Divergent

Divergent by Veronica Roth
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I've read too many dystopian YA novels and I couldn't help compare the stories to each other. "Divergent" is enjoyable to read, which means that there were fast-paced moments especially during the latter part of the story. I am looking forward to the movie adaptation of this book as well. I think creating the factions-- Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent)-- and their characteristics are interesting. It took a lot of imagination describing how a world would work with those distinctions. I would want to know how they would evolve and which faction would survive, if any would survive at all.

On the other hand, the beginning was a bit dragging. I guess I expected too much and I found it overly-simplistic. Beatrice (or Tris) is not the main female protagonist I expected her to be. Maybe it's the author's style of writing, or maybe it was really meant to be her personality, but she can be predictable bordering on boring. She's supposed to be this kick-ass girl undergoing a sort-of initiation rite to be Dauntless and it felt like she isn't complete without her love interest. Don't get me wrong, I am a sucker for mushy love stories , but maybe I was looking for a more substantial plot or an emotional twist that dystopian books usually give me.

If the next book, "Insurgent", would get me hooked as much as the last few pages of "Divergent", then I am looking forward to finishing it soon.

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