Divergent (Series)

 

After coming down from the excitement of the The Hunger Games series, I was desperate to find a similar series of uprisings and factions. Of course, the best way to find new books is through friends, but after ransacking their book ideas for so long, they had nothing.  I was forced to resort to the next best thing. The inter-webs. Which led to Divergent by Veronica Roth. I  was thrilled!

Beatrice’s world is broken up into five Factions with each saying that the world would become better with each of their traits. Abnegation (selflessness), Erudite (education), Dauntless (bravery), Candor (truthful), and Amity (peaceful). Each formed with the idea that the world would not have destroyed itself beyond their gates if it they had only had their traits.

She is part of Abnegation; whom devote their lives trying to be truly selfless and humbled, though she finds it hard to be truly selfless like the rest of her family. However, at 16, each member of their society is given a simulation serum, which helps determine what factor they truly belong in. Beatrice’s results are outside the norm, making her a Divergent.

I was remarkably pleased with the writing style and the believability of the faction lives, the reasoning behind each. The plot kept twisting and turning, though we knew our heroine would end up above average as heroines always are. It was intriguing to see the turn of events, how Tris responded to each event and how it shaped her character.

I enjoyed the series! It stayed strong through most of the books (Divergent,  Insurgent, and Allegiant), and I will be the first to admit. I cried whole heartedly at the end of the series. It was truly a shocking ending, but realistic. Finally, a realistic ending in a Young Adult novel. Brava!

In a nutshell:

Pros-

-Great character development

-Unique storyline

-Suspenseful

-Romance

-Sacrifice

 

Cons-

-One character strength fall off, but quickly recovered in book ii

-Heart wrenching

 

Overall rating: 9/10