Divergent (Divergent #1)

Divergent is one of my favourite books of all time.
The story is about a girl named Tris who must choose where she belongs in her society but she finds this difficult because she is conflicted between the safe option of returning to her comfort zone but never being truly happy or taking a huge risk. The best thing is that this is only the beginning of the story.
As the story goes on, we see the perfect balance of action, humour and romance. It hooked me in from the first page.
Tris is such a strong female lead who is bold and brave and puts others before herself. She never gives up on her goal even though at first it look close to impossible. We get to see her other sides as well showing she is not just a one-dimensional character. The fact that the story is written from her point of view is also an excellent decision by Veronica Roth because I felt what Tris felt also.
The other characters are well-written. Four is mysterious and hooks you in as you want to know more about him. We also get to see his more gentle side which was very enjoyable to read. Tris’ friends Christina, Will and Christina show us that no matter what your background is, you can still get to like one another and have common interests. It also shows us how different people deal with pressure and seeing your friends succeed even though you might not be.
The antagonists make you want to hate them with a passion while also wanting to find out more about them and how they turned out the way they did. Even at times, you could find yourself agreeing with some of the things they said even though they had evil agendas.
Tris has an extremely dangerous secret that she has to keep and t the twists and turns of the story have you on the edge of your seat, rooting for Tris.
Overall, I would most definitely recommend this book, it’s a must-read for dystopian lovers!

In this dystopian world sixteen-year-old Beatrice Prior, Tris, must find where she fits into society. However, when she fails to fit into a category during the aptitude test, Tris must find a way to survive and keep her secret; Tris is Divergent. This society has five different factions; Amity for peace, Abnegation for selflessness, Dauntless for brave, Candor for truth and Erudite for intelligence. The Divergent don't fit into any one faction, because of this they are being hunted and killed by those this power.

The exposure of Divergence leads Tris' world into rebellion and discovery. Soon she is in places and doing things she never could have imagined. Throughout all these trials and struggles Tris finally finds herself and discovers loved ones along the way.

Tris is a strong character. You really learn about how she thinks and what length she is willing to go to in order to do what she believes is right. She transfers from Abnegation, dubbed 'The Stiffs' by every other faction, into the tough and dangerous faction of Dauntless. There she meets her love interest Four. Though Tris is small she learns how to use that to her advantage during her training, slowly becoming one of the best new members. I really love Tris. I find she is a character you can relate to, with normal insecurities and worries in a dystopian world so different to our own.

This series really explores the difference in personality and how we all fit into society. It really makes you stop and think about who you are, what makes you special and where you 'fit'.

A great series, I really enjoyed these books. However, I must say I loved the first book best.

I really enjoyed Divergent. It was unlike anything I've read before. Tris is a super strong and brave 16 year old girl who has to adapt to a different lifestyle after transferring from Abnegation (selfless) to Dauntless (brave) in a dystopian version of Chicago that is divided into factions. I loved all the action and stunts the Dauntless do and the chemistry between Tris and Four. There was also quite a bit of violence, death, brutality and some cruel characters but nonetheless it was still a captivating read! I would recommend this novel to anyone who is looking for something that will keep you on the edge of your seat and up all night!

I can't really remember why I picked up this book to be honest with you, I think because it was just one of those books that was floating around out there and it was talk of the YA community.

Now three stars means I liked this book. Liked it enough to binge read it, and then binge read the second as well, before discovering I was stranded in Rome with no wifi connection and without the third book on my Kobo. THE HORROR.

I do have to say I don't like that people think that every dystopian novel is trying to rip off the hunger games. The Hunger Games trilogy was great, but certainly not the first successful dystopian story, maybe just the first successful one of our generation.

Divergent, in my opinion is completely its own story. The only similarities are the fact that it takes place in the future after the civilization as we know it has fallen apart and been replaced by a new governing system (again not a unique concept or owned by anybody in particular)

This book was about a girl (Tris) and her journey into discovering herself and fighting to become who she wants to be (and hiding the secret of what she truly is). I think the point of this story is to help us to find ourselves. To see that we are beyond our labels, no one is any 'one' thing.

