Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Genre: dystopian
Series and Book #: Divergent Series #2
Pages: 525
Summary:

One choice can transform you—or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves—and herself—white grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

 

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 their ideologies grows. 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.

 

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Not as stunning as I thought it would be. Veronica blew me away with Divergent but Insurgent just didn't do much for me. For one, Tris was majorly depressed. I know why but, like Four said, she seemed unable to care about herself. She threw herself into dangerous situations without first thinking of the consequences. I missed the determined, fiery girl who proved everyone wrong with her strength.

There was one scene, and I don't want to give too much away, but it is when Tris is being held in Erudite headquarters. She remained strong, for Four, and for the people who were counting on her to make the ultimate sacrifice. That is when I saw the old Tris, the Tris who would even give herself to save her enemies. I really want her back!

I did like how Veronica put every faction into this book. From Amity to Candor, back to Dauntless, then Abnegation and Erudite, and even the factionless headquarters. It gave a broad view of the thoughts of every faction and the shaky ground each was balancing on. Though Erudite seemed to be the most calm of them all, each had its own way of dealing with the sudden slaughter of Abnegation, and I liked how Veronica incorporated that into her book.

Overall, this novel was somewhat lackluster for me. The Dauntless are all broken up, the factions are at war with one another, and there is a ton of betrayal! Plus, there weren't as many romantic scenes between Tris and Four. Cruel world! Too much of the book was waiting and planning, not enough action. The last couple of chapters were the only nail-biting moments. I feel like it's going to be hard to choose who to follow and who not to. I hope, in the next novel, there's more of the old Tris. And, to whatever literacy gods there may be, let there be more Four!

The Cover: The Amity symbol, is, well, symbolic. It's the symbol for peace in a book that is about anything but.