Short Story: Free Four by Veronica Roth

Short Story Saturday was created by 365 Days of Reading. Because I post my hauls on Saturdays, I shall be posting any Short Story reviews on Sundays! I won't have SSS up every single Sunday.

ebook, 13 pagesPublished April 23rd 2012 by Katherine Tegen Books#1 New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth retells a pivotal Divergent scene (chapter 13) from Tobias's point of view. This thirteen-page scene reveals unknown facts and fascinating details about Four's character, his past, his own initiation, and his thoughts about new Dauntless initiate Tris Prior.

While I really liked the new perspective and that we got to learn more about Four and how his mind works, I wish there had been more! I read this in about ten minutes, if that, and while I liked this short story, I was kind of expecting more. I'm dying for Allegiant and was hoping Free Four would tide me over for a while for the Divergent world, if that makes sense. But it just left me wanting more. I'm going to do a reread of the series shortly before Allegiant is released and am so excited! I almost want to do it now, but I know that will absolutely kill me.

Happy reading!
~Kristy

Review: Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Author: Veronica Roth

Publisher:  HarperTeen

Page Count: 525 pages, Hardcover

Date Published: May 1st 2012

 Goodreads Blurb:

 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.

New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth's much-anticipated second book of the dystopian Divergent series is another intoxicating thrill ride of a story, rich with hallmark twists, heartbreaks, romance, and powerful insights about human nature.

 My Thoughts: SOOOO GOOD. Undescribably amazing... But I'll try. ;)


By now, most of you have probably seen at least one review of Insurgent. Why? BECAUSE IT'S THE INCREDIBLE SEQUEL TO DIVERGENT!!! Veronica Roth has done it again. She has left us with a jaw-dropping book and we have to wait another for the next book. (Yes, I read Divergent at the beginning of this year, but it still felt like an eternity waiting for this one!) Insurgent impressed the heck out of me. It's probably one of the best 'second-books' or 'sophomore-books' I've ever read. Roth has kept the fast paced  plot that we loved in Divergent and personally, I think her writing has improved greatly. While Divergent left me confused and disoriented in the beginning of the novel, Insurgent was clear and controlled. I never felt the need to go back and read something over again, (unless it was super shocking and I just couldn't believe it) and this made the 525 page book as quick of a read as it could be!


Insurgent has a pretty different feel from the first book, when it comes to Tris and Tobias' romance. I knew it had to happen, but I just wasn't really prepared. They are very tense and stiff around each other a lot of the time, but then other times they're pretty much back to that sweet couple we know and love from Divergent. Tris is very upset after Will's death and becomes suicidal... We see just how much she is hurting, as well as how she is hurting Tobias. The only thing he wants the most is for her to be safe but she insists on lying to him and go out on dangerous, life-threatening missions. It was hard for me to see Tris this way, because of how much I love her character. There was also one point where I was worried Tris and Uriah were going to have a 'thing', but as soon as that didn't happen, I was relieved. This series is great so far with the no love-triangle thing it's got going on. 


All in all, Insurgent was a fantastic sequel. It was incredibly well-written, has that fast-paced, action-packed adventure we love and an ending that will literally take your breath away. I almost threw the book across the room, but, I didn't want it to get hurt... If you've read Divergent, you should really go pick up a copy of this, if you haven't already. It will NOT disappoint. I can't actually say much else, because this book is just so awesome!

Have an incredible day/night guys!
-Kristy

Divergent by Veronica Roth

I had been really hesitant about reading Divergent, as there was no real description on the back, but there had been so much talk about it I decided to purchase it and THANK GOODNESS I DID! This book has everything I love in a dystopia-type novel. It's sexy, it's intense and it has surprises at every turn of the page.

Author: Veronica Roth

Publisher:  Katherine Tegen Books

Page Count: 487 pages, Paperback

Date Published: January 1st 2011

Goodreads Description:

In a future Chicago, 16-year-old Beatrice Prior must choose among five predetermined factions to define her identity for the rest of her life, a decision made more difficult when she discovers that she is an anomaly who does not fit into any one group, and that the society she lives in is not perfect after all.

