Review: Insurgent

Author: Veronica Roth
Release Date: May 1, 2012
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 525
Series: Divergent #2
Source: Bought
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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—while 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.

My Favorite Line(s):  Beware.  There are quite a few!

“I read somewhere, one, that crying defies scientific explanation. Tears are only meant to lubricate the eyes. There is no real reason for tear glands to overproduce tears at the behest of emotion.I think we cry to release the animal parts of us without losing our humanity. Because inside of me is a beast that snarls, and growls, and strains toward freedom, toward Tobias, and, above all, towards life. And as hard as I try, I cannot kill it.”

“Sometimes I feel like I am collecting the lessons each faction has to teach me, and storing them in my mind like a guidebook for moving through the world. There is always something to learn, always something that is important to understand.” 

"Got your gun?" Peter says to Tobias."No, " says Tobias, "I figured I would shoot the bullets out of my nostrils, so I left it upstairs.""Oh, shut up."

Why I Loved It:  Ok first off, it's been about two weeks since I've posted on my blog.  I'm so sorry for the lack of activity, but finals were kicking my butt.  I had to study which mean I had little time for much else after studying and work.  But summer is here, and I'm back.  I chose to reward my summer kick-off with Insurgent.  There was never a doubt in my mind that I would love it.  I've read some mixed reviews, but I had faith.  Divergent was so amazing that I knew Insurgent would just get better.  It did.

I'm going to try my best to give this review without giving anything away.  
WARNING: IF YOU HAVE NOT READ DIVERGENT, DON'T READ THIS REVIEW!
The dynamic of this book, to me, was completely different than Divergent, but in a good way nonetheless.  After the way Divergent ended, there is no more staying within just one faction.  I really loved how much world building filled the pages of Insurgent.  It was nice to see so much of the different faction's worlds.  Candor and Erudite have so much more coverage in the books, so you truly get an idea of every faction including the faction-less.  They also play a role in this book.

Keeping in mind what Tris went through at the end of Divergent, much of Insurgent covers how she deals with her grief, and how Tobias and Tris handle the craziness around them both separately and together.  There is so much that each one is facing on their own that figuring out how to be together seems a challenge.  There was so much of this book that I kind of wanted to scream at Tris to get it together, and just love Tobias the way he needed.  But grief doesn't always allow us to do what we should do, but only what we need to do to survive.  I had to keep that mindset as I read through the book.

I think, for me, there was a lot more action in this book on a more widespread scale.  Instead of just fighting other initiates in Dauntless, you have the conflict among the factions, betrayals, questionable loyalties, and or course love.  The relationship between Tobias and Tris is just incredible for me.  I love how much payoff you get from their relationship.  You don't have to wait till the end of the book to feel complete, but Ms. Roth allows you to experience throughout the whole story.

Overall, I find that the writing is incredible, the plot so exciting it's hard to put down the book, and the romance enough to melt your heart.  Tris is not the Tris from Divergent.  She's harder than that girl, but she is determined to do her parents proud, and that selflessness makes her brave and strong and worth admiring.