YA Book Review: Divergent by Veronica Roth

Divergent by Veronica Roth
© May 2011 by Katherine Tegen Books

Goodreads description:

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.

My Thoughts...


I loved this book so much and I now "gush" about it all the time to anyone who will listen! My poor fellow library employees are probably sick of me popping up recommending this book all the time--but you seriously must read it!  Do you need me to convince YOU?  Alright then--read on!

In Veronica Roth's dystopian Chicago, the world is divided into factions that focus on human qualities--bravery, intelligence, honesty, peacefulness, and selflessness.  This world drew me in from the beginning because it made me thing about where I would belong in such a world. Do we all have a quality that stands out above all others? Is there any one faction that I would feel at home in? (Well, with my love of reading, I must admit a fondness for Erudite at the beginning...)

Beyond the highly imaginative world that Roth throws the reader in, she's given us fantastic characters to latch on to.  Our main character here is Beatrice/Tris, the unlikely hero from Abnegation who makes difficult choices at every turn. Where does she belong? What's the right choice? Who can she trust?  Tris displays selflessness throughout while proving her bravery time and time again, whether she's jumping off buildings or fighting for her life.  Tris is a perfect exemplar of the difficulty of fitting a person into one specific "bubble."  And boy, is she FIERCE. She is an incredibly likeable main character that you will cheer for throughout the book.  I guarantee you will become attached to her and beg for more of her story.

Now let's talk love interest--this one sizzles.  I'm not going to lie--I love a good book with a sexy love interest.  Give me a hot boy and chances are I'll read the whole book just to see him over and over again. Four ranks high on my list of sexy book boyfriends.  He is strong and swoon-worthy at every turn.  He isn't at the foreground of the story right away and I liked that while Tris felt drawn to him it wasn't an "inst-love" situation.  She takes awhile to really realize her feelings towards him as she gets to know him.

This book is fabulous.  If you can't guess, I'm trying really hard not to start giving too much away in talking about this--something I definitely struggle with (especially since I'm that weirdo person who reads the end of a book first).  If you enjoy action-packed, quick-paced dystopian reads, then this book is definitely for you. I know it's the obvious comparison but if you like The Hunger Games, then I think you'll love Divergent.  The only sad thing is that you'll have to wait to read the next installment!

Did I mention Veronica is also awesome?  I met her at the Dark Days of Supernatural signing in Naperville, IL, and was so fangirl nervous that I actually told her that my cats ate the cover of my first copy of my book.  Then I wanted to run and hide because I couldn't believe I actually said that... But she was super nice and didn't laugh at me to much. :-D  And she of course still signed my book (you know, my new copy, not marred by kitty teeth marks...)

What did YOU think of Divergent?