Review: Divergent by Veronica Roth

Goodreads summary:
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.


My Review:
THIS.  This is the dystopian that I love.  You've probably noticed that the dystopian genre has been really popular recently due to the Hunger Games and its' awesomeness.  I can name at least 10 that have come out in the past 8 months.  But out of all those books, Divergent reminds me of Hunger Games the most.  I'm not trying to say it's some knock off of the Hunger Games, which it definitely isn't, but the action, suspense, and violence gives off a HG vibe, which is always awesome.


Even though this book was great, and I loved it a lot, there were times when I really struggled to relate with Tris.  Mostly because she is really badass and I am most definitely not.  And there were times when I really couldn't comprehend how she could be so callous and claim it was being Dauntless. Which I suppose it was, but I just couldn't relate.  Her badassery overall is pretty cool and always interesting to see characters like her, it just makes me feel lamer lol. (Did I really just write lol in a review? Yeah).  I really liked Four though, how he could be strong and vulnerable at the same time.  God, that sounded cheesy. 
I had a bit of hard time remembering that he was only eighteen, considering that he is her mentor and he seems so mature.  


I loved the world building in this book, a dystopian Chicago felt so real to me.  I also liked the use of the Factions and it really allows the reader to wonder more in depth about the world and how if they were a character, which Faction would they be in?


Not going to give away the ending, but it kinda left me in shock at some points.  The plot overall was great and kept me turning the pages, and there was almost never a dull moment.  I'm glad that there wasn't a HUGE cliffhanger like in most dystopians, but it kinda left me feeling, "There's no way she ended it like that" which I suppose could be a good thing.  Fortunately, there is going to be a trilogy and I will definitely read all of the books!  There's also a movie optioned I believe so I'm really excited for that too.


Overall:
4.5 out of 5 stars :) Action-packed debut that will keep you flipping pages at the edge of your seat, I highly recommend this to fans of books like the Hunger Games. I am definitely looking forward to the sequel to this book!