So I have something a little embarrassing to admit. This post is soooo long overdue. Like, so long that I read the book twice in order to do really do my review justice. I just cannot seem to carve out enough time to spend on the blog. I really need to go back to my grad school habit of visiting a coffee shop for a few hours of quiet every weekend.
Anyway, without further ado, I give you my review of Allegiant, the third book in the Divergent series. If you have not read my review of the first two books in the series, check them out here.
Book Review: Divergent Trilogy
Book 3: Allegiant
By Veronica Roth
Book three in the Divergent series picked up where the previous book left off. The factions ceased to exist. There is only the factionless and the allegiant, those that wanted a return to the factions and the principles upon which their city was founded.
Tris and Four join a handful of the allegiant in a trip beyond the city walls, to see what lies before them. There their world, although already spinning from revelations about the creation of the city, is upended once again as they discover that even that was a lie. The two struggle to figure out not their own future but also that of everyone still within the city.
Review/Recommendation: I enjoyed Allegiant. The story was pretty good, and to be honest, Roth completely shocked me with her ending. It shouldn’t have been unexpected, but so rarely do books end in such a way… but no more on that (no spoilers!). I’ll just say that the ending was very surprising and that she wrapped up the story very nicely. One of the better endings I’ve read, actually.
One of my more frequent criticisms of young adult books is that the characters get a little whiny, ruining an otherwise great story. Insurgent, book two in the series, was no different. However, I’m really happy to report that Allegiant did not follow that tradition. Tris returned as a strong character, more mature than she was in the earlier books of the series.
I think my only complaint about Allegiant was that the chapters alternated points of view between Tris and Four. That would have been fine, but the two characters largely had the same voice, making it sometimes easy to forget whose point of view you were reading from.
Background: Beatrice Prior lives in a world where society (dystopian Chicago) is divided into 5 factions, each which values a different virtue above all else. During the 16th year, young adults must take an aptitude test and decide whether they want to remain in the faction they were born into or switch to another faction. There is Abnegation, who value selflessness, Amity, who value peace and harmony; Candor, who value truthfulness; Dauntless, who value fearlessness; or Erundite, who value knowledge. All of those who are not part of a faction are factionless; they are impoverished and homeless.
Divergent:Divergent begins at that time in Beatrice’s life where she must choose her faction. Born into Abnegation, Beatrice takes her aptitude test and is told that there is not just one faction that she fits into but three. This is unique and dangerous. This makes her Divergent.
Beatrice decides that she is not selfless enough to remain with family in Abnegation and chooses to switch to Dauntless. This first book follows Beatrice, renamed Tris, during her initiation into Dauntless. She learns to handle weapons, to fight, and to be fearless – she has to in order to be accepted into the faction. If she is not accepted, she will be factionless.
Training is incredibly difficult for Tris. Not only is she is a faction transfer, but she is very small and compared to the Dauntless-born initiates, unprepared for the physical and mental feats demanded of her. If training isn’t enough, Tris must also face her feelings for her older teacher, Four and hide the fact that she is Divergent. And the icing on the cake? In the midst of her training, Tris and Four discover unrest and growing conflict that threaten to unravel their seemingly perfect society.
Insurgent: The second book in the Divergentseries, Insurgent picks up where Divergent leaves off – delving deeper into the unrest and conflict that is discovered at the end of the first book. War breaks out between the factions. Friends and family are pitted against each other. Neutrality is next to impossible. Insurgent is full of secrets and betrayals; sadness, guilty, and hidden agendas.
Yes, the summary of this second book is short but it is a pretty good description of the constant turmoil that takes place throughout the book. You don’t need the play-by-play, you should read the book instead. 🙂
Review & Recommendation: I really enjoyed the first two books in this young adult dystopian series. The strength of Divergent was the introduction and evolution of the characters. There was one main plot line that carried the book, with smaller stories on the sidelines, but that would ultimately be pulled back into the larger story.
In contrast, the constant plot turns was the strength of the second book. It was like watching an action movie – as soon as one story resolved, another one immediately began. That’s the reason why the summary above was so brief – it was a constant chain of events that will keep you hooked. I think I read the book in less than two days. The one downfall to Insurgent is something that I think is fairly common in the later books of young adult series – the main character becomes a bit whiny, a bit too self-centered, a bit too enveloped by her own self-pity.
