Divergent by Veronica Roth Guest Review by Jewelz!!

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Blurb:

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago, 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 to determine who her friends really are—and where, exactly, a romance with a sometimes fascinating, sometimes infuriating 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 a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, she also learns that her secret might help her save those she loves . . . or it might destroy her.

Jewelz Review:
Wow! Divergent is one of those books that you just don't want to put down, even though it's 500 pages long! I managed to tear through it in two days. It's also one of those rare books that "sucks you in" to the point that I started obsessing about it a bit - I, of course, immediately read the sequel "Insurgent" and then followed up with visiting the Author's website and blog, and then found the book's Facebook page. I even visited the Author's Tumbler (which my teenaged daughter insists is only for teens and not for moms). I couldn't seem to get enough! It's reminiscent of my experience with a few other series ;) I am eagerly anticipating the third and final book that is scheduled to be released this fall.
Enough about my "fangirl" response to the book - on to the nitty gritty :)
Veronica Roth did a great job of creating a well-defined dystopian society that was easy to imagine, visualize, and understand as you read the book. The society that she creates is very thought-provoking. Can you imagine living your life bound to one specific virtue - such as honesty - and  living that 100% of the time, no gray areas allowed, no "sugar-coating" the truth or even consideration for people's feelings; it really would be an intriguing experiment.
I found that the characters are well developed and three-dimensional. I really enjoyed the depth of her character development. She didn't limit it to just the main characters either - many of the supporting people have defined histories and develop throughout the book along with the main characters: Tris and Four. She does this without  it feeling like she's muddying the main storyline.
The relationship between Tris and Four is anything but typical. There are secrets in their pasts, emotional scarring that must be overcome, societal barriers, other people who interfere, not to mention the main "conflict" (but I don't want to spoil it for you). I love a good, dynamic relationship where the characters grow, change and learn from each other as they face challenges. That's how relationships really are - except our challenges don't necessarily effect the whole of society ;)
So, if you like books that are filled with action, adventure, mystery, suspense and even a romance - you need to read Divergent!

jewels:)

Source~ Jewels purchased the kindle book!

You can pick up the kindle book here

You can pick up the paperback here