Review: Divergent by Veronica Roth

Title: Divergent
Author: Veronica Roth
Published: 3rd May 2011
Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
Series: Divergent #1
Source: Own Kindle Copy

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.

Debut author Veronica Roth bursts onto the literary scene with the first book in the Divergent series—dystopian thrillers filled with electrifying decisions, heartbreaking betrayals, stunning consequences, and unexpected romance. - From Goodreads

I will happily put my hands in the air and state that in the past I have not always been a fan of a dystopian story. I often find the worlds hard to relate to or the situations the characters are in just too unusual, so I tend to stay away. I am happy to state that there have been a few dystopian books recently that I have loved, and the more of them I read and love, the more I think I could probably get into the genre, I just stumbled across a couple of duds early on. With Divergent I found I could not put it down, to the point that I was trying desperately to fit in reading wherever I could.

In this future version of Chicago, socitey is split into five distinct factions: Candor, Abnegation, Dauntless, Amity and Ertude, each with their own particular virtue. Beatrice has grown up as a member of the Amity faction which stands for utter selflessness over all else, so it is a shock to all that she would choose to become a member of Dauntless who follow the path of courage. Since Beatrice has to leave her family and her life as a member of Amity behind she renames herself Tris as she enters the initiation.With death threats, secrets and a potential love interest this book kept me on my toes.

I felt an instant bond with Tris. She has grown up in a life where her inner voice is at war with how she should be acting and behaving for a member of Amity. This gave Tris instant relateability for me and I found I was invested in her story right away. Then we have Four... OMG Four!! He is one of the instructors leading the new recruits through the dangerous initiation for Dauntless and all I can say is that he can pin me in a fight any time!! He embodies everything you want in a male character, he is strong but also sweet and caring. He is also complex and deep, but not too shut off or devoid of emotion with glimpses of the pain he has encountered in the past. These glimpses make me want to reach into the book and give him a hug.

I found that the relationship between Tris and Four was rather refreshing. For a change Tris does not dwell or punish herself for her attraction to Four, instead she focuses on surviving so that she can see him again. Tris reminded me of one my other kick-ass favourite heroines Katniss Everdeen... yes that Katniss Everdeen of Hunger Games fame!! Both of these amazing women seem to spend massive amounts of time covered in bruises and trying to survive even when the odds are stacked against them!!

I was dragged into this beautifully written world, in which the details seemed to come alive. I loved all of the characters, even the ones that I was supposed to hate. I enjoyed seeing how the story played out for all the characters. The story is mainly based around Tris's induction into Dauntless but there are some great threads weaving through the story which all come together for an ending that had me on the edge of my seat and feeling every emotion that Tris did! It was a brilliantly executed story which had a good pace and had me finishing the book very quickly.

I absolutely can't wait to see what is next for the Divergent Tris!