Book Review: Divergent

Ok...here goes, my very first, REAL book review. I came up with a template, of questions I wanted to answer in my review about the book, so as you will see below, I will keep it in that form.

I want you to read the book, so I will try my best to keep this review spoil free. ​

Book: Divergent

Author: Veronica Roth

Genre: Science Fiction/Young Adult

Rating: 5 out of 5

“Tomorrow at the Choosing Ceremony, I will decide on a faction; I will decide the rest of my life; 

I will decide to stay with my family or abandon them.”

Key Plot:

  

Born into the Abnegation faction, Beatrice Prior is faced with a choice of staying with her family or leaving her family behind her for a new life. Her society is divided into five factions, each of which hold a different virtue of humanity: Abnegation the selfless, Amity the peaceful, Candor the honest, Dauntless the brave, and Erudite the intelligent. ​Once she makes her choice, she is quickly emerged into a highly competitive initiation, where she learns how to live in her faction. She is also faced with making new friends, figuring out who to trust, and catching the eye of a guy she isn't quite sure of. She does all this while keeping a secret that could be the difference between life or death. As a conflict unravels the means to destroy her seeming perfect society, she must figure out how to save the ones she loves.

My Thoughts:  

I thought this book was absolutely brilliant. The author took your standard coming of age story and created a believable, futuristic one. Sometimes, when I'm reading a young adult novel, I'm aware the entire time, that I am reading about teens or young adults. With this story, I read as if I, myself was the main character, age was not a thought that crossed my mind.

My Feelings:

While I was reading the book, I quickly fell deeply into the storyline and found myself truly invested in the characters. When I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it. When I finished the book, all I could (can) think about was (is) this book. It completely consumed me.

Three Things I Want You to Know 

1. You won't want to put this book down. 

2. If you have ever struggled with deciding on who you are, at any point in your life, this book will hit home in some way.

3. This book does contain a love story, but it isn't the main plot. It's there and it is important and it is enjoyable. I really want to focus on this point for a second though. If you do not enjoy reading love stories, I still think you will enjoy this book. I knew I wanted relationship between the two characters, but it wasn't until towards the end of the book that I realized, a relationship had already been build. This relationship wasn't going anywhere, and it was going to grow into something great. There was no, "oh, I think I like him, I hope he likes me too" or that anoying love triangle; the author committed to this relationship at the first moment the characters meet. 

 

"He told me once to be brave, and though I have stood still while knives spun toward my face and jumped off a roof, I never thought I would need bravery in the small moments of life.  I do."

 

 

Favorite Character

Beatrice. 

She is the main character, and I'm drawn to her. Her plot is simple, she has to make a choice, either for herself, or for her family. Who does she want to be? What ever decision she makes, she has to live with it. This story, mostly, is about her dealing...struggling with who she is after she has made her choice. As the heroine of this story, I feel she has a lot of great qualities that grow and bend throughout the book.

What I Learned

In Beatrice's society, you have to be something... you have to be brave, you have to be selfless, you have to be honest. But what am I? I don't know, I'm a lot of things, but do I excel at just one? Two even? Am I Divergent? 

"I feel like someone breathed new air into my lungs.  I am not Abnegation.  I am not Dauntless.  I am Divergent."

 Rating

I'm really stingy about giving out five stars to books. I have to be. I read too many books and enjoy so many of them. I feel like I have a limited number of five stars, so I must use them wisely. With that being said, I did not even have to think twice about giving this book a five star rating. I loved the characters, I loved the world, and I loved the writing. 

I recommend this book for anyone who enjoys young adult novels, this is a must read. For anyone who enjoys books about a Dystopian society, this is a must read. For anyone who enjoys just reading bestsellers, or books that everyone is reading, this is a must read. This is a face paced book, jammed packed with action.

-Lauren