Not to quote the breakfast club or anything but....well, I'm gonna quote the breakfast club.

"You see us as you want to see us - in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain...and an athlete...and a basket case....a princess...and a criminal."


This is essentially the concept of the Divergents. These people who have a bit of everything, are a threat to a perfectly labeled society, because without labels they have nothing but chaos.

Story: So over all I enjoyed the story. The action, fight and death scenes were very vivid and well written. What I did have a bit of trouble with was the romance. Don't get me wrong, if I had a Four & Tris 4ever shirt I would proudly wear it, but I think there was something inbetween that was missing. Once they are together they have this great connection and understanding of one another. However, the lead up to this all just seems very abrupt.

He is her superior in a sense so there is somewhat of a moral dilemma, and it seemed like the main focus of the story was on the fighting and glosses over the fact that they just suddenly boom, are together and are soul mates.




The villains in this story though. I mean, come on. Eric? You love to hate him. Peter? He's just so selfish that you don't even know how to handle it and yet he has so many hilarious moments and truly becomes a main character of this series. He switches allegiances when it's convenient for him and hey (everyone for themselves right?)

I feel like this story wrecks with your emotions in a lot of ways. You never know who you can trust and that's part of the reason I like it. However it is sort of a glimpse into a world of 'what happens when teenagers are in charge' Because seriously, Eric and Four are both eighteen and they are essentially leaders in their faction.

What do we do for training? Neurologically damaging laser tag, and zip lining. HECK YEAH. It sounds like a lot of fun (you know except for being zapped in the training game). WHERE ARE THE ADULTS. Is my question, even Dauntless adults have to have some sort of concern over their children's well-being, no?

Can we just step back a moment aaaand...
*spazzes*
Whoa.
This was exhilarating!
"One Choice
One Choice, decided your friends.
One Choice, defines your beliefs.
One Choice, determines your loyalties - Forever.
ONCE CHOICE CAN TRANSFORM YOU"

*insight on why I even started it*
This book has honestly been on my bookshelf for a year now, and I always said I would get around to reading it. But I ended up buying the movie the day it came out and also said "I'm not watching it till I have read the book." So if you follow, I've had the movie almost a year as well. Apparently, no one is as patient as I am when it comes to this stuff. I can't tell you how many people have got tired of waiting and just spilled spoilers after spoilers. So I had to break down and finally read it.
I'm glad I did!
#Iregretnothing
Now on to my review.
Divergent was amazing!! It was wonderfully written. Veronica Roth went into such great detail about everything in just the perfect amount, so she didn't put you to sleep with information overload. The settings, the characters..just EVERYTHING was excellent perfection.For me, this book made me feel like I was living everything and I was apart of it.. Though, not just apart of it, but like I belonged there. I can actually say, I feel Dauntless. (Then again, upon taking the quiz at the end, it said that Dauntless would be my faction. Haha)
There were a few times I had to put the book down and step back to calm down from the emotion overload...and then I had to stop myself from running all around the house fangirling.
I know a lot of people say this book is just a Hunger Games rip off... I don't see it. Which truth be told, if one book is like another book, I am real fast to call it out. But I didn't see that in these books. I can see how people MIGHT compare the two by saying the government is ruling everything and a girl has to pretty much save the day.. But I still don't agree they are anything a like. Truth be told, if you love The Hunger GamesI would actually recommend Divergent to you.
I kid you not, I finished this book at 12am this morning and I wanted (so bad) to hop in the car to get the second book from the store. I can't wait till I get the second book and am able to read it.
I'm sure I'll add more to this review later over time, but right now, I'm still stuck in the "Oh my freakin gah! That was amazing!!" mind frame.

My friends recommend this book. I,personally, didn't like this book all that much. I think the movie was better than the book. It didn't get slow,but I've just,read better.

I really enjoyed the world building in this book it was new and very well put together.the story line in this book was just all around amazing but I feel that books 2-4 ruined the whole series. I almost wish this was just a book by itself.Anyways this book I really enjoyed, tris and Tobias were great characters.

