Insurgent (Divergent, #2) in Sophomore Reading Challenge

May 08, 2011 Sasha rated it it was ok

Shelves: harpercollins, ya-qc-5, dystopian-postapocalyptic, young-adult, everyone-loved-but-me, read-in-2012, 2012-publication, over-500-pages

Overall 2.5 stars which is saying that it felt somewhere between "okay" and "good". 2.5 does not mean that I didn't like it. It just means it was middle of the road for me. The last 50-75 pages = 3.5 stars.

As you all may or may not know, Insurgent is the extremely highly anticipated sequel to last’s years Divergent. I LOVED Divergent. I found Tris to be an equal of any other great fictional heroine; she didn’t take anything from anyone. She was tough, brave, and yet caring. With main and minor c Overall 2.5 stars which is saying that it felt somewhere between "okay" and "good". 2.5 does not mean that I didn't like it. It just means it was middle of the road for me. The last 50-75 pages = 3.5 stars.

As you all may or may not know, Insurgent is the extremely highly anticipated sequel to last’s years Divergent. I LOVED Divergent. I found Tris to be an equal of any other great fictional heroine; she didn’t take anything from anyone. She was tough, brave, and yet caring. With main and minor characters that I adored, a thrilling plot, and more than one bad guy to watch out for, I couldn’t have been more excited than when I started to read Insurgent – I just KNEW that I was going to LOVE it.

Except, I didn’t.

The writing was choppy. I felt like I was being thrown from place to place and jerked around wildly on what seemed like a wild goose chase for Tris and Four. They’re going to Amity, they’re going here, they’re going there. It felt like the plot was being forced to move along and didn’t have that organic feeling to it. At least not until 50-75 pages until the ending. That’s when the writing really started to flow and I felt like things were happening smoothly. Those last 50-75 pages really saved me from disliking the book altogether.

So many things just didn’t work for me in Insurgent. Both Tris and Four were acting extremely whiny and annoying. Four was complaining all the time and Tris was crying all the time and they just didn’t seem to connect with me like they did when I read Divergent. I didn’t feel like they grew as characters, but more regressed back into shells of their former selves.

Also, with Insurgent taking place outside of the Dauntless compound, I was hoping that there would be more world building and while we do get to experience more of the other faction compounds and see into some of their customs and people, it didn’t feel like enough. (Though it was nice to see Amity! WOOHOO! I’m definitely Amity, through and through.) For me, it was merely a sketch of what I thought should have been a full painting. I wanted to know more than what colors they wear and how they wear their hair. It was nice to see a few of the customs, but it didn’t feel like enough as far as world building goes.

I will say that some of my questions were answered and that the last page of the book is definitely worthy of a good ending but in making that “good ending”, even MORE questions arose and now everything is going to have to be wrapped up in the last book, which based on the length of both Divergent and Insurgent, will be around 500 pages. Veronica Roth had better change her name to Lucy, because she’s got some s’plaining to do!

Overall, a VERY VERY readable book (I finished this book in less than a day) and I’m pretty much the only one of my friends who didn’t absolutely L-O-V-E it. I wanted to love this one so so badly. It hurts to say that I didn’t. Maybe I went in with unachievable expectations? I don’t know, it just didn’t jive with me like the first one did.

PS – I have heard rumors that there were changes to the final copy, so I will definitely be reading a finished copy to see if that’s true! ...more

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Feb 28, 2011 Alexa rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012-reads, young-adult, arc, borrowed, tour, sophomore

My mini-review can also be found on my blog Collections.

3.5 stars

I have to admit that Tris and Tobias, especially Tris, were really frustrating me throughout the book. And I didn't feel a connection towards the other characters (I got REALLY tired of hearing about Will) or the story till the last page of chapter 30. That's when things started getting good, in my opinion. Tris was finally making sense. But then! Sadly, I felt it went back to the way it was before once Tris started acting pretty m ...more

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Jul 04, 2011 Sarah (YA Love) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: young-adult-lit, dystopian, futuristic, series, may-release, read-in-2012, sophomore-reading-challenge, favorites, recommended-summer-reading-2012

Review originally posted at Y.A. Love

Exciting. Gripping. Thrilling. These are the best words I can use to describe the awesome that is Insurgent by Veronica Roth.

Let me say first, that if it’s been a while since you’ve read Divergent then I recommend either re-reading the whole book or at least the last few chapters because Insurgent starts right where Divergent left off. There aren’t any recaps either. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started Insurgent, but let me tell you I wasn’t disappoin Review originally posted at Y.A. Love

Exciting. Gripping. Thrilling. These are the best words I can use to describe the awesome that is Insurgent by Veronica Roth.

