Author: Veronica Roth
Published: May 1, 2012
525 Pages
5 Gold Stars
(summary from Goodreads)
One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.
Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.
As soon as I put down Divergent, I knew I'd be hooked on this series. I've read my fair share of dystopian novels after falling in love with The Hunger Games, and this is the only series that even compares to Collins' masterpieces. So when the second book in the series hit the shelves, I knew I had to read it right away. And boy was I not disappointed!
Roth has created a society that seems perfectly logical. In fact, it seems downright utopian. The futurist city of Chicago has been separated into five factions, each representing a trait that those belonging to them believe is what could save the world from war. Tris, born to Abnegation (the selfless) has picked Dauntless (the brave) and is stuck in the middle of a brewing war. While dealing with the grief of her actions in Divergent, she struggles to find the will to live and some alone time with her boyfriend, Tobias.
Tris's voice is realistic and haunting. Her suicidal tendencies are heart wrenching and true. She is ashamed of herself for killing one of her friends and no longer feels like she is needed in the wrold. She would gladly sacrifice herself for the war, convincing herself that it's the right thing to do. She cannot even look at a gun as it brings her back to the moment she shot Will, and I know that this is the way someone would truly act in that situation. Tobias and Tris's relationship is a roller coaster of emotion. They love each other, but throughout the novel the relationship is tried and tested. It's a nice change from most young adult novels where the only thing that usually goes wrong in a relationship is a love triangle. Tris is going through a hard time and both her and Tobias have different information swimming through their brains and it ends up hurting the other. Tobias is gentle with Tris, even when she does not ask for it, and it's my favourite trait of his.
Tris is just as stubborn as me, so it's nice to see the way it makes others feel since it's hard for me to know how my actions affect others. Roth writes her characters brilliantly to go along with the action packed plot. There isn't a moment where you want to put this book down. If not for work, I'd have had it done the first day. This is truly the book to recommend to any The Hunger Games fans.
“We both have war inside us. Sometimes it keeps us alive. Sometimes it threatens to destroy us.”
“People, I have discovered, are layers and layers of secrets. You believe you know them, that you understand them, but their motives are always hidden from you, buried in their own hearts. You will never know them, but sometimes you decide to trust them.”
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