Insurgent (Divergent, #2) by Veronica Roth

SPOILER ALERT!

This is book TWO in a series. You HAVE TO (seriously, HAVE TO) read the first book, Divergent and then follow up with this review. 

Read my review of Divergent by CLICKING HERE.

 

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth's much-anticipated second book of the dystopian Divergent series is another intoxicating thrill ride of a story, rich with hallmark twists, heartbreaks, romance, and powerful insights about human nature.

Since my gushing review of Divergent last fall, I have been anxiously awaiting this, the second book in the series. And when I say "anxiously", I mean in the bad way. Divergent completely, one hundred percent BLEW. MY. MIND.  .......   TWICE. (Figuratively, of course.) So as I twiddled my thumbs and counted down the days until Insurgent's release, I went through every possible scenario of how it would be. I've talked about this before- the "second book syndrome" (or SBS for short). It seems like the majority of the time, when I absolutely love a first book, the second book tanks. There have been very few exceptions to this rule (Catching Fire, The Golden Spiral, and The Exiled Queen come to mind as exceptions to that rule...) It seems like the "popular" thing to do with a "book two" is tear apart the couple who spent all of book one trying to get together, boo-hoo about it in the follow-up story, and then hook them back up for book three and act like it's a happily ever after. Or when said-couple are totally hardcore in the first and last book but act like pansies for most of that "somewhere in the middle". I HATE THAT!!

Lucky for Veronica Roth (or maybe lucky for me, you, all of us....) THIS BOOK DOES NOT HAVE SECOND BOOK SYNDROME! 

I can finally breathe a sigh of relief now that I've read this. It was just as awesome as the first, but for slightly different reasons. I still love Tris. If I ever got in a bar fight (I don't even go to bars, so this is highly unlikely), I'd want Tris on my side....

And Four on my arm. (Wink, wink)

There are so many things I want to say about this book, but I don't want to spoil it for any of you. The conflicts are different in this book. Definitely harder-fought, just in a less point-and-shoot way, and more of a holy-crap-our-lives-are-falling-apart-and-few-people-care-enough-to-help kind of way. And, as always, there's a twist at the end that will make your head spin. It will be spinning already though. There were A LOT of unexpected twists in this, and I won't lie, some of them were downright heartbreaking. So grab your tissue box, lock yourself in your room and get to work. You've got some reading to do! This book was just as amazing as the first, and this series is still one of my most highly recommended reads. Enjoy!

Happy Reading!

Divergent by Veronica Roth

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.

During the highly competitive initiation that follows, Beatrice renames herself Tris and struggles to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating 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 a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Sigh.

This is what I do whenever I decide to pick up a Dystopian novel. And it's never a good sigh. It's a I've-read-this-same-exact-story-about-a-half-a-million-times-just-with-a-new-cover-and-a-new-author-name kind of sigh. So as I put off reading this for my local book club that I'm in. Until other members started gushing about how amazing it was.

Sigh.

Yes, still the bad one.

Most of my book club friends really like Dystopian. I, on the other hand, have a love/hate relationship with it. It's never "just okay" for me. It's either really good or really bad. No middle ground. This book was no exception.

Sigh. 

THIS IS A GOOD SIGH!

I do not have the words to describe to you how much I loved this book. I thought it was every level of amazing. Seriously. I thought the whole story was daring and bold and, well, just...amazing. Beatrice ("Tris") was such a well-written female protagonist. She was strong, in a quiet, reserved manner, and she was incredibly brave. I appreciated that the author made Tris's interactions with the other initiates realistic. I also liked that the author took risks, not just with the other characters, but also with Tris. I think the risks paid off. I can't imagine it's easy to put your main character through some of the things Tris endures, but that made Tris more genuine and believable. I applaud Veronica Roth for letting Tris get a little (or a lot) banged up.

Four. I think this may be my new favorite number. Or person. Mmmm... a new literary crush. Why do I love bad boys? I have no idea. But Four is a jerk. He's not sympathetic, he's been hardened by lifestyle, and I totally love him. I don't know why it worked for him, but boy, did it work. I liked that he tried to make people better by making them try harder. He was subtle but deliberate. I thought he was a perfect character opposite Tris.

This has officially tied The Goddess Test as my favorite book of the year. There were twists and turns in the story that I never saw coming. I loved every minute I spent reading this, and I was heartbroken when it was over. There are so many things I want to say, but I can't without giving anything away.  Just trust me when I tell you that you want to read this book immediately. It was incredible!

Happy Reading!