Review: Insurgent by Veronica Roth - Megan

Synopsis from Goodreads

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.

I bought this book and it's prequel, Divergent, about a month ago and they've been sitting on my bookshelf looking pretty ever since so the other day I decided to finally give them a go and see what all the hype was about. I'm now kicking myself that I hadn't read them sooner! Veronica Roth has made a huge splash into the dystopian world with a new twist on the future's downfall.

I must admit, I expected this series to be some sort of not-so-violent version of The Hunger Games regarding the factions but once I got started those expections quickly disappeared. Divergent quickly became one of my favourite books of all time so I started Insurgent wondering if it would stay up on its pedestal or simply crash to the bottom of the disappointing-sequels pile. Thankfully, the former won.

Veronica Roth crafts a world that's rich in detail and more action-packed than ever. The characters are bigger and better; the plot is more complex; relationships are put to the test; and the fight against the Erudite builds more tension. The world-building takes a remarkable turn and adds more quality to the plot. We are introduced to factions that were barely touched on in Divergent, including Amity, Candor and even the Factionless, which I highly appreciated.

Tris Prior fast became one of my favourite female leads when I met her in Divergent and I was eager to see how her character developed in Insurgent. There were a lot of emotional obstacles for Tris to overcome in this book that helped craft her into a stronger and more determined heroine which I valued greatly. I didn't always agree with her decisions however, although there was a distinct pessimistic quality to her personality throughout the story. I became emotionally attached to her though and I think this aspect of her character is what makes her such a perfect heroine. 

There really isn't much for me to say about Four/Tobias other than that he's unbelievably easy to fall for. In Divergent, we meet him as the bold and daring Four while in Insurgent, we get a better grasp of Tobias and a deeper understanding of his character. I was a bit wary of the name change because I'm so used to calling him Four but the fact that he was mainly called Tobias in this book made the transition a whole lot easier. His relationship with Tris caught the Rollarcoaster fever as it was strained between them every now and then, but I was satisfied with this because it ineviatably made their relationship stronger.

Now, I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks that cliff-hangers are evil but the ending to this book was.. I don't even know, I have no words for it. A new door has been open for book 3 with no hint of predictability in sight so I'm bubbling with excitement to see what Veronica Roth has in store for us next. Once again, the bar has been set high and I hope more than anything that the conclusion to this trilogy will be the perfect ending.

Rating: 5/5 stars