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!

Review: Marked (HON1) by P.C. and Kristin Cast

Title: Marked
Author: P.C. Cast and Kristin Cast
Published: 1st May 2007
Publisher: St. Martins Griffin
Series: House of Night #1
Source: Own Copy

The House of Night series is set in a world very much like our own, except in 16-year-old Zoey Redbird's world, vampyres have always existed. In this first book in the series, Zoey enters the House of Night, a school where, after having undergone the Change, she will train to become an adult vampire -- that is, if she makes it through the Change. Not all of those who are chosen do. It's tough to begin a new life, away from her parents and friends, and on top of that, Zoey finds she is no average fledgling. She has been Marked as special by the vampyre Goddess, Nyx. But she is not the only fledgling at the House of Night with special powers. When she discovers that the leader of the Dark Daughters, the school's most elite club, is misusing her Goddess-given gifts, Zoey must look deep within herself for the courage to embrace her destiny--with a little help from her new vampyre friends. - From Goodreads

So this is a series that I am well behind in picking up on. I am not sure why it took me so long to pick this book up because a few years ago I borrowed Divine By Mistake from my local library and loved it. I had seen these books in the bookshop and had read the back, but it took for someone to actually tell me to read them before I finally bought Marked.

We meet 16 year old Zoey on the day that she is marked. A Tracker comes into her school and announces this to her in front of her best friend, and that is essentially the end of her life as a human! Once the mark appears on a human they only have a limited amount of time to get to the House of Night before "the change" happens. When Zoey makes it to the House of Night she is immediately thrown into the life there and has to find her place even though it is obvious that she is not like the other fledglings.

I loved this series right away. From the start we realise that this is not a world like our own, humans are aware that vampires co-exist with them. As soon as Zoey is marked while she is standing beside her human best friend it seems like all of the humans treat her as if she is an outsider and shun her. Her uber-religious parents think that they can "save" her with a prayer circle. Zoey turns to her grandmother, who is one of my favourite characters in the book, and who helps her with her transition to the House of Night. Zoey is a loveable character from the start who seems a little cynical, but who is genuinely a nice person who you would love to have on your side!

I really liked the other characters in the book, Stevie-Rae, The "Twins", Damien, Eric and even Aphrodite. There is an ease to the dialogue when Zoey and her friends are talking which makes the speech flow and feel very natural. As for the mean girls at school, who are fondly known as the Hags from hell, some of the back and forth between them and the twins made me chuckle out loud (I do love a catty comment!).

Oh and I can't finish my thoughts on this without mentioning how hot, hot, hot Eric Night is - mmmm, yummy! Caught at the beginning of the book in a compromising situation this stud muffin is the perfect hunk of a man for all of the females in the book to drool over!!

This was a great book with a plot line that kept going right to the last page keeping you interested and engaged. I thought the final few chapters were great and left me wanting to pick up the next book to see what was going on. I know I am going to love this series and I can't wait to catch up with everyone else so I can talk about these books without being scared that I will stumble over spoilers!