Let me say first, that if it’s been a while since you’ve read Divergent then I recommend either re-reading the whole book or at least the last few chapters because Insurgent starts right where Divergent left off. There aren’t any recaps either. I wasn’t sure what to expect when I started Insurgent, but let me tell you I wasn’t disappointed! We’re thrown right back into the chaos we were left with and I couldn’t stop reading. I think I was about 60 pages in and then BAM! Major action was happening all around. It was exciting and non-stop action. I sat there, awe-struck and completely engrossed the entire time I was reading. In some ways Insurgent reminded me of Mockingjay in the way the tone changed from Divergent to Insurgent. It’s not dismal and depressing like Mockingjay was, but Insurgent has more of an intense urgency to it. Thankfully Roth allowed us some breaks from the action and intensity with scenes full of well-done humor and romance.

I positively love Tris’s character, and in Insurgent we see a different side of Tris—a more vulnerable side. She’s still reeling from the death of her parents and suffering over the fact that she killed Will. These deaths haunt her for most of the novel and affect her personality. She’s not as tough, but she’s still stubborn, adventurous, brave, and reckless (reckless according to Tobias). We also witness how loyal she is, even if at times she and others question her loyalty. Tris begins to learn who she really is in Insurgent. In Divergent she was still figuring that out, especially since she switched factions. I often worried about Tris, but ultimately I’ve grown to love her character even more because of her supposed weakness which results in immense character growth. You have to love a protagonist that can overcome her demons.

I don’t want to give anything away, but I can’t write this review without mentioning Tobias. I still love his character, and I still love him and Tris together. All I will say is that it’s rocky between Tris and Tobias and I admire Veronica Roth for how she handled their relationship. She kept it real and didn’t add any extra unnecessary dramatics like so many authors do. That is all :)

It’s been a week since I finished Insurgent, and my mind is still reeling over everything we learn. Tris finds out so much more about what it means to be Divergent, but the ending left me with even more questions when I thought many were answered. But not only am I questioning things about the Divergents, I’m wondering about Amity and Abnegation. Veronica Roth blew my mind with the ending which is the biggest reason I’m reeling and slightly incoherent. I need to know more about ALL OF THE THINGS that I can’t discuss b/c it would spoil the book. But ALL OF THE THINGS are exciting and mind-boggling and discussion worthy. Seriously, read Divergent if you haven’t already so you can read Insurgent and enjoy the awesome! ...more

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Jun 16, 2011 Danya rated it it was amazing

Shelves: dystopian, young-adult

*Note: There will be spoilers here for events that occurred in the first book, Divergent, so you have been warned! If you'd like to read it, here's my review of Divergent.

Characters:

Tris: she undergoes a lot more introspection and personal analysis in this second book in the series. She's a little more vulnerable than in Divergent, as she hasn't gotten over shooting Will and it's given her major post-traumatic stress disorder.

Tris really develops the "Abnegation" part of herself here and even th ...more

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Apr 21, 2012 Hannah rated it it was amazing

Shelves: 2012, own-finished-copy

Wow. I knew Insurgent was going to be good, but it completely exceeded my expectations - it was even better than Divergent! I don't even know what to say - Insurgent blew my mind!

Of course, the action is awesome. I didn't think it was possible, but Insurgent is even more fast-paced and action-packed than Divergent, and I loved every minute of it. Even though the book is huge, I read it in one sitting. I literally could not put it down, even though I really should have been studying. If tomorrow' Wow. I knew Insurgent was going to be good, but it completely exceeded my expectations - it was even better than Divergent! I don't even know what to say - Insurgent blew my mind!

Of course, the action is awesome. I didn't think it was possible, but Insurgent is even more fast-paced and action-packed than Divergent, and I loved every minute of it. Even though the book is huge, I read it in one sitting. I literally could not put it down, even though I really should have been studying. If tomorrow's final doesn't go well, it is totally Veronica Roth's fault.

But even though Insurgent is mostly action, I really appreciate that we got to know the characters better, too. I love Tris; she's one of my favorite heroines. And while she's definitely changed and is no longer the girl we met at the beginning of Divergent, she is still the defintion of a kick-ass character and just so, so awesome. But we don't only find out more about Tris - we get to know a variety of other characters as well, which I really enjoyed. I liked finding out more about Tris's brother Caleb and many of the Dauntless initiates we didn't get to know too well in Divergent. It was nice to see how Veronica Roth explored so many different characters and relationships and integrated that aspect seamlessly into the non-stop action.

The world-building is great, too. I enjoyed discovering more about the world Tris lives in - in Insurgent, we find out more about Amity and Candor, which I liked, since we didn't get to know too much about those factions in the first book. And we also get to know more about the factionless, which is great, since they fascinated me in Divergent. I really liked seeing the different factions represented in the characters' personalities, and how those different personality traits worked together in Insurgent.

And that ending. Wow. I had to re-read the last few pages because I simply could not believe it. My head is still spinning because holy crap I so did not see that coming. The cliffhanger has me dying for book three - that plot twist has huge potential to make everything even more amazing.

The only thing I didn't like quite as much about Insurgent is the romance. I loved Tris and Four in Divergent, but their chemistry isn't quite as great in Insurgent, in my opinion. It sounds stupid, but maybe it's the name thing - he was hotter when Tris called him Four. His real name is just... ugh. Tris and Four frustrated me a little with all their betrayal and secret-keeping and all of that. Of course they're still great together, but I missed some of the palpable energy, the amazing chemistry I felt whenever Tris and Four were in the same room in Divergent.

