Review: Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Insurgent by Veronica Roth
Publisher: HarperCollins Children's Books
Released: 1st May 2012
Source: Publisher for review

Rating: 5/5 

 Goodreads description:

War looms in sixteen-year-old Tris’s dark dystopian world as disputes between the factions grow. Tris must now fight against all odds to discover the truth that can save her and the people she loves. Sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge – and the choices she makes will have devastating and unexpected consequences.

My thoughts:

Insurgent was my most anticipated book of the year, and it did not disappoint. Whilst slower than Divergent, the pacing was consistent with plenty of action to keep it interesting. I enjoyed the quieter moments, as we got to see more of Tris and Four and see how their relationship was developing.

We catch up with them at the Amity compound; where they've fled following the events of Divergent. Tris is understandably shaken after the deaths of her parents and her killing Will, not to mention the awful fates that have befallen most of her current and old factions. It was good to see a bit more humanity in Tris; in Divergent she was quite strong and resilient-whilst still displaying emotion-but I think the fact that she was affected by what happened speaks a lot for her character. She struggles with the prospect of holding a gun again for example,which is understandable. We learn a lot about the Amity whilst at their compound, and I have to say, I didn't like what I saw. They're definitely my least favourite of the factions, I find them really...deceptive.

We move onto Candor, which was really interesting. I really felt for Tris but especially Four during this part of the book. People started to see him less as the indestructible, unflappable Four, and more like Tobias, and they weren't always pleased by this. I gotta say, Four (I'm sorry, I can't call him Tobias...) must have some Erudite aptitude in him, cause that boy was SNEAKY. Seriously, I was in awe of how much of a strategist he is. Makes him totally more awesome and desirable. Seriously now, Four is so hot. Strong and determined but at times fragile. He's caring, not in an overly-sympathetic way but in a way that he knows what people can take, and what they can't.  


Tris makes a pretty stuuuuuupid decision at one point, and I was practically shouting "NOOOOOO" at her, but, I was on the tube, so I didn't. I totally get WHY she did it, I do, but....she shouldn't! It did lead to lots more drama, lots of interesting revelations and some really heartfelt moments though, so I'll forgive her. 

This is a world at war, there are losses and sacrifices. The actions of some people will surprise you, the actions of others will shock and outrage you, but regardless you will be completely and utterly hooked. Roth maintains her simplistic writing style that is so utterly evocative and really works with the story. It's almost impossible to really put across the complexities of this book. The amount of character development, the depth of the interactions, it's really mindblowing. All these people felt so real to me, even the ones you only see glimpses of. You'd think that their factions would make them all the same, but it really doesn't.


The ending...at first, it did disappoint me. I predicted it really early based off a throwaway comment from one character and spent the rest of the book thinking "surely that wont be it" so when it WAS it....yeah, I was a little disappointed. I felt it was a bit cliche...but I sat and I thought about it and I decided it probably couldn't have ended any other way so now I am INSANELY EXCITED  for book three!! Which I think should be called 'Resurgent'. Yeaaaah.