INSURGENT by Veronica Roth
INSURGENT is the much-anticipated sequel to Veronica Roth’s bestselling book DIVERGENT. If you haven’t read Divergent yet, stop reading because this review will totally spoil the first book for you. And also, why haven’t you read Divergent yet? I would like you to rectify that immediately.
I tried to check this out at my local library because enjoy it that they will give me books for free but the wait list was three months long. What?! So I used my swagbucks to buy it on Amazon. And y’all. It is so good.
I was nervous because a lot of the time the second in a series just can’t live up the first. Like, the first book of The Hunger Games was fantastic and the second book never quite made it to that level. And let’s not even talk about the third book or I’ll throw this cream soda at the screen. But Insurgent? It is worthy of it’s #1 New York Times status.
Like it’s predecessor, Insurgent is a dystopian YA fiction novel. Here is an excerpt from the book description:
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 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.
There is a bit more exposition in this book but it doesn’t feel like filler. I worried that the plot might feel recycled but it is surprisingly fresh and moving in a different direction than I expected. There were a few twists that literally made me gasp; one that I’m still not quite over and unsure how they will resolve in the next book if they return to it. And the ending? Total cliffhanger. I expected there to be a cliffhanger but I did not expect what happened.
Do you know what I love most about this book? I love Tris. I love that she is the anti-Bella Swan here. That she is a sixteen year old girl who does not hold herself captive to her love story. There is so much at stake for her and she doesn’t risk everything to be with a boy. She risks everything for so much more than that. It’s a better love story because of this, because she is haunted by all of her choices. She is equal parts both strong and suffering. For a portion of the book I thought to myself “Self, why is Tris being such a witch with a capital B? I dislike this.” But the unfolding of her story redeemed those moments for me.
Also, I have a total book-crush on Four. You too, right? Right?
About Kayla Aimee
I just finished this book as well, and I LOVED it. I read Divergent after reading your review of it (I love a good dystopian novel), and I really like Veronica Roth’s writing. I can’t wait for book 3 to find out how it all ends.
I had pre-ordered it to my Kindle the day it came out and finished it before I went to bed. I know!!!! What a cliffhanger. Made me go back and read the first book again in light of the revelations!!! So many gasp moments. Glad you enjoyed it!
Ok… this book is in my amazon cart. And I just can’t decide. Every time I start reading a leg of a dystopian trilogy, I curse myself at the end for not waiting until the entire series is out so that I don’t have to wait until the next book. (See: Divergent, Delirium, and Variant) So, I have to know… if I dive into this book am I going to be inconsolable, can’t-sleep and mildly obsessive trying to figure out the cliff-hanger? Or is it worth the suspense?
I think it’s worth the suspense. It’s not as OHMYGOSHWHATISTHATABOUT like Variant. Also, please tell me about Delirium as I have not read that one
Here is a summary I from the book, “Before scientists found the cure, people thought love was a good thing. They didn’t understand that once love — the deliria — blooms in your blood, there is no escaping its hold. Things are different now. Scientists are able to eradicate love, and the government demands that all citizens receive the cure upon turning eighteen. Lena Holoway has always looked forward to the day when she’ll be cured. A life without love is a life without pain: safe, measured, predictable, and happy.”
If you’ve read The Giver, the idea is somewhat the same. Instead of taking a pill to rid yourself of emotions, you receive surgery when you turn 18 so that you won’t become infected with the disease. It isn’t as fast-paced as Hunger Games but it’s good as long as you go into it expecting it to be more of a love story and less of a defying the government story (ranks somewhere between Divergent and Twilight on the love story scale). From the description it sounds kind of cheese-ball, and in all honesty parts of it are, but it was a good read nonetheless. The author, Lauren Oliver, writes beautifully and somewhat poetic. The entire book I was torn on whether I hated Lena her lack of backbone or sympathized with her questioning everything she knows to be a lie.
All in all, I really enjoyed it but I would probably rank it 3 or 4 on dystopian series I’ve read thus far. Let me know if you read it.
I’m off to get Insurgent
Delirium is a great book…I liked the sequel even better. However, TOTAL CLIFFHANGER!!!
Yes, I agree. Insurgent was better than Divergent.
And Yes. I, too, have a crush on Four:) Book crushes rock!
Have you read Legend?
What about Ruby Red? or Hourglass?
Birthmarked?