ONE CHOICE

Decides your friends

ONE CHOICE

Defines your beliefs

ONE CHOICE

Determines your loyalties--Forever.

ONE CHOICE 

CAN TRANSFORM YOU

My Rating: 4/5 ~It took me a while to understand everything, but when I did... I was hooked!

As I said before, I wasn't sure if I would enjoy this book because of the lack of description on the paperback copy. (That was all that had been in stock at my store.) But I had heard so many great things about it that I was like 'What the heck!' and bought it. I began reading it just after I finished Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver and if you've read my review on that, you'll know how P.O.'ed I was at the end! So going into this book I was really hoping it would keep my mind off of the other book and I was a little bit disappointed. I'm not sure if it was just because of the situation I was in but I didn't get super absorbed into this book until about halfway through. The beginning was not bad, it was actually really good. It just seemed a bit predictable as to what Tris' choice would be and how she'd react to it. Beatrice was a great protagonist in my mind. She didn't bother me that much at all actually. I really admired her strength and dedication to her family. Four/Tobias was... cool. No. He was amazing. I really loved Tris and him together! This was one of those rare books with no love-triangle... YAY! Don't get me wrong, I love a good triangle, but it was refreshing not to have one for once. But, I'm just wondering... do we know what color hair Four/Tobias has? Because... either I missed it or we never find out. I'm picturing him with dark brown hair right now, but something's also telling me that may not be it. Hmmm... can anyone help me out with this?

In the long run, I really loved this book. It was a lot better than I was expecting it to be, but it also didn't live up to some of the raving reviews I've seen. If you're like me and can't seem to get really into it at first, just keep going! It gets sooooo much better in the second half, and you do not want to miss the ending. It's dramatic and mind blowing and seriously crazy. I cannot wait to read what happens next!

Let me know what you thought of Divergent, and also... what  color hair does Four/ Tobias have? I'm seriously confused.

Only 46 more days until INSURGENT!
~Kristy

In My Mailbox -4

This weekly meme is hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. Every Sunday I'll put up which books I bought, borrowed or hopefully one day received for review. This way you'll have a little sneak peek on the reviews to look forward to soon!
I bought two books from Coles this week and borrowed one from the library. I'm going to a store called Hemingway's tonight, but I wouldn't be able to post this until tomorrow if I waited until after that! So here we go:

I went to Coles yesterday (Saturday) to return 'Fallen' by Lauren Kate; I decided I'll borrow it from the library instead, just because I don't think that I will like it enough to buy the entire series. Who knows, maybe I will, but for now the library is good enough for moi! So, I went, thinking that I'd just exchange the book for another until I saw this:

OMGHHKP! (if you don't know what that means, don't fret. Noone really does. See here :P) Seriously I did a little happy dance in the aisle. I asked the cashier if she knew why it was out already and she just said that they were told to put it out. I'm not questioning it. Their manager is super sweet and trustworthy so... who knows? I did see on their website that it was coming out on the 25th, but everywhere else it said the 28th. Anyways, I started reading it and it's really different from Delirium. I'll do a review in a few days, but I'm hoping that I'll love it more as I get into it!

This is the book that I decided to exchange Fallen for. I've been waiting for the paperback copy of this for so long now and when I saw it, I couldn't resist. I have heard so many great things about this book, but I usually prefer buying the paperback instead of hardcover if I'm unsure about the book, because obviously the price difference is incredible. If you've read this, what did you think? I really hope I'll enjoy it!!!

And finally, this came in from my library FINALLY! You have no idea how long I have been waiting for this book. I refuse to buy it until I know I will like it, because it isn't the usual type of book I read, but I have wanted it for so long! My friend borrowed it first and then ended up not reading it (I swear he's illiterate), and now I get it! :D YAY!

Link your IMM's down below and I'll check them out! Oh and by the way, I apologize greatly for my major faux-pas last Wednesday. I had a very confusing week and I could have sworn it was Tuesday night so I did my Teaser Tuesday, then to wake up on Thursday and realize that I messed it up completely. But the funny thing is that my Wsquared Wednesday actually was 'Divergent' and 'Pandemonium'. So, no need for it anymore!
Talk to you soon!
~Kristy