But even though the romance wasn't quite as good as it was in the first book, I still loved Insurgent. Insurgent was even better than Divergent, which I didn't think would be possible. This series is mindblowingly good, and I cannot wait for book three.

Reviewed at http://www.paperbacktreasures.blogspo... ...more

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Jun 25, 2011 Cleo rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sophomore-reading-challenge

From my blog, Booklopedia

Oh. My. Goodness. Insurgent was just an amazing, mindblowing sequel to Divergent and I enjoyed every single bit of it! Everything in this book was just absolutely awesome. There was just the right amount of romance, intensity, action, and AWESOMENESS to keep me glued to the book from cover to cover.

Insurgent basically leaves off where Divergent leaves off, and then takes off from there, leading you through a roller coaster ride of a story full of intense action scenes an From my blog, Booklopedia

Oh. My. Goodness. Insurgent was just an amazing, mindblowing sequel to Divergent and I enjoyed every single bit of it! Everything in this book was just absolutely awesome. There was just the right amount of romance, intensity, action, and AWESOMENESS to keep me glued to the book from cover to cover.

Insurgent basically leaves off where Divergent leaves off, and then takes off from there, leading you through a roller coaster ride of a story full of intense action scenes and shocking revelations. Tris and Four go around everywhere in their isolated city of Chicago, from the Amity headquarter to the headquarters of the factionless, and they even end up in the Candor headquarter at one point, too! It was just exciting to see where they would end up next and what those places would bring them.

I will admit that Tris was a bit annoying in Insurgent, or at least I found her to be that way. I admire her headstrong personality and courage, but sometimes it was just too much that she would make pretty risky decisions, which is probably why she was placed in Dauntless... But still. You need to be rational sometimes (I could obviously NEVER be in Dauntless). I still loved Four though :) Oh, Four. You're just like the coolest bad boy protective boyfriend ever even though Tris doesn't want that protectiveness.

Roth is still able to keep that perfect balance of romance and action/suspense in Insurgent, with the romance not exactly overpowering the rest of the novel, but still making it somewhat important. It is, of course, the thing that really keeps me going in any book, but action and suspense still works, too :D

From reading Insurgent, you discover so much more about Tris's world. You learn more about the different factions and how they each have their own types of dessert, special serums, and whatnot. There are also a whole bunch of secrets and surprises that come about in Insurgent that just keep you wanting to find out more!

Overall, Insurgent is a fantastic follow up to Divergent. Everything was just absolutely incredible in the novel, despite Tris's slight flaw. Insurgent of course leaves off on a cliffhanger, so I will definitely be impatiently waiting for the next book! If you haven't read Divergent yet, I suggest that you go get it now! If you're a big fan of the dystopian genre in general, then you should definitely give this a try. ...more

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Sep 03, 2011 Andi (Andi's ABCs) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: amazon-review, favorites, own, series

WOW! WOW! WOW! WOW! I know, eloquent, right? The sad thing is that is the best I can do because simply put this book was just WOW! I really can’t think of another way to describe the amazingness that was Insurgent. How Roth managed to do what she did in this book is beyond me. It left me breathless and craving more by the time all was said and done.

The book starts right where Divergent left off, but from the very beginning you know this is going to be a completely different kind of journey for T ...more

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Dec 18, 2011 Amanda (Vivalabooks) rated it it was amazing

Shelves: sophomore-reading-challenge, may-2012-releases

So, Insurgent came out about a month ago, and I feel so out of it since almost everyone else had read it before me. Even my friends who I recommended Divergent to, read Insurgent before I did. But, I’m extremely happy to finally be able to post a review about the epicness that is Insurgent!

Insurgent was an amazingly fast-paced, action-packed, suspense-filled read! I started reading it before going to bed, and ended up staying up till 2 a.m. finishing it. For some reason, no matter how hard I tri ...more

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Jul 11, 2011 carole rated it it was amazing

With a predecessor like Divergent my hopes were incredibly high for this sequel. Understandably, and when I want a book to be really good to live up to the expectations I have I am often left feeling disappointed. THIS WAS NOT THE CASE.

Insurgent, with its' ever changing dilemmas and suspense inducing plot, left me needing more from this incredible author. I can't wait to continue this literary journey in the next installment.

Drop whatever you are doing and read Divergent (if you haven't yet) and ...more

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Mar 06, 2012 Britt rated it really liked it

Shelves: src12

This is going to be one of those series that I'm going to read over and over, I can already tell. I love the world that Veronica Roth has created. The best part of Insurgent is that it doesn't fall into the 'second book in a trilogy' trap. So many times I read a trilogy and the second book is just ripping apart what happened in the first so it can be put back together in the third and I didn't feel that way about Insurgent. So much happened and there were so many reveals, I can't wait to see wha ...more

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