Book Review: Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Title:         Insurgent
Author:   Veronica Roth
Genre:      Dystopian
Rating:     ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
















Review: 

The most anticipated book of the year has come. The question: Is it worth the wait?

It all started with Divergent. Gladly, I am one of those readers who were caught to be amazed by it. The said book hits men and women, children and adults, that apparently it toppled other books. Inevitably, books in the same genre are competing. Amazing indeed how Divergent climbed up the peak of its current success among others. As a first book to top the rest is not luck but indeed suggests how fully furnished and prepared it is for its worldwide success.

They reckon themselves as survivors. But for others, they are counted as fugitives. 

Beatrice Prior along with other survivors from the Erudite’s attack runs for their safety and at the same time runs for their lives. As they find their path to find a home, they find their way to the other factions that are not involved on either side. But as Tris tries to move on with her life, a nightmare of the past becomes a hindrance of her plan to step forward. 

Tobias has been keeping his image as mysterious for everyone. As he goes along with fellow Divergent and survivors, will he reveals some of it or keep it still for the sake of peace he was containing since then?

As a sequel to a creative piece of work, It’s a logical leap to assume that this book is great, if not, at least good. Fortunately, I reckon that this book hasn’t badly failed me yet. Nevertheless, the fact is hard to put off how much, in a way, this book disappointed me.

The characters of this book have shown their other sides that have been well coated in its predecessor. On the same subject, they have unleashed their flaws that eventually took reader’s attention. Yes, I have nothing against this matter, but, I suppose it could have been better for me if these other sides of them have been executed prior to the productivity or merit of story’s purpose. 

Additional fluff, I noticed the writing style to be unusual. Some scenes were abruptly narrated through colon which I did find disturbing. Nevertheless, I consider that it was intended hence the thickness of the book explains. Linking this subject to thickness of the book, I couldn’t fathom any idea why would it be thick when clearly some of the scenes were just useless to be inserted. So, the book has become dragging for me because of it. One more thing, I didn’t feel the conversations’ genuineness thus appealed to be unnatural for me.

I’m doubtless that Divergent’s ending has been glorious for those readers who’ve enjoyed it—drastically fulfilling if I were to describe it. With my description it implies one word—bought. I was bought by every important detail the book offered. Meanwhile, the sequel Insurgent, branches out new revelations. Unfortunately, some of these revelations falsify Divergent’s story. Some of them are too rough for me to consider proposed since then. The main revelation didn’t even intersect with Divergent’s story. So, obviously, spare me from those who embraced it. Moreover, these said revelations open loose threads that I, myself, gained questions out of it.

The story rotates around treachery, love, heartbreak, friendship and family. Sadly, treachery has been an ignorable twist for such was overused in a manner that all characters were subjected for treachery against the side they supposed to belong to. Truthfully, the theme of family ought to be crossed out since the book depicted the wrong manner of family relationship.

On the other hand, I did like the book because no matter how rough the coated revelation was at the beginning, it still blew me away at the ending. I truly appreciate how Tris, as the main character, wasn’t put into spotlight in this book, for the obvious fact that Roth was preserving her time for the latter part of the story.

Veronica Roth impresses me once more through creating as fierce and as bold as Divergent. Roth obliterated his characters without hesitation. For me what took my anticipation is not who’d be the next to betray with their respective sides but who’d be wiped out next.

I’m glad that the isolation of their community was delivered smoothly and so does the history of it. I’m impressed that this book once again ended remarkably. Finally, I happy to say that next book is worth a shot.

Book Review: Blood Red Road by Moira Young

Title:               Blood Red Road

Author:         Moira young

Genre:           YA Dystopia

Award:           Costa Book Awardee

Rating:           ★ ★ ★ ★ ★

Review:

This is indeed a great book. Special thanks to my friend Maria for letting my eyes get into the pages of this book.

On a midwinter day, when the sun sets low they were born. Lugh, handsome and shines like a sun, was born first; whereas Saba, beautiful like a darkness of night, followed after two hours. The twins lived bonded to each other in an isolated place named Silverlake. As they continue to grow, they realized how much neither of them was worthy to live if either would be separated away from another


And in a sudden, it all happens in a very unprepared day. A sandstorm has visited their place and brisk soldiers have been behind it. Lugh has been taken away and Saba is left behind with a memory of her mother, body of her dead father and, of course, her gawdfowsaken sister—Emily

A month, I think, was consumed before I finished reading this book. A negative word to reason out the period of time objects how I honestly felt towards the book, much less how I rated it. It's not easy to comprehend unlike memorizing one-plus-one-equals-to-two kind compared reading a perspective of an illiterate narrator. Fortunately, I neither did find it annoying nor disgusting. On the contrary, it instead served me as a challenge on how probably would I bite the wrongness of the character's perception. In fact, it dared me more to point out the flaws instead of applying them for myself.


However, I can't figure out any slight knowledge that suits the reason why Saba is illiterate. Speaking up about her isolation? Well, it hadn't bought me enough and I have many thoughts to counteract that weak reasoning. If there's evolution of language and writing, wouldn't it be great and factual to be more futuristic, as this book represents, than leaping back to Stone Age? Lucky for it being the first of the series because it has still a long bloody road to go before the end, and I might find the reason while I'm on my way


The places are amazingly reconstructed. But then, Young has given hints on what places are they at present era. If there is a thing to consider for myself that justifies being a dystopia, I guess it's the unique names that the characters have. In addition, though I don't really like crows, I love how Young associated the main characters journey with a savior crow. Another thing, I was touched at how Saba, being a mean and evil against her little sister, turned a protector and so did Emily towards Saba. Furthermore, Emily as a younger sister never failed to get my attention. Though sometimes unruly, she showed a more fearless persona than Saba


Moira Young did a good job at making Saba's character--hard and potent. No doubt, it lines up among Katniss Everdeen, Beatrice Prior and other female dystopia protagonists. In fact, this book has been compared to Hunger Games of Suzzanne Collins and The Knife of Never Letting Go. To be honest, I'm one of them, unfortunately. I'm very much glad that in a way, my personal view on how would have it ended had failed. To clear things out and at the same time my conclusion: this book is neither just about running; nor just about arena or cage fighting; it's more not less an epic adventure of a lady who was dependent, weak and just a follower who turned to be a strong, independent instigator. Likewise, this is neither Hunger Games nor The Knife of Never Letting Go but just a very mere Blood Red Road.