Reviews with content warning for Physical abuse - Divergent

This book is a very strange one for me. I really feel like I shouldn't have enjoyed it as much as I did. It completely fails as a dystopian for me. I find it very hard to believe that so many people actually fit into exactly one faction and only a few people are Divergent. I'm hoping that will be discussed in the other books, because I can't accept the premise that almost everyone in this world has one personality trait. I also feel like I don't know anything about why the world is the way it is, and that's so important in dystopians.

Even with those issues though, I actually really loved this book. It truly baffles me. I found the plot really engaging, as nonsensical as it was at times.

I feel like the ending with the sleepwalking was a little strange, but I'll let it slide.

The book does struggle a bit in the characters department. Throughout the book, the only characters I found myself loving were Four,

Al, and Will. Of course, Will (my actual favorite character) and Al (the traitor) are dead, so less to look forward to now. I will say, that betrayal absolutely wrecked me. I haven't felt this betrayed by a book since a certain popular fantasy that I won't name in order to avoid spoilers for it.

I did like some other characters like Uriah and Tris' mom, but they weren't present often enough in this book.

I feel like one of the characters really holding this book back is Tris herself. She's just so... mean?? Not outwardly, but so many of her thoughts are unpleasant. It was realistic, I suppose, but so hard to read. I'm also not a fan of Christina, but I feel like she's going to be a main character throughout the series, so I'll just put up with her. Maybe she'll get more interesting.

Overall, I really liked this book even though everything was working against it. The story was just wild enough to make it interesting and fun to read. I've heard that the common opinion is that the books in this series only get worse after this one. I'll try to keep an open mind, but based on the ending of this book, I have a feeling I'll end up agreeing.

Content Warnings

jessicabearbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

“Fear doesn’t shut you down; it wakes you up”

Wow. This world and these characters are so real and easy to connect with. I loved the relationship dynamics between characters - especially Tris and Four. Each character was believable and it was clear that each was an individual with a backstory and reasons for actions - all the secondary character arcs were in depth and well executed without being the focus of the story.

The plot was well paced and set up well for the next book. I'm really excited to start Insurgent because the world building and plot just from this first book is crazy! I've wanted to get into this series for a while and I'm so glad I've finally started because it really lives up to the hype. So far there's been a great balance of romance/tension, action, and world building.

And GIRL . The characters are so fuckable.

Content Warnings

briony_2010's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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