Divergent Series by Veronica Roth

Finished the Divergent Series by Veronica Roth, recommended to me by my good friends Randy and Rachael. It’s going up there with my top favorite novels, hands down.

Quickie Amazon Summary: In Beatrice Prior’s dystopian Chicago world, 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.

Perhaps it’s because the whole “dystopian future where teens lead the new human effort” genre hasn’t gotten cumbersome yet, but I loved this series. It’s been awhile since I’ve had a series that was simply fun to read, beginning to end. Full of twists and turns that I didn’t exactly see coming, but not too much in the way of character development I felt. Which, don’t get me wrong, wasn’t a bad thing. Maybe the author was trying to make a point, or make the reader feel like the factions were in place for a reason. Maybe people really are just who they are, and can’t change. But closer to the end, we find that character development wasn’t really necessary. Most people who thought they belonged to a certain faction still inherently had traits of other factions, and they were merely hiding it for their own safety.

A successful trilogy, I felt, through and through. Not many complaints. Really enjoyed learning about Four’s struggle with his past, but more importantly, the struggle to continue on at the end. Looking forward to future movie adaptations for sure. Quite enjoyed the first film! After perusing the bookshelves I found that Four has his own book now, so I’ll definitely be throwing that on my ever-growing list of things to read.

Rating: 8.5/10

Quote: “Fear doesn't shut you down; it wakes you up”

Purchase here and donate to a charity of your choice using Amazon Smile! I choose The Foundation to Decrease Worldsuck!

Next book: And the Hippos Were Boiled in Their Tanks by Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs

Lates,
Tyler