I’m looking forward to book 3, Allegiant, set to be released on October 22, 2013. Stay tuned for my review of it upon its release.
A Graceling is a person who possesses a particular skill, a Grace, far surpassing the capabilities of ordinary people. This skill might be practical – such as cooking, fighting, math – or something paranormal, such as mind-reading. Gracelings are distinguished from an early age by their eyes: each eye a different color.
In the land of seven kingdoms, Gracelings are treated differently. In most kingdoms, Gracelings are offered up to the kings. If the king had a use for a particular Grace, the Graceling lived at the court, trained, and served the kingdom. If their Grace was not useful, they were sent home to lead a normal life, although they were often ostracized by their neighbors.
Graceling (published Oct. 2008): In Cashore’s debut novel, Lady Katsa, niece to the king of Middluns, is graced with an unbelievable ability to fight. Trained by the royal guard, she becomes known as the king’s thug, his enforcer. She is the one he sends to enforce his will or punish those who disobey him.
However, as Katsa grows older, she begins to use her Grace for good. She and a trusted group form the Council, under which they attempt to right the wrongs committed by monarchs across the seven kingdoms. After one of these such quests, she meets and befriends Prince Po of Lienid. Together, they embark on a long journey against Katsa’s toughest adversary yet, an adversary she shouldn’t have a chance against.
Spoiler: During this adventure, Katsa rescues 10-year old Princess Bitterblue of Monsea and falls in love.
Fire (published Oct. 2009): The second book in the Graceling Realm series is sort of a prequel to Graceling. Only one character from the first book appears in Fire. The character does not play a huge role in the story but we do get a glimpse of his past, which is not detailed in Graceling.
The main storyline in Fire revolves around a monster named Fire. The only human monster left in Dells (the other monsters in the story are colorful, hypnotic animals, most with a taste for blood), beautiful Fire struggles to distinguish herself from her father’s awful legacy. Like all monsters, Fire’s presence is alluring. People are drawn to her, sometimes in attraction and other times in hostility. However, Fire’s kindness and morality overcome her father’s legacy of violence, cruelty, and selfishness as she embarks on a journey to help save the monarchy in Dells and limit the damages of civil war.
Bitterblue (written with Ian Schoenherr, published May 2012): Graceling ends. Fast-forward eight years. Bitterblue is queen of Monsea. Under her leadership, the kingdom is working to recover from life under Bitterblue’s crazy, manipulative predecessor.
However, Bitterblue’s advisers and subordinates are beginning to act strangely. She’s unable to implement the programs she wants to. Her advisers are seen wandering the castle at odd hours. In an attempt to gain some space and freedom, Bitterblue begins sneaking out of the castle into the city. She becomes drawn by glimpses of the past, of unanswered questions. As her advisers act increasing odd and her new friends in the city are threatened, Bitterblue isn’t quite sure what to do. Katsa, Po, and several other characters from Graceling are around to help Bitterblue out.
Review: One of the awesome things about my book club is that every one of us has a different taste in books. Graceling was chosen by an elementary school media specialist-librarian. For the third time, her pick was a success (see: Hunger Games and Life As We Knew It). I really enjoyed Graceling, so much that I couldn’t wait for the second and third book to come from the library. Thank you, Nook.
Overall, this was a great series, a very quick, light read. After the second book, I was wondering if it was necessary to read them in order. I still think that the first two books can be flip-flopped, if really needed, but Bitterblue pulls the stories together beautifully. (Nope, not going to explain how Fire is tied in with Graceling. I don’t want to spoil anything for you.)
Each of the three books has very similar themes: a little romance, fighting tyrants in the kingdoms (both living and after their death), overcoming perceptions… It sounds like the typical formula, but I was sucked in. The characters were fun and a little quirky. I especially enjoyed the strong female roles in the first two books.
