemed to have an interesting backstory that was barely hinted at.

Overall, due to the twists and the fact that it was able to keep me reading to the end I am going to give this book a three. I just really wish the characters just had a little bit more depth to them.

3.5 Stars - A great sci-fi novel where the representation is spot on and the world building is excellent. The narrative felt a little uneven at times, the story dragged on a bit in places, while the ending felt rushed, and some things could have been fleshed out a bit more, but those are small things to an overall compelling and engaging story. One that I think teens will easily be on board with.

Was I a little bit nervous to read a future-set novel of life post-lung disease pandemic right NOW? Most definitely. Did I fall in love with Nate and his crew? Most definitely. For me, that's what this book was all about - love. Love in so many forms - in the family you create for yourself, in the people who complete you, love for people who don't feel deserving of love. It's not pretty and it's not easy, but it does feel worth fighting for,

Fragile Remedy does what few books have done for me - it stands alone as it is and also leaves me totally open to (and excited for) the possibility of a sequel. (And a movie? I don't think all of my favorite books should be movies, but I think Mora has built such a complete world that this would be amazing to see brought to life.

Thank you to Flux and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

Let's start with the good things. Fragile Remedy does such a fantastic job with one of my favourite tropes - a found family made up of mostly queer kids who are trying so hard to look out for themselves and do the right thing in very shitty circumstances. I particularly loved Nate, who's first instinct is to help others, even if it might put him in danger. This book is also a fascinating look at medical experimentation and drug addiction, and watching both Nate and Alden grapple with the need to satiate their desires while knowing what the long-term consequences are is gripping - if harrowing - reading.

This is a book I actually think could have benefited a lot from being a duology. It's lacking in a lot of worldbuilding detail that would have made it an even richer experience - there are a lot of different gangs and I had no sense of any of their history or why they mattered. Similarly, there is very little backstory regarding the creation of GEMs (except as a way to treat lung rot), and while Nate sometimes makes bold pronunciations about getting back at those who condemned GEMs to a life of misery, it's a bit hard to take seriously when you don't even know who is really responsible for having brought them to life in the first place. Maybe that stuff could have been fit into a single book - there is also a lot of time spent with Nate rehashing the same thoughts about his crush on Reed and how much danger they're all in as he slowly wakes up from various traumatic injuries - but I was super intrigued by the premise of this book and would have loved to know more.

I'm disappointed for the author that publication has been delayed to March 2021 due to COVID-19, but hopefully that means it gets a chance to shine next year, because there's a lot of thought-provoking ideas in this one.

**I was provided an electronic ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for honest review.**

Actual rating: 3.5

Maria Ingrande Mora's Fragile Remedy is part dystopian, part scifi, all unrepentantly queer. Gathos City was ravaged by a lung rot disease which led to the development of GEMs- Genetically Engineered Medical Surrogates. The GEMs provided a means to cure those elite able to afford their development, and are equipped with a mechanism in their DNA that leads to their gradual degradation without access to Remedy. Nate, a GEM, was smuggled out of Gathos City to the peripheral Withers. When his illegal supply of Remedy runs out, he has to make a lot of difficult choices to protect his found family and his own life.

There was strong LGBTQ rep in Fragile Remedy, which I was very much excited to see. I was also excited to see that the rep didn't end with solely the main pair of Nate and Reed, but extended to side characters as well. The author's bio states that Ingrande Mora identifies as queer herself and that she has a passion for LGBTQ representation in children's literature. I certainly feel like she contributed with Fragile Remedy. I especially loved the inclusion of Sparks.

Conceptually, I think that the story was strong. I do believe there were some issues with pacing and execution, but nothing that was overly distracting from the story. I did not find myself attached to any one character specifically, but I did like the dynamic of the gang as a friend group. Nate, as the main character, did not feel more or less developed than any other member of the group despite us knowing more of his story, which came across as well-balanced.

Overall, I enjoyed the story and felt that Fragile Remedy was a respectable debut. I look forward to Ingrande Mora's future works.

Fragile Remedy is a great YA book... it falls into the wonderful category of introducing very real topics and keeping it framed within the bubble of Young Adults. Reminiscent of books like "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro, this book is about what makes us human. It's certainly relevant now more than ever as young people are living in a time of a pandemic. I was sad to see that the publishing date of this book was pushed back until March 9, 2021.

