Divergent

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.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating 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 unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Review

FOREWARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS! READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.

All right, you know Divergent. I know you know Divergent. Y'know why? BECAUSE IT WAS LIKE THE BIGGEST HYPED BOOK IN THE UNIVERSE!!!! Divergent was labelled as the new 'Hunger Games' and was blurbed by literally all of the authors in the world. So of course I went in with VERY high expectations.

Divergent. It was pretty good. Not the best Dystopian, but far from the worst. We are introduced with Tris, an Abnegation teen. I thought she was a relatable character and her Divergence was a unique aspect that made her character seem slightly mysterious which I liked. But the downfall were the factions. They did not make sense. I mean looking in the mirror is selfish because it's a sign of vanity? A hamburger is selfish because it is self-indulgent and extravagant? Well now I say that climbing a tree is selfish because it's leisure and leisure is self-indulgent. And while we're at it lets make pushing an elevator button selfish because noise causes disruption and is therefore selfish. And just the fact that people had more than one trait recognised in their personality made them a living threat to mankind? Wouldn't they be praised as people who were capable of seeing the good in more than one faction, not people who were feared as a threat to eternal peace? See what I mean? This lack of world building and answer of common questions was probably the only major flaw I found in this book.

Onto the good stuff. I loved the pacing of this book. It never felt slow or rushed or dragging or overly climactic. It was pieced together well so that I never felt like I didn't know what was going on or was swooped away before I could let some drama sink in. For example, when Edward was stabbed I felt anguish and sadness and Tris's guilt. Roth let these emotions sink in before we continued with the story.
Also when Tris' parents died, I felt Tris' feelings and her anger towards the Erudite and Jeanine. Roth knows how to evoke emotion, and at the exactly right time to.

I found that I didn't particularly love any characters in this book, partially because they were just meh. These were my feelings. Tobias: Eh, he seems cool, interesting backstory I guess. Tris: I like her, she's smart, strong-willed and confident. Christina: Mediocre sub-character, some cool scenes. An approxiamtion of everyone else: They're alright. It was more of the dialogue and development that had me liking them. It surprised me how much it impacted when something happened to a character. I never knew how much I cared for he/she and it surprised me how much it hurt.

Plot-wise, Divergent excelled. Never once did I feel bored or even slightly turned off. Roth made a great choice of choosing Dauntless as Tris's faction (Imagine if she chose Abnegation, how boring would the plot be?) as it was a great setting to kickstart the plot. Surprises leapt off the pages and kicked me in the face when I least expected and the story moved in a direction that spelled intensity and drama. Tris faced all of these threats with determination which I loved in her character.

Overall, Divergent was an interesting read. It was suspenseful, tense and provided an enjoyable holiday read. Roth created a unqiue, yet somewhat flawed universe that I found intriguing and complex. 

3.75 out of 5 stars