Divergent (Divergent, #1) in ♥ Nothing Better Than Reading!! ♥

Feb 02, 2014 Angela Blount rated it liked it

Shelves: ya, post-apocalyptic-dystopian

Thanks to the first-person (heroine only) present-tense telling--along with the general kids-fighting-to-survive dystopian premise--the Hunger Games influences felt strong throughout...with a dash of 'Inception' for plot spice.

Despite the page count, this was a quick read. The present-tense of course lent itself to immediacy, so the pacing clipped along at a steady rate even through more mundane scenes. The prose was effective, clean, and simplistic. So much so, this reader often had the sense
Thanks to the first-person (heroine only) present-tense telling--along with the general kids-fighting-to-survive dystopian premise--the Hunger Games influences felt strong throughout...with a dash of 'Inception' for plot spice.

Despite the page count, this was a quick read. The present-tense of course lent itself to immediacy, so the pacing clipped along at a steady rate even through more mundane scenes. The prose was effective, clean, and simplistic. So much so, this reader often had the sense that the story might be geared for more of a younger YA to middle-grade range. But the level of brutality and sensuality was beyond that of what most would recommend for MG.

I was initially encouraged by the personality/faction-based society laid out by Roth: Abnegation, Amity, Erudite, Candor, and Dauntless. Break out a thesaurus and you'll have a clear enough idea about the identity characteristics and ideals of each. (And just in case you get confused, there's a handy glossary and manifesto listing in the back of the book to help you out.) Readers receive the vague sense that the previous world was destroyed by “war” and that a number of the post-war factions are tense with each other. The story takes place in some deteriorated version of Chicago, and secrets are the name of the game. So many secrets...it sometimes feels as though they impede the worldbuilding.

Beatrice (Tris) rapidly transitioned from oppressed, inexperienced little girl to confident bad@ss. A little too rapidly for this reader to suspend disbelief. While Tris' thoughts were logical and easy to follow, I maintained only a tenuous connection to her. In talking to more people who've read the book, I have to conclude that this is more of a personality thing. (I have developed the theory that she particularly appeals to smaller females who've struggled with a sense of impotency, repression, and helplessness. As a more physically powerful and innately aggressive sort, I had more trouble relating to her than I did with, say, Katniss Everdeen.) I also didn't really note the passive offering of useful survivalist information that might lend such a story more weight and lasting value. Add to this the semi two-dimensional side characters/villains and limited depth to Tris' family members...and the result is the character motives and emotional relatability being a bit less pronounced than other comparable books of this genre.

The major flip side to this was Tobias. We weren't in his POV, but I understood him. He wasn't sweet, smooth, or particularly gentle, but he wasn't bad-boy typical, either.

While I appreciate the mainstream author's unorthodox bravery in allowing her heroine to have come from a theistic background of some unspecified sort—and to allow occasional mention of God as part of her thought process—it seemed more like an afterthought toward the end than a cohesive integration. (Not that life-or-death situations don't tend to bring up afterthoughts like that. So, in one sense it did add to the realism.) ...more

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Sep 21, 2014 Vikas rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: owned, favorites

Divergent is yet another brilliant addition to the growing dystopian YA landscape. In this particular tale the world is divided in Five Factions and each faction is limited to something they believe in. All are very different and some even hate each other. When Tris switches from her Faction to another faction, she is torn between memories of her old family and hope for the future. But all is not well and Tris holds a secret which makes her different from the rest, She is a Divergent. She is our ...more

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Jul 07, 2013 Sophia Martin rated it really liked it

Shelves: dystopia

I really enjoyed this book. It was a page-turner and the faction system was very interesting to me. I kept thinking about which faction I'd choose. (I thought Candor for a while, then I read about their initiation and realized I'm probably Amity.) The only reason I am docking a star has to do with personal taste. I don't mind a little romance in a book that's not in the romance genre, but I felt that the emphasis on the romance in this novel was too strong. I'll definitely be getting the sequel. ...more

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Apr 21, 2014 Linda Bakker-Zwakhals rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Love these kind of stories. A twisted world, with some very twisted people, but still love can be found

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Jan 31, 2013 Kylie rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2014, books-i-cant-live-without, dystopian, young-adult-and-fantasy

There are some books that just completely take over your life. This was it for me. I bought this book months ago, craving something along the lines of The Hunger Games, and I just let it sit. And sit. And sit some more. WHY?!?!?!?! Right from the beginning, you are pulled into Veronica Roth's version of dystopian America. And it's an amazing roller coaster ride. Four is hands-down one of my all-time favorite male fiction characters. He's just the right blend of strong, brave, resilient, and vuln ...more

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Jan 08, 2014 Shannon Glen rated it it was amazing

An exciting read and well written. Onto the next "Insurgent". Should be just as good. ...more

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Feb 11, 2013 Mildred Smith rated it really liked it

Shelves: young-adult, dystopian-series

It was great. Had to start reading Insurgent right away....can't wait for the movies. Now if I could convince Ed to listen to them like he did the Hunger Games Series. ...more

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