Review: When I first read the Divergent series in middle school, I thought it was the best collection of young adult books that I had ever laid eyes upon. It still remains one of my favorite series to this day, however as time passed, it fell lower in the rankings (in part due to how dry Insurgent was). When I discovered that Veronica Roth had released a new book, I thought I’d read it just for kicks.

What Worked:
01. The character development. It was interesting watching the characters grow as time progressed throughout the novel. I laid witness to how grief can effect certain individuals and how love might cloud the mind of others. One interesting touch Roth included was that of perspective. The chapters focusing on Cyra were written in the first person, whilst the chapters focusing on Akos were written in the third person limited view. I am not sure what led Roth to make this choice, but the changes in perspective revealed a lot about the character and enhanced the mystery surrounding Akos’ thoughts and backstory. Overall, I would say that Roth did a spectacular job developing her characters and letting their emotions bleed through the pages of the novel.

02. Roth’s use of imagery. The novel revolves around several different planets similar to the way Star Wars is crafted. Roth did a great job distinguishing the differences between the two and even included a glossary at the back in case of confusion. It was enchanting the way Roth was able to go into great detail about the plants on each planet. They were completely fictional, but I found myself finding tastes, smells, and images for them. She also did a great job describing each planet’s appearance and customs. I got to know more about how the solar system as a whole operated and what kind of beings were involved in the story. I love how the imagery in this novel helped me to picture the diverse characters while not going overboard.

03. The chemistry between the two main love interests. I don’t want to say too much and give anything away, so I’ll leave it at this: Their relationship was just so addicting and the end left me begging for more.

04. The unique storyline. At first I was a bit skeptical because when I read the summary, it sounded awfully similar to Romeo and Juliet. Two households on opposite sides of the planet that despise each other... I mean come on. However, I was pleasantly surprised when I started reading the novel. I found that if this were another adaptation of Shakespeare’s work, Roth did a phenomenal job making it stand out from the rest. There were no distinct references or parallels to the play, making the storyline completely unique and original. I know that there will be some readers who may stop me and point out that the characters had “current gifts”, powers extremely similar to that of mutations from Marvel’s X-Men series. I didn’t take much issue with this being a superhero myself. The gifts bestowed on her “fate favored” characters were gifts I would not have conjured up or seen on the screen. She was able to transfer images I might have pictured on my television and put them nicely on the page, which is no easy task. I commend Roth for her job well done!

What Didn’t Work:
01. The pacing at the start of the novel. I actually started reading this book back in 2017 when it first came out. I was faced with several difficulties because I really wanted to get into the story, but the beginning was just so slow. It was an agonizing process to break through the first couple of chapters and I ended up not finishing it in favor of reading other books that were much quicker paced. After three years, I picked up the book again this year determined to finish it. I chose to start over, as I didn’t remember anything, and it took a lot of patience to once again push myself through the first couple of chapters to get to the “juicy” stuff, which was well worthwhile.

Jess Approved?: ✓