Well hello there!
Apologies for the lack of posts over the past several weeks. I have been extraordinarily busy, which is an incredibly good thing in the entertainment business! I have managed to read a few more books that I will cover over the next few days. I'll start with Divergent by Veronica Ross.
SPOILER ALERT!!!
The main character is Tris Prior. She was born into the Abnegation faction, which is all about selflessness. Upon taking a simulation test, she discovered that she was a Divergent, which basically meant that she could not be controlled by the simulation drug. To shorten the summary and get down to the nitty gritty, Tris chooses to join Dauntless, which is the most brutal of the five factions. This is where the majority of the story takes place.
Although I, personally, don't find Tris to be relatable, she is very likeable. I'm one of those people who doesn't believe that the only good character is a relatable one. If an author can make me root for a character that I cannot relate to, that says something about his/her writing skill. Tris is described as small and weak looking in the beginning of the story. It is mentioned that through a lot of hardcore training, she begins to tone up a bit. This is to be expected given all of the physical strain the characters are put through. Despite her size, she appears to be pretty darn tough in attitude, and she is not afraid of heights.
One criticism I have read about this novel is that we (the readers) are not told much about the other factions (Amity, Candor, Abnegation, and Erudite). My response to that critique is that the story is told in first person. The narrator is Tris. She doesn't know much about the other factions, only summaries about them, and what she has heard from her parents. It makes perfect sense that we (the readers) are left with little knowledge about them as well. Besides, at the end of Divergent, Tris is heading to Amity for aid. I have a feeling we will learn a lot more about the other factions in the next two books.
I found myself to be completely absorbed into many of the characters, even ones we aren't necessarily supposed to like.
Take Al for example. He is a lug of a character who looks a lot tougher than he actually is. When we first meet him, he is crying in his bunk in a room full of other Dauntless initiates. He has many reasons to cry, too many to list here, but really he would have been the last one I would have expected to be crying into his pillow. I immediately felt sorry for him. He never really wanted to hurt anyone, so he purposely lost fights during the ranking process. Even after his attack with Drew and Peter against Tris, I still felt sorry for him. I was stunned at the ending for his character (which I am choosing not to reveal on here...read the book).
Peter is a character I don't fully understand yet. It looks like he will have a large role in the second book, so I will hold off on passing judgment on him until then.
Will is another favorite of mine. I very much loved him as a surrogate big brother to Tris. I liked him even more than her best friend, Christina. Will and Christina end up dating, which I called early on in the story. Will's ending (which I will not post) really pissed me off though. I was attempting to keep the curse words out of my blog, but really. I was pissed.
Eric, our resident sadist, is quite the fascinating character as well. Again, I feel like there is so much more to him than what we actually see because we see everything through the eyes of Tris, who hates Eric (and Peter). Many times, Eric shows different sides to his personality. I think he may be psychotic...I'm still waiting to see. This whole entire blog is filled with spoilers, but just in case....
SPOILER ALERT....................................Eric doesn't die at the end of Divergent. I am positive we will see more from him in the second book.
Now we get to the good part. My favorite character: Four. Dear God, have mercy. Four. Let's just say he's a panty-dropper, ladies. I have to point out one criticism I read online about him, "He's mean to Tris and claims it's for her own good. Surprise, surprise." I don't think he's mean to her in any way. He is as kind to her as he can be. He even says later on in the story that kindness is what he is working the hardest on. Remember that he can't be mushy-gushy to her in front of everyone. He is her trainer. It would be like a professor hugging and kissing on a student in front of the other classmates. Awkward. Also, a great way to make a bunch of enemies. Four tries to help Tris as much as he can without putting her or himself in danger. Besides, every couple has arguments. We can't expect him to be an angel all the time, despite his appearance. *wink*
In response to the eye rolls that the romance factor gets, this story isn't about romance at all. The love story is an added bonus. This novel is about choice, free will, loyalty, family, friendship, bravery, and kindness. The romance really does come second. It would be completely unbelievable to write a YA story with absolutely no romance. We were all teenagers at some point. We know how it goes. So please, stop the virtual eye rolls.
I definitely feel like I am leaving out a lot of stuff. The book is 487 pages, so I'm sure I did. Perhaps I will write a second post if I can think of what else I have to say about it. I am very much in love with this book. I made an emergency Barnes & Noble run, right after I finished, just to buy the second book. I will continue blogging tomorrow with another recent read. Until then....
I hope you enjoyed this post. I would love to read your opinion on any of the books I cover. Also, if you have any book suggestions, feel free to post them in the comment section. Thanks bunches for reading!
-The Sexy Librarian
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