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elija_20's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
As someone who watched the films first and loved them, I can confidently say the books are SO much better. I loved all the little details and plot points that the film missed and just the description of Tris’ emotions that couldn’t be translated to film.
One piece of advice I would give if you are reading this after watching the films is that the characters of Tris and especially Four are (in my opinion) very different to the books compared to the films. I would recommend starting the books with this in mind and you will enjoy it and relate to the characters better.
Even if you haven’t watched the films, oh my goodness I would recommend this book to anyone. Cant wait to read the next one.
Graphic: Gun violence, Physical abuse, Violence, Confinement, Blood, Bullying, Child abuse, Classism, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Murder
Moderate: Sexual content, War, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Sexual harassment, and Sexual assault
Minor: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, and Body shaming
ilaronicly's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Violence, Suicide, Blood, Bullying, and Classism
Moderate: Death of parent, Death, and War
Minor: Sexual assault and Vomit
ilovemazerunner's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Graphic: Violence and Gun violence
Moderate: War
Minor: Child abuse and Vomit
nathaliereading's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Vomit, War, Death, Physical abuse, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Violence, Blood, Body horror, Gore, Suicide, Bullying, and Child abuse
things100's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
Moderate: Vomit, War, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Death of parent, Physical abuse, Suicide, and Child abuse
neevabeeva510's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, and Violence
Moderate: Suicide and Physical abuse
Minor: Child abuse and Vomit
nienora's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
World building makes no sense. There's no way that kind of divide would work for two weeks let alone years.
I don't understand why and how Tris and Four like each other soo much. They both come from the same faction and they're both repressed and apparently that's enough for them. They were interesting when they're literally 20cm apart with all the classical tropes.
The most important thing to remember is that Tris is short. And she likes to remind us of that fact every 5 minutes. Especially if she's close to Four.
Also what kind of nickname is a number? Ofc he's glad she uses his real name, no one want to be called by a number. But Dauntless are known for their strength not their brain.
Graphic: Death of parent and Death
Moderate: Vomit, Physical abuse, and Sexual assault
alsoiread's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Violence, Kidnapping, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Suicide
Moderate: Alcohol, Bullying, Child abuse, Grief, Vomit, Murder, War, Blood, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Genocide
cara_nm's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Gun violence, Mass/school shootings, War, Violence, Blood, and Death
Moderate: Suicide, Death of parent, and Bullying
Minor: Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Sexism, Medical content, Suicide attempt, and Vomit
readingwithkaitlyn's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
That being said, I think this is one of the few examples where the movie is better than the book. The plot in the movie is much more cohesive, covering important details without repetition and dragging them out, and characters that are much more consistent in personality. I also wasn’t a big fan of the plot bouncing around.
By cohesiveness I mean that there were just so many moments that could have been combined, altered, or switched around for a more compact story. I think each moment added something but it could have been done differently, like in the movie. There is so much more focus on the goals because of how everything is put together.
The book also has tons of repetition and drawn out arcs without fully delving into them. That applies to the characters as well as plot. I felt like we constantly were hearing how strong Tris is and how much she doesn’t want people to see her as weak, and there were moments that displayed that better in her actions. It could have been left at that, like in moments where she thought about comforting Al or Caleb, and decided not to. If anything it bothered her to see that “weakness” displayed. I like that Tris is a flawed character who feels she has to prove herself, especially given her age, but it became overkill at times. We see that Tris is strong, and that she’s worried about people not seeing her as strong, so it didn’t need to be states so much. There was also just so much of Tris getting through all the challenges and sims to become dauntless, which in retrospect is a subplot to the major plot. I think the movie was better at showing how she was navigating the world as Divergent and finding out what that meant in the midst of her training.
I also liked the personalities for the characters more in the movie, because we see moments of that in books, but it can be a bit inconsistent or less favorable. I think Four and Tori are better portrayed in the movies.
Ultimately I think what is happening here is a big plot that is so dependent on who they are and where they fit in and other aspects that movie or shape the plot get overlooked. It also is not as creative as I remembered. Once more, with the movie outshining in terms of world building.
However, despite all the criticisms, I can still see why it got adapted because there is a lot of potential and you still end up invested in the characters.
Graphic: Bullying, Classism, Death, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Death of parent, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Medical content, Confinement, Gore, Sexual assault, Suicide, Gun violence, Fire/Fire injury, Torture, Violence, War, Blood, Domestic abuse, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Vomit, Alcohol, Grief, and Mental illness
Minor: Child death
Homelessness, comment about scalping, near-drowning.