Monday, June 13, 2011

Divergent by Veronica Roth


Another "wow" in the books folks.



In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating boy fits into the life she's chosen. But Tris also has a secret, one she's kept hidden from everyone because she's been warned it can mean death. And as she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.





I loved it. Besides Neal Shusterman's Unwind, I haven't found a complete, detailed dystopia world and an intriguing plot since I read The Giver when I was in middle school. This world that Roth has created is awesome. There are five factions that all pride themselves one specific quality. They qualities are: honesty, bravery, selflessness, knowledge, and peaceful. Our heroine, Beatrice aka Tris is part of the selflessness faction but knows she doesn't fit. When she gets tested for her aptitude to decide where she goes, her test results are inconclusive making her "divergent" which in this story is a big NO NO. She has to keep it hidden at all times. - You'll find out why later on.



Tris joins Dauntlesss - bravery and goes through a series of trials to prove her worth. Did i mention Four? The hott instructor that has an interest in Tris and slowly Roth builds the chemistry and it's great. Tris isn't comfortable with affection so she fumbles through it.



Tris also knows that being divergent is not a good thing. Two people know about her identity and both react so strongly and that she must not let anyone else find out that she can't help but feel like something is wrong with her but it also makes her extremely curious. The definition of divergent is: tending to be different or develop in a different direction (check out that alliteration).


There are many courageous characters in this story. But for every brave character that is a coward, keeping a great balance of good and evil.


In this post-Chicago era, one of the factions is not so honest and causes a big problem. Being Divergent, Tris is the person who is most in control to defend and preserve the society. It was a great story...just great.



Some quick thoughts:

I HEART the mother.

Divergent 2? yes please.

Four hasn't made my boyfriend list but that could change

I should make a side bar for my fictional boyfriends and rank them

The world was so detailed. It's a must for any dystopia reader.

12 comments:

  1. Oh wow. So glad you loved this one. I did purchase it and have it here. But I think it will be a little while before I get to it with some other review books here. :) But thanks for the great review.

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  2. Melissa...move it up on the list. I promise you won't be disappointed!!!!!

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  3. Fantastic review! I haven't seen a negative review for this book, I really do need to get it!

    Thanks so much for signing up to the review appreciation day bloghop! Can I ask that you add the picture on my post to the top of your review, and link it to my blog so others can join in if they wish? Thanks again!!

    The Cait Files

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  4. Interesting review! I really, really want to read this one!

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  5. Great review. I keep seeing this book mentioned, but I had no idea what it was about. I really want it now!

    Glad you're taking part in the Review Revival. I would have missed this otherwise!

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  6. Hahaha Four is totally my fictional boyfriend! Nice review :)

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  7. Ahh, Four also isn't on my fictional boyfriend list, but the romance between him & Tris is such a nice addition to the book & the harsh Dauntless rules. Did you see that Divergent 2 is called Insurgent? So looking forward to it! Great Review :).

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  8. Thanks for stopping by everyone!
    Cait - I will post up a link for next week!
    And for everyone who loves four I think Christina said the best about harsh Dauntless their love :)
    See you all next week!

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  9. Divergent is in for me at the library and I have been trying to get a ride there for two days!!! I soo want to read this book!

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  10. @Lieder - You need to get a ride!!! I hope you love it! It was awesome.

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  11. If you're into book boyfriends, you should totally do Missie's Book Boyfriend meme. It's a ridiculous amount of fun.

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