Review: Veronica Roth's Divergent

Hello, dystopian YA people! Today's review is a combination review of Veronica Roth's Divergent and wishful lusting after it's sequel Insurgent, due out May 1, 2012.  A Double Whammy! I know, its rather impressive.

Divergent: Just in case you have been under a rock/are still discovering Hungers Games, in this book, set in a future dilapidated Chicago, society is divided into five factors each dedicated to certain virtues: Candor (honesty supposedly, but really about lacking a mental filter), Abnegation (selflessness), Dauntless (double dare lifestyle), Amity (boring peaceful) and Erudite (smarty pants). Right before the day all 16-year-old pick their faction Beatrice discovers she is Divergent a very dangerous label she must keep secret, but that she knows very little about. In a "radical" OR IN THE WORLD OF YA SUPER BLATANT choice she decides to leave boring Abnegation and her family behind for the punk-rock world of Dauntless. Think tattoos, piercings, and jumping off trains/buildings. During the highly competitive initiation lots of people, including Tris, get the living daylights kicked out of them, and Tris slowly discovers that not everything is as hunky dory as it seems in their supposedly utopian faction society and she is at the center of it... dun dun dun.

1. Originality - after the first chapter, I was just whelmed by the society, but the more time spent in the Dauntless world of underground caves and punches, things got increasingly interesting. I give it a solid 6 (because this is not the first time I have been around the- having to leave one parents behind to find yourself/discover corruption/potentially start a revolution- block)


2. Absurdity -not that bad!I give it a 3. I mean, living in New York makes me suspicious of Chicago to begin with. Not surprised it could go downhill this fast (sorry Chicago)


3. Level of Paranormal Romance - everyone is human...SIGH. But a love interest named Four spices things up, and I was into his mysterious self. I give this a 6, cause the build-up was great! moon eyes, elbow touches, stopping people from killing you, the normal romance stuff....


4. Level of Harry Potter-ness -the writing was pretty good (and all the jumping off high buildings was crazy, if not magical) 5.

I don't know if this review does this book justice BECAUSE I couldn't put it down. Its biggest sell is that it draws you in and you must must must know what is going to happen next. Which leads up to....