Friday Feature: Divergent

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, 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 alongside her fellow initiates to live out the choice they have made. Together they must undergo extreme physical tests of endurance and intense psychological simulations, some with devastating consequences. As initiation transforms them all, Tris must determine who her friends really are--and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes exasperating 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 unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel her seemingly perfect society, Tris also learns that her secret might help her save the ones she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

My thoughts:
I won this book a long time ago on Medeia Sharif's blog but it's been sitting on my bookshelf. Why? As much as I wanted to read it, I was worried about all the hype. I thought it wouldn't live up to it. But I finally decided to give it a try, and I'm so glad I did. Tris is a character I could identify with from the start because she felt so real. She doesn't fit in with her family or her faction. And when her simulation says she's Divergent and confirms that she doesn't fit in anywhere, she has to make a big decision. Being Divergent is dangerous. If people found out, she would be killed. So Tris makes a big decision and leaves her faction for one she thinks will save her.

I was really glad that Tris struggled a lot in her new faction. Things were tough, yet she'd have small victories along the way. I thought it was the perfect balance. She also develops some great relationships, though not all end well for her. While it's obvious that there's going to be something between Tris and Four, there were plenty of surprises there too, and I loved seeing what was going to happen next.

I wish I didn't put this serious off for so long, and I'm looking forward to the movie adaptation and book two.