Nate is a GEM. He was engineered to provide medical assistance to the wealthy and privileged. He remembers his parents... his mother... and a car accident after which he was sent to live with his Aunt. The World began to fall apart and Nat survives by being a "tinker" who can build and fix electronics etc and by being part of a gang of young people. Nate struggles to keep his secret because he feels that his only value to people is because he can be sold. In spite of the fact that he is bonded to Reed - the unofficial leader of the gang and Pixel... he seems unable to trust. Having a huge secret, a secret that makes him worth a lot means that he trusts no one.

Nate relies on Alden for his "remedy". Remedy is the medicine that Nate needs to stay alive. Once a GEM reaches puberty they begin to get ill. Without remedy, he can't survive for very long. He has an odd relationship with Alden - there's give and take but again, Nate has no idea if he can truly trust Alden to have his best interests at heart. Alden has "fed" from Nate in the past in exchange for his remedy...but their relationship has changed.

This book is heartbreaking, heavy and definitely a great read. I suppose it's about trust... trusting those around you and most importantly yourself. It's also about sticking to what you believe in... what's important to you and understanding what it may cost in the end.

Nate is a wonderful character. He is, perhaps, the most human of all the characters even though he is a GEM. But without giving away too much I need to talk about Alden. What a fantastic character Alden is. I love characters that give me mixed emotions... and make me think about things. Alden is one of the most wonderful, authentic and heartbreaking characters I have found in a very long time. I can't even really put my finger on what it was about him. - I mean other than the obvious that he's very well-written, he's also a "slow reveal" throughout the book. I really don't want to give away too much about the characters because the discovery of their stories etc as you go through this story is a wonderful journey.

The world-building is detailed and stark. What a time for me to be reading this book (during the Covid 19 lockdown). Such a dystopian future because of "lung rot" definitely felt a bit too real to me! If you had asked me if it was realistic a few months ago I would have been much less likely to agree. But, what I thought the author did really well was capture the way humans react to adversity. there are people who will do anything to help others, there are people who look out for themselves and there are so many in between. This story does such a great job of illustrating a world in which people have to make choices and decide what type of person they are going to be.

This book is a lovely addition to the vast world of YA literature. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it at the library!

Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read and review this title. I will review this title at a different date.

A really good book though it was slow paced in my opinion. Still very interesting and well executed though!! Overall, solid 3 star read. Though I did get bored during reading it during some points.

Rating: 3.5

I really liked the characters (especially Nate, Reed, Alden and Pixel), but I didn't like where the plot went at about 70% into it. I didn't like the villain. I think the character could have been a good person instead of a, sometime over the top, bad person.

Fragile Remedy is such an interesting premise. A romance set against a future with a Sci Fi vibe, where genetically enhanced individuals are used to cure a deadly disease.

The world building was good - everything quickly set up and explained without it feeling like an info dump. The details is fantastic and the logic of the science is easy to wrap your head around even though it is looking at some fairly tricky ideas.

I found the characters quite difficult to like though - throughout, Nate was quite whiny, which put me off, whilst Reed wasn't really fleshed out enough to make him someone I cared about. However, Alden I LOVED - a multi faceted personality with demons and complex motivations. So all in all, a bit of a mixed bag!

The plot was well constructed and moved quickly. There were no real places where it lagged so I stayed engaged throughout. The author has a fantastic writing style that really draws you in!

This review has been posted to Goodreads and will be submitted to Amazon after release.

*Thank you to Netgalley and Flux publishing for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.*


When I first started Fragile Remedy I didn’t expect to be as captivated as I was. The beginning was slow and the world confusing. However, as the plot picked up I became hooked. The characters were phenomenal and I liked the exploration of friendship- even toxic ones- found family, and love.

Even without the plot-line or underlining story, one thing kept my attention throughout the novel was Nate’s relationships with the side characters- two in particular- both Alden and Reed.

Nate has had a crush on Reed since the moment he meets him. At first, I expected Reed to be the typical- tall, dark and dangerous- love interest but he wasn’t. He may be a gang leader but only to his rag tag group and Reed clearly cares about Nate. Their romance is slow to build and I liked that the book focuses on their budding friendship first. It was sweet and it gave the book a lightness it needed.

“Reed crouched and opened his arms, offering an embrace without coming too close. The gesture was so tender and so gentle that Nate didn’t hesitate- didn’t give himself a reason not to fall into Reed’a careful hold.”

