Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Title: Insurgent

Series: Divergent Series #2

Author: Veronica Roth

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

Date Published: May 1, 2012

Genre: YA fiction, romance, action, thriller, sci-fi, fantasy

Pages: 544 (hardback)

Age Range: 12+



Summary


One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable—and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.

Review


The writing was good, but there just isn't much suspense, or feeling in this series. I can only describe it, as I had before for Divergent, as bland. Veronica Roth describes what Tris is feeling, but you don't feel emotions. At least, I didn't.

First off...I totally knew Uriah was Divergent!! I called it before I even finished the first book.
When I wasn't expecting though, was Marlene's demise. Totally wasn't expecting it. I knew the Erudite were planning something drastic that would be deadly. But I was thinking like, they were going to blow up the building, or come marching in shooting, OR they'd make the people go into simulation-mode and kill whoever they could. Wasn't expecting an unwilling suicide.

And speaking of suicide. Tris got really stupid and suicidal in this book. She didn't think about what she was doing. She just did the first thing that came to mind. When she gave herself over to the Erudite....I wanted to punch her, because I knew--I KNEW--Tobias was going to go after her! It still surprised me, but I knew it was going to happen. I didn't expect what he said to Tris though. Ya know, the whole "you die, I die" thing.

"You die, I die too." Tobias looks over his shoulder at me. "I asked you not to do this. You made your decision. These are the repercussions."

I thought he was really there to die with her, because he gave himself over pretty fast. I thought it was too fast to come up with a plan, but then I found out he made one and I was kind of disappointed cause I was expecting things to go a different way. I wasn't expecting them to die, but I expected Tobias to come up with a drastic, last second plan when Tris is about to be executed or something awesome and daring like that. Cause, it's Four/Tobias--he's known to come up with plans on the spot. Unlike Tris, who doesn't think anything through.

Caleb! I wasn't expecting Caleb to stab Tris in the back. He really chose faction before blood. Like whoa, didn't see that coming. I'm curious about what will happen with him next. Is Tris going to have to kill him? Is she going to have him thrown in prison? What's gonna happen? (No one spoil it for me! Someone already ruined the ending of Allegiant for me).

Jeanine's death....I was expecting one last evil sentence from her, but she just died. That was it. Died. She's dead now. That's all folks.

The ending was good but it wasn't one of those endings that made me go, "ohmygosh I have to read the next book right now!" It was okay. Unexpected; interesting; it made me curious, but I wasn't shocked or wowed.

I don't really know how to rate this book because I didn't get excited or totally into the story. And, like I said, I thought the writing was good but bland. I only really got surprised, maybe, three times--when we find out that Caleb is a traitor, when Marlene died and when Tobias hands himself over to the Erudite.