I only had one complaint with these books. No, with one book, Bitterblue. There were parts of Bitterblue were the voice was wrong, the dialog a little off. The moments were few and far between, but there were definitely moments when I raised my eyebrows at something out of character (such as a “man,” suck at the end of a sentence, something similar to a “come on, man”). I suspect this comes from the fact that the third book was co-authored, unlike the first two. A minor detail, but I hope that if Cashore continues on with the series, that she either writes new books herself or she/her editor pay closer attention to the changes in voice.
This was a great fantasy-ish young adult series that I’d definitely recommend. Because of the heavy dose of romance, the series had a more chick-lit feel to it, rather than fantasy. It’s a great beach book.
Diana Bishop was born a witch but after her parents died, she wanted nothing to do with being a witch. She avoided it every way possible – she refused to use her powers and refused to learn about witchcraft from her aunts. Instead, Diana ran, rowed, and did yoga to get out her excess energy caused by the bottled up magic.
One day, everything changed. While doing research in an Oxford library, Diana calls up an ancient alchemy manuscript, Ashmole 782. The manuscript is cursed and releases a long chain of events that forced Diana to return to her roots. She gets thrown into a world of vampires and unknown magic, mystery and conspiracy.
Recommendation: If you enjoy the paranormal, than this is a book for you. Stories of witches, vampires and daemons are intertwined with the present and the past. There was just enough flare of romance, violence, and mystery to keep the reader engaged.
I’ve heard someone compare A Discovery of Witches to Twilight. If that’s what you’re thinking, I would disagree. Sure, A Discovery of Witches has love between a vampire and a non-vampire, but I felt this book was a far cry from the Twilight series. While still classified as a young adult book, it did not feel like one while reading it. The characters were older and much more mature. There were scholarly strands running through the book as the characters consistently referenced alchemy and great authors and works of the past.
I was disappointed when the book ended. I wanted to reads the next part of the story. You know it’s a good book when you keep thinking about it after you’re done, and stalk the author’s website for information about the next book. Unfortunately, book 2 in the trilogy, Shadow of Night, isn’t due to be released until summer 2012. It’s going to be a long way
Edit: Read my review of Shadow of Night, book two in the series, here and book three, Book of Life, here.
When I began Revolution, I was not sure I would enjoy it. The book began with a glimpse at Andi Alper’s life, which was falling apart. Andi and her mother were both hit hard over the death of her younger brother. Andi blamed herself and was suicidal. Her mother was consumed by grief and unable to function normally. Andi’s father lived far away, uninvolved in her life. When he showed up, the father and daughter butted heads and could not understand or relate to one another. Andi had lost interest in everything but her music, but even that couldn’t keep her out of depression and away from suicidal thoughts.
I thought this teenage anguish would dominate throughout the book, but it didn’t. Andi’s emotional turmoil was still there,but did not dominate the story.The first two-thirds of Revolution flashes between Andi in the present and the diary of Alexandrine Paradis, a French woman who lived during the French Revolution. Andi becomes increasingly interested in Alexandrine’s life – her time living with the royal family as a companion to the prince, her close relationship with prince Louis Charles (Louis XVII), and France during the French Revolution. As Andi continues her music, both playing her guitar and researching a French composer for her thesis, and delves deeper into the diary, she takes the first steps to overcoming her grief and guilt over her brother’s death.
The last third of the novel consists of Andi’s “trip” back to 1795, where she lives the history she had been reading about. Initially Andy was convinced that she had overdosed on her antidepressants. Before long, Andi starts making connection back to Alexandrine’s life and as well as that of the composer she was researching.
These experience bring Andi back to life. She starts to overcome her problems and regains the will to live.
Recommendation: I would definitely recommend Revolution to anyone who enjoys historical fiction novels. While I was originally concerned that the book would have too much teenage anguish, I found that the French history played a much stronger role in the storyline than Andi’s emotional struggles. There was just enough there to maintain a connection with the characters but not get bogged down in her depressing thoughts. I found the storyline creative and addictive – I didn’t want to put the book down!
So I have something a little embarrassing to admit. This post is soooo long overdue. Like, so long that I read the book twice in order to do really do my review justice. I just cannot seem to carve out enough time to spend on the blog. I really need to go back to my grad school habit of visiting a coffee shop for a few hours of quiet every weekend.