As adorable as Nate’s romance with Reed was I think the author really shined in highlighting Nate and Alden’s toxic friendship. Nate and Alden are friends and when Nate’s grandmother dies, Alden takes him in. The close proximity and Alden’s addiction to Nate’s healing energy turns their friendship into something horrid. I despised Alden’s character in the beginning and honestly, I still wasn’t his biggest fan at the end. However, it is rare to see a friendship so dangerous on page and as someone with first hand experience on bad friendships- I couldn’t look away.

“They’d hurt each other, scraped the space between them raw- but Alden never stopped feeling like home in his own jagged way.”

In addition to the themes of love and toxic friendship, we also have some real friendship and found family with Nate and the gang-
Reed, Nate, and their little found family with Pixel, Sparks and Brick made the whole novel.

“-but after he’d met Brick and Sparks, and he’d found Pixel hiding behind a trash bin. And he’d felt something- a deeper longing than anything he’d ever known. A desire to belong.”

I LOVED them. I also like that Brick was the muscle of the gang- badass females who don’t back down- em YES PLEASE!!

In terms of criticism: I do think the first 50 percent of the book was slow. It didn’t bother as much, because of my investment in the characters but there were times I skimmed through a chapter, especially the ones that dropped too much information.

Overall: Fragile Remedy was a heart stopping sci-fi dystopian that had me glued to the pages. The characters were phenomenal and while it started out confusing the world building was well written. Look out because on you DO NOT want to miss this.

LGBTQ Dystopian
I wanted to step outside my doom and gloom realistic fiction box for a moment; this book was sure different. Fragile Remedy takes place in the quarantined (I know…) city of the Withers. The narration is strange. It’s told in third person, but at time we can hear/read what Nate is thinking at times. Nate is 16 and unlike most others in his city. He’s a GEM - Genetically Engineered Medi-tissue. GEMS were created by scientists to be harvested by the elite in Gathos City. {Remind you of anything—Unwind / Neal Shusterman}
Nate is living with a group/gang of homeless children. Nate is in love with Reed, the leader who can’t see the feelings that Nate has for him. When he’s not living with Reed and the gang, he’s living with Alden. Alden took him in when Nate’s grandmother passed and gave him a place to live, but also “fed” off Nate. One time he took it too far almost killing Nate. However, Nate must return for “Remedy,” the only thing keeping Nate alive!
With the quarantine lasting longer and longer, food and safe shelter becomes more scarce. Nate doesn’t realize that he is being followed home and leads danger to their door. The gang must flee their shelter. Nate’s love interest Reed becomes injured and in order to save him, Nate must reveal his true identity to one of the group members putting his own life at risk. Reed doesn’t know how he makes it out alive, he assumes the worst of Nate and throws him out.
Things spiral out of control in the Withers as we meet Agatha and learn the control she has over the GEMs and what she plans to do with it.
6/10
For fans of Unwind / Neal Shusterman

I actually went in rather blind into this read. I liked the cover and the overall theme but didn’t have any more details. And I’m really glad I gave this a go because I truly loved this book.

Fragile Remedy is a dystopian novel and I liked how quick you could pick up on the world building and the plot but in a way that wasn’t boring. It didn’t drag on in too much detail. Just the right amount of information to feel like you know this well developed universe and how it functions. The pacing was fantastic.

The writing style is rather brilliant and the (luckily super diverse) characters were all very well written. The gang of misfits are all super loveable and caring and I immediately had a soft spot for Nate, Reed, Alden and Pixel. But you just want to protect them all at all costs. If you enjoy found families who would do anything for each other, this is your book! Even though this read is sometimes dark and very angsty and will make you teary eyed rather often it is so full of love, hope, loyalty and beautiful bonds. The handling with grief was done utterly excellent. It felt so real and I had to take a minute to take a deep breath.

I can’t believe this is a debut novel. I am convinced that I will pick up everything that will come from this author. I’ll definitely recommend Fragile Remedy to all the bookish people I know.

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is quite the read. There were plots for the plots then sub plots for those plots. I could see this being a LONG series with multiple side series and prequels and sequels. It was just super well done and the story line was very well thought out. You can tell that Mora took her time and really immersed herself in this universe before letting us in!
Wonderful story, great world building, perfect characters, I cannot say enough about how much I enjoyed this book.

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.

A found family in a dystopian setting with major queer characters and a gay romance at its core. This story has everything I love!

Nate is a Genetically Engineered Medical surrogate or GEM, built by scientists to help combat the vicious disease of lung rot that tore through Gathos City and forced it to close its gates against the people outside in the Withers. Nate was smuggled away from the city by his parents and grew up in the dirt poor Withers, riddled with crime, drugs and gangs. Nate's own little gang is a more innocent one, consisting of a bunch of hard worn kids trying to survive by scavenging and hiding. But Nate's value as a GEM eventually leads them down a dangerous path.

