Insurgent is the second novel in the Divergent trilogy by Veronica Roth. The second novel shows what life is like for Tris and the other survivors now that their faction system is falling apart. Whereas before the factions were created so that everyone could coincide peacefully utilizing their natural talents, now one faction is trying to take all of the power and control the others. Tris and Four along with some others are known as divergent because they don’t fit in to just one faction. The divergent are hunted down in this novel because the faction that wants to rule over the others discovers that they can’t be controlled. Tris leads the movement to try and stop the controlling faction.
I really enjoyed the first book in this series and I didn’t quite experience that same enjoyment with the second novel. The first novel was exciting because here was this new society and their unique traditions. Tris was doing her best to navigate her way through the training in the faction that she had chosen, which was different then the one she had grown up in. In this novel, all of the intrigue of the new exciting faction is gone and we are left with the aftermath. I feel like the reason I liked this novel less than the first is the same reason that I liked the third Hunger Games novel least of all. It was too different from the first two novels that included the excitement and intrigue of the actual games. I am hopeful that the third novel will provide the reader with similar enjoyment as the first novel.
In looking back at my review from the first book and its movie, it seems that I was not incredibly impressed with the first movie although I did find it fun to watch. I was actually impressed with how well the first movie honored its source material with the exception of one of the final scenes. This movie was even less impressive than the first, and I was very disappointed in how closely this movie stuck to the source material. There were aspects to the movie that were total fabrications and made me feel like the screenwriters were trying to dumb something down that didn’t need it. I don’t think it would be giving anything away (because it was in the trailer) to say that there was this secret box in the movie that had to be unlocked. Well, there was no such box in the novel. This is especially irritating because it was such a big part of the movie.
Another aspect of the movie that bothered me is that when watching all of the young actors, I felt like I had seen it all before. I believe that all of these younger actors do a decent to great job. I have found that I especially enjoy Miles Teller’s sarcastic delivery, and the chemistry between Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort is palpable. Perhaps, because Woodley and Elgort do have such a good chemistry is the reason I had trouble watching the two of them play brother and sister. I found myself wondering if I would have the same feeling after watching Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan play a brother and sister after they showed such good chemistry in previous movies. I will probably never know.
I am anxious to read the third novel in the series because I have heard that the ending is sad and shocking. I did discover just now that the third novel is going to be broken up into two movies. How irritating and yet not surprising! I am not sure that I would recommend this book series over some of the other series and novels that are out there. It wouldn’t be a bad way to get teens interested in reading, but, at the same time, there are other books out there that are better and would achieve the same end effect.
Insurgent by Veronica Roth Purchase Links: Paperback, Kindle Edition, Audible.com Audiobook
