So I am going to jump in here today and share a quick book review about a book I just barely finished reading…in the wee hours this morning! I had a guest post lined up for the Fall Festival but the dates got mixed up and so I have an opportunity to slip back in and say hi!!
I have shared some past posts about my favorite books and am pretty sure that I am going to have to add this one to My Favorite Book list…
Divergent by Veronica Roth.
I have seen this around recently and had heard some good reviews for it. I have not had much time for reading recently, but with the cooler temps and the sun setting way too early (goodbye late night runs….boo), I have found some time to get a little reading in before bedtime.
I have to say that I really, really enjoyed this book. It has a feeling similar to the Hunger Games, which I did enjoy as well. But this book does not feel as heavy theme wise…although it has a similar theme. It was pretty darn clean too and you can’t beat that for a good book.
I really like that there is a stong female heroine in this book who is valued for her bravery, and her brains rather than her beauty!
Have you read this? What did you think? And, since I am always on the lookout for a great book I would love if you would share your favorite reads too!
JOIN OUR NEWSLETTER
Would you like more Recipes, DIY, Printables and Organization Ideas?
Subscribing to the newsletter will enable us to periodically send you creative content exclusively for Idea Room subscribers.
*View our Privacy Policy here.
Madison says
You need to read the second one, Insurgent. I loved them both, and so did my husband after I made him read them. Have you read the Host by Stephanie Meyer? Much better than the Twilight series and coming to the big screen soon.
Amy says
I did read the Host and I too enjoyed it much better than her twilight series. I can’t wait for the movie either. I made my husband read that one too :)
Yes! I just read them in the last couple of weeks. I agree with all you said. I like it much better than Hunger Games (and I did like HG) because of the same reasons you said! Insurgent is also very very very good. I think I like Divergent a little more because of the character and plot development, but I read Insurgent just as fast because it’s good too. Anyway, yes, I really enjoyed this one!
I worked thru a list I found on Pinterest of books similar to Hunger Games. My favorites ended up being Divergent, Delirium and Ender’s Game. I couldn’t wait for the release of Insurgent but have to say I didn’t like it! Thought it was boring.
I loved Ender’s Game too. But it has been a long time since I read that. I will have to look into Delirium!
I had it out from the library, but didn’t get to it because I needed to read a book club book first- couldn’t renew because there’s a waiting list.
I heard it was great and that Insurgent was equally as good. I assume the 3rd book in this trilogy will be out soon, too. I put myself back on the waiting list so ill be reading it soon. I read all 3 Hunger Games books in 6 days! Loved those.
Oh yes! Get back on the list! 6 days! Wow! I love books that draw you in that much…my husband doesn’t though :)
Along that same genre, you should read “Matched” by Ally Condie. It is a trilogy. The 2nd book is called “Crossed” and the last book is due out next month and is called “Reached”. I really enjoyed the first 2 books and look forward to the last one.
Thanks Kathie! I am going to see about reading Matched. I have heard that one now a few times. It will probably be my next read!
I stayed up until 11:30 last night to finish “Divergent”! SUCH a good read! I am counting the days until the 2nd book is released.
Great series! I feel it was written much better than the Hunger Games. (Not that I didn’t LOVE Hunger Games) The second one is just as good! Can’t wait until the next one comes out!
Read and enjoyed both in the series so far. Looking forward to #3! Glad you enjoyed as well.
Absolutely LOVED the book…even better than The Hunger Games. The second book (Insurgent) was awesome, finished it in about 5 days and I’m not a fast reader. Just wish the final book was coming out before November 2013…can’t wait to see how it ends.
I know!! Worst thing about reading a series!
Divergent (and Insurgent!) are my absolute favorite books at the moment! Tris and Four are GREAT leads and I too love that she’s such a strong female lead. I personally am grateful for their relationship and the fact that (a) there’s no flippin’ love triangle (hate those!) and (b) that they fight for each other in every way (more so in book 2). Can’t wait for #3– and the MOVIE coming out in 2014!!
Couldn’t agree more Jamie! A movie? What?? Yay!
I read the book to check it for my 6th grader and fell in love! So much that its next on our book club read list!
I quickly read the next one but didn’t enjoy it as much…it was good but not quite as good as Divergent. #2 has a little more of a romantic theme. Still pretty clean, and still a good read. Tris is a fantastic heroine and I love how strong and independent she is.
I used to try and read the books my kids were reading before them…but I quickly fell behind! I love that you do that. Thanks for sharing!
I loved this book. The second one is even better!
Good to know. I just started the second one!
The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton is good. Also, Blackbird House by Alice Hoffman is a good fall read. A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini is super heavy but such a beautiful story. I have an annotated bibliography of each book I’ve read…the list is getting long…
ha! I have not read any of those. Adding them to my list now! Thanks so much!
Have you read The Uglies series by Scott Westerfield? I think you would probably enjoy them if you liked Divergent. Similar idea. There are four books in the series: 1)Uglies 2)Pretties 3)Specials 4)Extras. It has been several years since I read them, but I remember them being pretty clean.
I have read the first two and then got stuck in the third. I think I shall give it another chance as I did enjoy the series!
I felt the same as you, the HG similarities are hard to ignore. But this had enough differences that it made it a totally different experience. I downloaded Divergent to my son’s nook before I left for Hong Kong this summer (didn’t want a big book weighing me down). While I was on my layover in Chicago I decided I had better download Insurgent too before I got in the air and was stuck with nothing to read for 15 hours!! It didn’t disappoint either. I feel funny being almost 40 and reading young adult fiction but hey, you’re never too old right?! :)
haha! I know! I am almost 40 too! But I still love to read Young Adult Fiction. Great stories without all the junk they throw in there! And then I can recommend them to my kids and know what they are reading!
I have this book sitting on my nightstand waiting for a chance to really dig into it! What I’ve read though I have really enjoyed! I am glad to know that you enjoyed it too though! Gives me a little more motivation to really take the time to read it soon!!
Thanks!
Ashley
http://www.simplydesigning.blogspot.com
I just read Easy, by Tammara Webber. I absolutely loved it. I’ve recommended it to several people who loved it as we’ll. it’s considered “new adult”.
I had to come back and tell you that I read Divergent and Insurgent. I have to say that I liked them even more than the hunger games (as if I ever thought that was possible). And I read Matched and Crossed which were good, but not as good as Divergent. One other trilogy you might want to read is The Maze Runner. I just finished the first book tonight – very suspenseful! I also just found out that there is a prequel so it’s really a four book series.
On my list to read also is the Legend series.
Are you on Shelfari? It’s a great site to keep track of your books (read, reading, planning to read). You can see what your friends are reading and others and also read and write reviews.
I agree! I enjoyed Divergent more than The Hunger Games and if you haven’t read the sequel, you should!
Oh, btw, have you ever read 52 Reasons to Hate My Father by Jessica Brody? I think it’s a great YA too