The found family aspect here was done really well and definitely my favourite part of the story. Pixel is the youngest and still a child (though her age isn't specified) and I loved how bright and eager she was. The relationships between all of them were quite well done and they each had a unique personality.

The world building is rather minimal in the beginning but slowly creeps up on you as the story goes along until you find yourself completely absorbed in it. I liked the slow burn here and how information was deliberately given to us as the plot moved ahead. I was still left with many questions regarding the GEMs, how exactly their blood worked and how they even came about in the first place, but it didn't really bother me too much.

Nate himself is a highly likable character and I easily rooted for him. The fast pace of the plot definitely helped as well. But while it made for a very exciting read, I do wish the story had slowed down at times to draw out some of the relationships between characters a little more, especially for the main romance between Nate and Reed.

The romance itself was very sweet and believable and I absolutely loved their interactions, so much so that I wanted more. A lot more. I think we got a comparatively more elaborated development between Nate and Alden (who was a great character!).

All in all, this was a fantastic debut and I'll definitely be keeping an eye on Maria Ingrande Mora's future works (a sequel to this please?).

Thanks a lot to Flux, North Star Editions and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

At the beginning the story is drenched with some action to pull the readers into the story. In the mean time there’s a lot of information about the disease ravaging the population, how life on the streets in the Withers is and what Nate, a GEM, exactly is. A lot of information which you have to process quite fast because it won’t take long for another interesting happening to start. After these happenings and all the information, there’s time to get to know the characters better. The whole story is written form Nate’s perspective and shouldn’t have been any other way actually. Since he’s a GEM, an unknown definition fort he readers, it makes him quite interesting to read about. But that doesn’t mean that the children Nate gets along with, aren’t interesting! The author created a very strong and wonderful bond between them. Not only between Nate and Reed, who grow closer toe ach other during the story, but also Pixel. A young girl Nate and Reed have been taking care of for a while. During the more difficult times they have to endure, you totally feel their dedication to and how concerned they are for each other. The chemistry feels very lifelike.

As fort he plot developments, there are more than enough moments in the story that are thrilling or have some action. They don’t happen all too fast, it’s more spread out through the story. In between the author added some time for emotional, devoted and powerful moments between different characters. Mostly dialogs which give a nice pace tot he story. Then, when the reader is up for some new action, it happens. Those moments of actions are normally quite short. They make room for characters to heal or rest due to sickness or injuries. It’s not that bad though, but it does take some speed out of the story sometimes. But because this story is more dedicated to the moments of healing and dialogs, it doesn’t feel like any other YA book I’ve read so far. Also the idea behind the story has a lot potent. Because it’s not only abut surviving, it’s also about morality, social issues and not losing your humanity. That’s how the story gets a deeper layer that puts your empathy to the test.

The dedication of the characters to each other has been written so powerful and realistic. This is a story with quite some action, but is more about the character developments and their forgiveness for each other and their enemies.

A queery dystopian science fantasy with a found family you're going to love and a way to shake up the genre and bring it into a new light!

Nothing quite hits like a found family in a dystopian situation hits. There’s something about the whole potentially-mistrustful people thrown together by circumstances who come to trust and love each other that is just it.

And that is what Fragile Remedy delivers.

In this world, rich people keep genetically engineered “bodies” as a cure for fatal lung-rot. Nate is one such “body”, but he is hidden in the Withers, a quarantined region. He is part of a small gang, led by Reed, but they do not know his secret.

YA dystopia used to be one of my favourite genres (not to say it’s totally fallen from favour now, I just read it less), so I always knew I would enjoy this book. It is a fast-paced dystopia, but still centered around a family, and fighting for your family.

I think it’s clear from the above what my favourite part of this book was. I mean, let’s be real, was it ever likely to be anything else? (Although I will admit that Nate and Reed came close.) Give me a found family fighting together and I’ll attach myself to them like a limpet. Yes, it did also help that Nate and Reed were so good, but I would have liked the whole family either way.

If there was anything I liked less about the book, it’s that it all felt a little superficial to me, plotwise. I’m not sure why, and it’s not like every book has to be some deep and meaningful story. It’s just that this felt sort of light on the ground. But hey, the characters and my love for them definitely made up for that.

So if you’re looking for a good, standalone dystopia, focusing on family (and, really, who isn’t), this is the one for you.