I’m about ten books behind on my book review posts and about a million things behind on my things-I-should-be-doing-instead-of-posting-book-reviews list. But if you’re like me and there is currently a countdown to The Hunger Games movie on your refrigerator (don’t lie) then you are probably feeling desperate for a good read to tide you over . And so posting these reviews is much more important than, say, doing those dishes I left in the sink last night. I’m just doing my civil duty here. Or at least, that’s what I’m going to tell Jeff when he asks why there are no clean towels.
Remember how when I read The Hunger Games, I was all “I don’t read this genre?” And then how after I read The Hunger Games, I was all “I LOVED THEM GIVE ME MORE TO READ IN THIS GENRE!” That’s when I read these two books:
Divergent by Veronica Roth. Several people recommended this one and I think it is almost as good as The Hunger Games. In Divergent, society is divided into factions based on virtues and each person is required to choose the faction in which they will spend their lives. They have to make the choice on their sixteenth birthday. I thought this sounded like a terribly boring premise for a book but the story was excellent. I ended up finding it incredibly compelling. It moved forward quickly and I liked the subtle love story and the mystery playing out in the background. I loved Beatrice and the realness of her character, she’s both immensely strong and intensely vulnerable without being stereotypical. It’s well written, creative and sometimes a bit hold-your-breath-while-you-flip-the-page. And the best part is that the sequel is coming out in May, so you don’t have to wait forever and three days for it.
Variant by Robison Wells. The book focuses on Benson Fisher, who thinks he is going to a private prep school called Maxfield Academy. He’s pretty stoked about this until he gets there and discovers that no one ever actually leaves. And also that if you break the rules, you die. Which would make anyone a bit uneasy about boarding school I think. Obviously there is a secret at the school and Benson attempts to uncover it. But the intrigue and relationships between the characters keep the story flowing well. And the ENDING. Oh my gosh, I’ve never hated and loved an ending so much. Thankfully the sequel to this one is coming in the fall. Because it’s definitely a cliffhanger, one that made me go back and reread the entire book to see if I somehow missed THAT coming.
If I had to pick one, I’d recommend Divergent. Both are first time authors but Veronica Roth’s writing is a little more polished and little bit more realistic. Plus, the ends wraps up well so that it could serve as more of a stand alone book, so while I am eagerly anticipating the sequel I do feel as though the first part of Beatrice’s story has been told. Whereas with Variant I’m all “WHAT?! WAIT WHAT?! I NEED TO KNOW MORE RIGHT THIS INSTANT!” and it’s driving me crazy.
Any other recommendations? I’ve put my love of Amish Fiction on hold for some YA dystopian thrillers. They are really similar genres. No they’re not. Also, thanks to Swagbucks for funding my kindle e-book habit, I lasted exactly three days on the wait list at my library before I gave in and bought Divergent. I have no patience. See above paragraph.
About Kayla Aimee
i just finished reading one called The Maze Runner. another dystopian society and its a trilogy:) Really good and i know the second book is already out (The Scorch Trials) but not sure on the third. Also, cannot wait to see the hunger games!
Have you signed up through Bookrooster.com? They will send you Kindle books to read for free in exchange for you reviewing them on Amazon.com…and of course you can post the reviews on your own blog if you wish. I’ve found a lot of great books through Bookrooster that I otherwise would never have heard of.
Such as Sleight by Jennifer Sommersby. I absolutely loved it and can’t wait for the sequel.
Also, have you heard of Netgalley? Major publishing companies will send you books to read in exchange for your reviews on your blog.
Both sites let you choose the genres you want to read and they send you books based off of those categories. Although getting a Paranormal Christian book to review kind of made me snort.
Just thought I’d share
I loved the Hunger Games, too, so thanks for recommending these. I’m going to look around for Divergent next.
Have you ever read the Ender’s Game series? It’s older, and I’m not sure if it would actually be considered YA fiction, but while I was reading Hunger Games I was reminded of them often. (They’re usually with the sci-fi books, but don’t let that scare you off… I don’t really like sci-fi but with these I feel that the setting is incidental to the story.)
I loved Ender’s Game and the sequels – I felt that they had really great stories at face-value, plus really pushed you to think about some bigger philosophical/ethical questions (if you felt like looking deeper). I highly recommend them.
Oh…I’m with you. I’ve been devouring dystopian genre books ever since The Hunger Games. I’d also recommend Matched and Crossed (first two of a trilogy) by Ally Condie, and Legend by Marie Lu. I have a feeling the popularity of The Hunger Games means we will see a lot more of this genre in the future.
I LOVE dystopian books. It is one of my favorite genres. I haven’t read Variant yet, but Divergence and The Hunger Games are definitely near the top of my all time favorite books list.
The Maze Runner trilogy by James Dashner is pretty good. It definitely keeps you wondering.
My all-time favorite is The Giver by Lois Lowry. We read it in school and then my mom read it to all of us when we were little. Then I made p read it with me, and he loved it too. It’s REALLY good.
I also enjoyed The Hermit Thrush Sings by Susan Butler. It’s been a really long time since I last read it, but I remember loving it a lot.
My sister (who reads voraciously) says that Enclave by Ann Aguire is good.
Not dystopian, but really great reads that top my list: The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Little Bee by Chris Cleave, Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys, and Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.
Divergent has a movie deal, too
. I don’t think it’s been cast yet, but they’re working on it…I too cannot wait for The Hunger Games movie to be released…the actress they picked is spot on to play Katniss (methinks)
Totally agree with you and I have just read Matched and the sequel Crossed. They are VERY good. Nearly Hunger Games good. I didn’t think I would ever like them, but needed books to recommend to the kids at school, so I started reading them!
I am ready for the next Divergent to come out!
It’s not dystopian, but the Sabriel trilogy by Garth Nix is brilliant. I loved Hunger Games, too, so you may well like the Sabriel books. Fantasy, rather than futuristic dystopian, but very good.
I see someone else has mentioned The Giver. Both of the summaries of these books have aspects of The Giver. And the great thing about the book? It’s a children’s chapter book that you can read in like an hour!!!
http://www.amazon.com/Giver-Publisher-Delacorte-Books-Readers/dp/B004V2AWKG/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1327338756&sr=8-2
jen
Delirium sounds right up your alley!
These are all YA from a variety of genres…I teach middle school reading
Matched and Crossed
Uglies Series by Scott Westerfield
Ruby Red
Trapped
A Monster Calls
Hourglass
Birthmarked
WonderStruck
Gone Series by Michael Grant
If I stay
Across the Universe
True (Sort of)
The Running Dream
Wake Series by Lisa McMann
Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children
Ummm…I could go on forever….I read at least 40 YA books a year, so I have quite a long list of recommendations
The first dystopian I read was The Giver. I also like the Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld. I just finished reading Matched and Crossed by Ally Condie, and I liked them. It’s definitely a fun genre. These two you reviewed are on my list!
I’m about to crack open Divergent! Thank you for the review. Now I’m even more excited to read it!
you will love it! AND you’ll be so happy because the sequel just came out! I am waiting for my library to get it in