I really enjoyed this action-packed novel. This book is one of the best futuristic novels I have ever read. I enjoyed hoy Roth could describe the characters and make them so real. When I read The Hunger Games I thought it was confusing, but I understood this novel completely. I give this book 5/5 stars.

Thanks to the first-person (heroine only) present-tense telling--along with the general kids-fighting-to-survive dystopian premise--the Hunger Games influences felt strong throughout...with a dash of 'Inception' for plot spice.

Despite the page count, this was a quick read. The present-tense of course lent itself to immediacy, so the pacing clipped along at a steady rate even through more mundane scenes. The prose was effective, clean, and simplistic. So much so, this reader often had the sense that the story might be geared for more of a younger YA to middle-grade range. But the level of brutality and sensuality was beyond that of what most would recommend for MG.

I was initially encouraged by the personality/faction-based society laid out by Roth: Abnegation, Amity, Erudite, Candor, and Dauntless. Break out a thesaurus and you'll have a clear enough idea about the identity characteristics and ideals of each. (And just in case you get confused, there's a handy glossary and manifesto listing in the back of the book to help you out.) Readers receive the vague sense that the previous world was destroyed by “war” and that a number of the post-war factions are tense with each other. The story takes place in some deteriorated version of Chicago, and secrets are the name of the game. So many secrets...it sometimes feels as though they impede the worldbuilding.

Beatrice (Tris) rapidly transitioned from oppressed, inexperienced little girl to confident bad@ass. A little too rapidly for this reader to suspend disbelief. While Tris' thoughts were logical and easy to follow, I maintained only a tenuous connection to her. In talking to more people who've read the book, I have to conclude that this is more of a personality thing. (I have developed the theory that she particularly appeals to smaller females who've struggled with a sense of impotency, repression, and helplessness. As a more physically powerful and innately aggressive sort, I had more trouble relating to her than I did with, say, Katniss Everdeen.) I also didn't really note the passive offering of useful survivalist information that might lend such a story more weight and lasting value. Add to this the semi two-dimensional side characters/villains and limited depth to Tris' family members...and the result is the character motives and emotional relatability being a bit less pronounced than other comparable books of this genre.

The major flip side to this was Tobias. We weren't in his POV, but I understood him. He wasn't sweet, smooth, or particularly gentle, but he wasn't bad-boy typical, either.

While I appreciate the mainstream author's unorthodox bravery in allowing her heroine to have come from a theistic background of some unspecified sort—and to allow occasional mention of God as part of her thought process—it seemed more like an afterthought toward the end than a cohesive integration. (Not that life-or-death situations don't tend to bring up afterthoughts like that. So, in one sense it did add to the realism.)

(This review is old, just a warning)

The cover of the book says 'One choice can transform you' and based on the transformations of character that go on during this book, it couldn't be more right. The world of Divergent is one that is not fully explained until the second book. I've been told that the world seems a bit unbelievable, I can see that point of view at the beginning, but as the series progresses, the background of their city and five factions become infinitely clear. The five factions are Abnegation, the selfless, Candor, the truthful, Dauntless, the brave, Amity, the peaceful, and Erudite, the intelligent. The one thing I see wrong with this picture is that, how can a person be classified to just one faction. I could be in any of the above factions, but wouldn't thrive in any one because I'm a bit of everything. The main character very much embodies the fact that you can't be classified into one thing in life.

The main character is Beatrice 'Tris' Prior. She began in Abnegation, but changes to Dauntless in the beginning after learning that she's Divergent. Meaning she can belong to multiple factions. She faces many challenges, including fierce competition, hiding her secret of being Divergent-for telling anyone could endanger her life-and her budding romance with the trainer of the Dauntless initiates, Four (don't worry, he's only a couple years older than her).

There are some fairly obvious things in the book. Little things mentioned at the beginning that are built on later on. Let me tell you this, nothing is coincidence. The story gets better and more intricate with every page. I gobbled it up in just about one sitting. It's a book of choices and not being confined to one lifestyle. While it's a book purely for entertainment, it seems to have some moral things in there as well.