Free Four

Well, that was a bad idea.  While looking for free previews on Amazon this morning (which is also a bad idea because I get sucked in and end up buying the book), I found this short Divergent story.   Since I have a major Four crush, I clicked Buy Now and read this crazy quick short story.

Just one scene is told by Four-the knife throwing scene where Tris takes Al's place at the target and stands up to Eric's bullying.  It was a great scene the first time around, and knowing that Four already has feelings for he at this point and that he is secretly trying to help her makes it even more intense.

I really appreciated this little glimpse into Four's psyche.  But, it made me want to read Insurgent even more, so a $0.99 purchase lead to the $7.99 purchase of Insurgent for my Kindle.  But I can justify this.  I'll be taking some time off next week and I have a feeling that I will need some highly engaging, escapist reading to keep me company.  I should probably read something really light and sugary next week instead of dystopian YA, but at least this will keep me from reading The Fault in Our Stars.

I'll explain later.  Once everything shakes out and life is bright and sunny again.

But don't worry.  I fully plan on reading Bossypants next week too.  So if Insurgent gets too dark, I can lighten the mood.  And if all else fails, there's always Angry Birds.  Or I can pull up Let's Pretend this Never Happened on my phone.  That's a great book to get you out of a funk!

Happy Reading!

Insurgent

The simulation has ended, Tris and Tobias are safe in the Aminity compound with Marcus and her brother, Caleb and a few others.  Now that the Erudite have shown their hand, Tris and Tobias must figure out how to fight back.  Together, they find the factionless and the mother that Tobias thought was dead.  It turns out that the factionless have been building and waiting to take over the city, and take down the Erudite and maybe the entire system.  Tris and Tobias then move to the Candor trying to gain support to invade the Erudite compound and find the information that so many Abegnation were willing to die for.  Through all of this, Tris is trying to remain true to herself and her Divergent way of thinking and she is trying to live up to the memory of her parents and Will.  

There is barely room to breathe in this novel.  There are so few moments of lightness and that makes the book fly by.  Tris grows even more as a character in this book, and readers get to see how she fits into different factions.  Her Abegnation upbringing makes her selfless and that puts her in danger many times, but her Dauntless attitude and Erudite reasoning keep pushing her to survive.  Tobias also becomes a different character.  He is struggling with both parents in this book, and might be too quick to trust his mother who is now the leader of the factionless.  

I did not feel like Insurgent succumbed to the sequel slump.  In fact, I did have to remind myself several times that this was only the second book and that Tris surely couldn't die in the novel, although there were several heartbreaking deaths.  The action (or maybe lack of action) between Tris and Tobias was difficult to deal with, but you do get the feeling that these two crazy kids will work through their differences, if they manage to live through the last book.  I'm hoping they do, but I wouldn't put it past Veronica Roth to do something really drastic in the 3rd book that will really change their relationship.  I don't think that Tobias will die, but I'm not so sure that they will ride off into the sunset either.  

Fans of Divergent will definitely enjoy Insurgent, although I have to say that you must read these in order.  I personally could have used some Divergent Cliff Notes to remind myself of some of the plot points.  I also think that anyone who loved the Hunger Games will enjoy the Divergent Trilogy.  I keep trying to convince my husband to read them, and his exact words were "do more kids die?"  Well, yeah, it's a teen dystopia.  If you want a happy, shiny book you should read a teen utopia, but those books just don't sell as well.  

I'm still keeping my eye on the IMDb for more news about the Divergent movie.  So far Four/Tobias has not been cast.  Barely anyone has been cast quite frankly, but I'm not holding out hope that Four will be of a crush worthy age.  That's why the book is always better--you don't feel like a huge fool for having a literary crush, but when it's a screen crush on a 20 year old, that's just weird.  

Oh, and how's this for a parting line:

"That's when the shooting started'

Way to leave use hanging!  The release of the 3rd book is slated for Fall 2013, so the wait isn't that long, but what an ending.

Happy Reading!

Divergent

In this future dystopia, citizens are divided into five factions, but the faction that you are born into is not necessarily your faction for life.  Beatrice is tested when she is 16 to see which faction would be the best fit, but her test does not go as planned.  She learns that she is Divergent, a strange hybrid of several factions, but she must be careful not to show who she really is because the Divergent are a threat to the strictly organized society.  On the day of the choosing, Beatrice leaves her family behind in their selfless Abnegation world and chooses the brave and fearless Dauntless.  Once there, she must quickly learn how to fight, survive and leave her old, simple world behind.  She also discovers feelings for her Dauntless trainer, Four, but his secrets are just as dark as hers.  Add in a revolution in the making and other political unrest, plus some convincing bullies and bad guys, and this becomes a series to watch.

I thoroughly enjoyed Divergent.  I thought that I had overdosed on dystopias lately, so I was determined to be ambivalent toward this book, but after a few chapters, that just was not an option anymore.  Beatrice, renamed Tris upon becoming Dauntless, is quite a compelling character.  She does not feel selfless enough to be Abnegation, but we learn that it is her selflessness that truly makes her brave.  Tris also has to learn about survival by knowing when to show weakness and when to show strength.

Let's talk about Four for one minute.  I'm not often prone to literary crushes.  Edward's not my speed and I only like Jacob because his body temp is 108 degrees, and I'm always cold.  I'm not all about Mr. Darcy or Harry Potter, but honestly, I'd take Four in a second.  I have a total Four, or Tobias, crush.  He's so strong and determined, yet Tris sees a vulnerable side, and he is idealistic without losing sight of the goal.  Plus, I'm guessing he's hot.  That might not be stated outright, but in my mind, in my reading, he's pretty hot.  I think that Divergent has been optioned for a movie, and that's going to ruin Four, because some 19 year old up and comer is going to be cast and I'll feel like a huge perv for being a Four groupie.  If at at possible, please cast someone like Ryan Gosling as Four so I don't feel so icky. Really, any guy over 25 that has not dated Taylor Swift or been in a boy band will do.  (Although I'll take Justin Timberlake if I have to.  I've never been a JT fan, but I wouldn't feel weird about liking Four if he were played by JT.  I would just like Four as played by JT.  This is getting too involved).

Let's bring this back to a more relevant topic.  Setting:  great.  Future, ruined Chicago.  So much more fun than ruined New York.  It was great hearing about the wrecked Navy Pier and train lines.  Imagine jumping from the speeding train over rooftops in Wrigleyville-not me, not ever.  But knowing the train like I do makes it that much more incredible.  I really want to try to get my hubby to read this book.  He really liked Hunger Games, and with the Chicago setting, I really think that he would like Divergent too.

The best part about this series is since I was so slow to read the first book, the second is already out.  No waiting!  I do have several books on my list before Insurgent, so I have a feeling that by the time I finish that one, the third book will be out.  There is really something to be said for being lazy and starting a series late.  

This book gets my recommendation.  It stands out from the other dystopias for me and even though I've been passing on some other sequels lately, I'm all in for Insurgent.  It could be that I just want more Four, but I'm pretty sure I'm in it for the story too.  Read Divergent.  You won't regret it.

Happy Reading!