REVIEW#2: DIVERGENT

Hey Ravens! Here I am again. I know I said I'd write the review last week, but my life has been hectic lately and I've had absolutely NO time at all to prepare any proper review or booktag or more dreams type of thing. 

After being MIA in the proper entries world for more than two weeks I felt like you deserved something well prepared, so I decided to review one of the books that I've loved reading the most. I am talking about Divergent, the first book in the trilogy written by Veronica Roth. As you all must know I will be following a schedule from now on (it was about time) and this is the first entry. In case you didn’t read my last entry, Wednesdays are for English posts and then Sundays I’ll post the Catalan translation. If I am not too busy you may get more updates, but one post a week is for sure.

I am going to say one very important thing now and I don’t want to hear about it, people saying that I have NOT warned you when I in fact HAVE. This review is going to have tons of spoilers from Divergent (not Insurgent or Allegiant, at least I don’t plan on it), because it is quite complicated to review a book without giving something away. I will tell you when the part where there are spoilers begins and ends. Enjoy!

Let’s get started with the technical info… (btw, I have changed a little bit the info design too, as you can see below).

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, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves... or it might destroy her.

As you may see this is also new. From now on there will be a short biography of the author and a picture. There probably will be the link to their Goodreads profile if it is available.

This book has long been in my to-review list (does that even exist?). I wanted to start with Wonder because of its heavy impact it had on me, because it is more realistic.  Let’s get to the point now, because there is so much that needs to be said about this book, and I think anyone who’s read it will say the same. I read it about a year and a half ago and I remember re-reading it once or twice after that throughout the year, but it is one of the novels that has changed me and I don’t think I’ll ever forget it. 

As stated in the technical info, it is actually a trilogy. There are three books: Divergent, Insurgent and Allegiant, but a fourth book was published called Four, a book composed by four parts that is from the point of view of one of the main characters in Divergent, Four (that is a lot of fours, isn’t it? LOL). 

However, I do have to say there is a short epilogue that has been released together with VR’s new book. It is called We Can Be Mended, and though I could read it if I wanted I’ve decided against it because of reasons Divergent Fans will certainly understand.

The one thing I probably loved the most in this book were the characters in it. There were incredibly strong characters with incredible personalities who were hardly taken into account though, and I think they could’ve been much more important to this story. There are selfless, honest and kind people, but also ruthless leaders and selfish, brutal and mean initiates. There is going to be an entry next week with a description of the main characters and stuff. Short but sweet

However, there are a fair share of things I didn’t quite like. Some make sense, others don’t, but that is just my opinion. There may be spoilers ahead, so I’d rather you didn’t keep reading if you don’t want to read about them.

1. I hated that Tris was placed 6^th in the first part of initiation, because she deserved much more. I know she was not a great fighter and guns were not her thing, but come ON! Why do I not agree with the ranking?

a.  She was the first jumper, something absolutely UNHEARD of coming from a transfer, let alone a "stiff" (the other factions use this name regarding the Abnegation, it is quite disrespectful).

b.  She stood up for Al in the knife-throwing scene

c. She beat Molly in the fights. Why is she placed behind her and Christina? Christina conceded and Tris beat Molly. As I see it, Tris should’ve been fourth. I would’ve been happy with that position.

d.  She was good at knife-throwing

e.  She was the one who found the other team’s flag and thought of a strategy to attack

2. The Ferris Wheel scene is overrated. I am not against it at all, it is amazing, but hearing about people loving it so much doesn’t make that much sense to me. Personally, I preferred the part after Tris’ fear landscape.

3.   Al. I know, he died. I just never liked him, not at all. Especially after what he did that night. What a coward. He should’ve never done what his parents wanted him to do. It is obvious he didn’t belong in Dauntless.

Now that I’ve named the bad stuff (could count it with one hand), let’s go on with the great, amazing scenes and people (and food…) I fell in love with throughout the book.

1. Four//Tobias. He fast became my first book-crush. He may be hard like a puzzle to figure out, but once you get to know him he’s just plain amazing. No more to be said.

2. Dauntless cake. Given how much people in the book seem to adore it, I would pay anything to try it myself. Oh Uriah, you really would kill for your cake, wouldn't you?(Tobias would too, lol).

3. Uriah. He is goofy, funny, brave, and an awesome friend. I hate that he wasn’t included in the movie adaptation, as weren’t the other Dauntless Born. Yeah, sure, he was in Insurgent, but he wasn't given enough credit. 

This is more or less how I felt when he wasn't in the first film:

4. Natalie, Tris’ mother. She was much more than what she came across as, fearless and selfless, Dauntless and Abnegation. Loving and caring. Nothing more could’ve ever been asked of her.

5. SCENES!!! Can’t number all of them because that’d be a never-ending list, but here are some of my favorites.

a. Knife-throwing. I know, it is pretty cliché. Nevertheless, her standing up to Al (who didn’t deserve it) was stupid and brave at the same time. Tobias was trying to encourage her and she thought the opposite.

b. Return from visiting Caleb in Erudite. I like Eric as a character, I just hate his personality and tendencies. Him scolding Tris and then Tobias appearing saying she tried to kiss him was the best.

c. Erudite newspaper. Tris thinking Will looked okay (aka not crazy) even though he came from Erudite was hilarious.

d. Muffins and shooting with the Dauntless Born. Marlene and Uriah are the best.

e. After the fear landscape. When Tris is at Four’s apartment and she tells him about her fear of intimacy. Very sweet.

f. Christina’s fear. When Will discovers Chris’ fear of moths and says she’s as tough as cotton balls I couldn’t stop laughing.

g. Tris threatening Marcus when he approaches our beloved Tobias.

h. It’s not like you’re gonna shoot me. No-one should ever underestimate Tris, I loved that she shot Eric and Peter, though it would’ve been better if they’d died. It isn’t like as if they didn’t deserve it. When I watched that scene in the movie I realized I really liked Miles Teller as the actor interpreting Peter (Theo is always going to be the best, though). 

i. Tris’ parents’ love for her daughter, so much they sacrificed their lives for her. I hate that they died, but I agree with Tobias when he says it was the way they would’ve liked to die, to save their baby girl. It was a meaningful death, from my point of view, even if the attack on Abnegation was 100% unfair. 

And that was what I liked the most and the least in this story. I do have to say the plot was amazing, and the world VR was incredibly special. This book will forever stay in my heart.

Hope you guys enjoyed reading this review, even if it was spoiler filled. I couldn’t help but write that section, and I think people who have read and loved the book will understand why. There were very special moments in it that I will never, ever forget. I will post the Characters entry as soon as possible. Just so you know, it is going to be a little bit of a mashup of Characters, quotes and movie.

"Writing is learning how to say nothing,  more cleverly each day" William Allingham

SaveSave