Fandom Friday-Divergent Trilogy

The Fandom Friday is a weekly feature, page with each blog post written by a new contributor.

This is the weekly post where either myself, approved or a guest blogger, talks about a new fandom. See, I’ve had the experience in my life where I’ve been made fun or put down about my particular fandoms. And that has made me feel pretty crappy. But I’ve also put down other fandoms as well.

So I’ve decided to change that. I’m opening my world up to new fandoms, and the best way to do that is to bring people in to write about various fandoms. I’m very excited about this segment.

If you guys are interested in becoming a guest blogger for the Fandom Friday, feel free to email me at whatanerdgirlsays at gmail.com or contact me HERE

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Today’s guest blogger is…not a guest blogger because it is ME.

This week I’ll be talking about a book series that you all may have heard of:

The Divergent Trilogy by Veronica Roth

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The Divergent trilogy has been in the “news” a lot lately. In about two months, the third and final installment of the series, Allegiant, will hit book stores. Not much has been said about the book and we’re all waiting in barely concealed anticipation for this book. It’s also in the news a lot as the movie, which doesn’t even release until March, is already garnering big hype, and being compared to the YA blockbuster, The Hunger Games.

A big reason why I decided to write about Divergent is because I wanted to share two things. For those who haven’t heard of it, I can enlighten you on this seriously amazing book series. For those of you who have heard of it, and have heard The Hunger Games comparisons, I want to show you that NOT all YA books are the same, even if they are in the same genre, like dystopian.

About the Trilogy

So let me tell you a little bit about the series. It is a young adult dystopian series that is a trilogy. The first book is Divergent, followed by Insurgent, and ending with the soon to be released Allegiant. The books are written by the beautiful and talented, Veronica Roth, who is the same age as me, and for that alone, I admire her. The book series follows the main character of Beatrice ‘Tris’ Prior. Tris lives in our world, but in the future, when wars have torn apart the country. As a solution, a new society is created and everyone is split into five factions that represent the virtues they feel is necessary to have a functioning society. The five factions are Erudite (valuing intelligence), Abnegation (valuing selflessness), Dauntless (valuing courage and bravery), Candor (valuing honesty) and Amity (valuing peace).

Beatrice lives with her family in Abnegation, but she is sixteen years old, and it is time to take the tests that show what faction she is most fitted for. However, when she takes her aptitude test, it is revealed that she has shown connections to three different factions (Abnegation, Erudite and Dauntless), that she is a forbidden word: Divergent. Her test taker fixes her results, and sends her home, telling her to never tell anyone what was really said. When it comes time to make a choice, Beatrice sheds her gray clothing and her name, and joins the Dauntless, and she is Tris Prior.

Tris discovers that being Dauntless isn’t easy, and requires more bravery and courage than she anticipated. And being Divergent, and hiding it, causes more problems than she knew as well. The books follow Tris as she attempts to be accepted into the Dauntless family and she unfolds the mysteries that surrounded her society, and the secrets of being Divergent, and why the society is so afraid of them. As she delves deeper into the underbelly of the society, she learns more and more of what is being portrayed and what is really going on.

The first book in the series, Divergent, directed by Nick Burger and produced by Summit Entertainment, has already been filmed and is slated to hit theaters on March 20, 2014. The film stars Shailene Woodley as Tris, Theo James as Four, and includes many well known actors and actresses such as  Miles Tellers, Ashley Judd, Kate Winslet, Zoe Kravitz, Mekhi Phifer and more.

Where I Found It

Honestly, it was all sort of word of mouth for me. I had enjoyed The Hunger Games trilogy immensely and several people kept telling me to read Divergent, that I would enjoy it a lot. I finally caved in and bought it on my Kindle, and stayed up all night reading it. I remember feeling pretty surprised at the cliffhanger and wanting to immediately read the sequel.

As luck would have it, the sequel, Insurgent, had literally been released that day. I immediately purchased it on my Kindle and started reading it at about 3 am. I had to convince myself that staying up all night was a terrible idea, but I read it the next day and finished it, and I was easily hooked.

Why You Should Be Reading It

I know what you’re thinking: another dystopian novel series? Isn’t that getting a bit old? And I can see where you are coming from. There are a ton of various dystopian novels on the shelves these days and its hard to pick ones that are good, because there are just so many to choose from. This is one that you definitely have to pick up, especially if you are a fan of The Hunger Games.

I think that Veronica Roth has this ability to appeal to both a male and female audience, even though the main character is female. She really presents a great story, with fully fleshed out characters and characters that are so important and easy to love, besides just Tris and Four. It is NOT a love story, though a love story is woven in there. This is the story of two people, who team up with so many others, to find out the truth of a country. The politics, and the psychology of this system that has been created as a solution to the problems of the past are SO interesting and they keep you racing through the pages as you watch Tris and Four try to figure it out.

I also think that Tris is an amazing character, a strong female character that remains strong. I find often times that a female character can start off really strong but then sort of loses that strength over time to whininess. I admire that Tris loses some of her strength at times, because she has gone through so much but she never loses her resolve and she never resorts to whining or any of that. She stays strong, even when she’s at her weakest, and I think that’s very important and will play an important part in the last and final book. I also think the character of Tobias “Four” Eaton is also important and fantastic as well. He is a strong character, whether you’re a boy or a girl reading this novel. He grew up in an incredibly abusive situation, both physically and emotionally, with his father, and escapes to the faction of Dauntless to get away from him. Learning this about Four, and seeing the strength that he has had to earn over time, and seeing his relationship with his father, is incredible. T

hese two characters alone are enough to read this book, and neither of them are my favorite character of the series! The series is filled with so many different, unique, believable characters that you can connect and relate to. Even though this is set in a world that is both recognizable and yet so utterly different, it is not hard to connect with these people and some of the things that are happening with them.

Plus there is all the action. From the moment Tris decides to switch from Abnegation to Dauntless, you are on an action packed roller coaster, as she fights her way through initiation and learns to fight, handle a gun, and learns what it really means to be courageous and fearless.

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I hope you all enjoyed learning about the Divergent trilogy today. I know that there are many of you who have already read it, but I hope that those of you who haven’t will be encouraged to do so. There is so much awesome in this book, and there is also SO much to discuss as well!

Come back soon for a new Fandom Friday, and check out previous ones here!

Have you read Divergent? What did you think of it? How did you get into the books, and what would you say to someone that you were trying to convince to read it? As always, share in the comments!

Meet Author Frank Beddor and Discuss His Book, The Looking Glass Wars!

Hello all!

I’ve a VERY exciting event to share with those of you who may be in the Los Angeles/Southern California area.

As some of you may know, more about I am part of the 21+ Harry Potter group, abortion the Los Angeles Dumbledore’s Army. I’ve been a member for nearly two years now and I absolutely love it. Amongst our many events like bowling nights, roller skating nights, Wizard Chef events, Harry Potter Mystery Nights, and so much more, we have a monthly book club, where we take turns choosing a book and reading it, of course, and discussing it.

For the month of September, we have chosen the book, The Looking Glass Wars, the first of a trilogy by Frank Beddor, a YA reimagining of the well known classic tale, Alice in Wonderland.

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Here is the official synopsis taken from GoodReads:

When Alyss Heart, heir to the Wonderland throne, must flee through the Pool of Tears to escape the murderous aunt Redd, she finds herself lost and alone in Victorian London. Befriended by an aspiring author named Lewis Carrol, Alyss tells the violent, heartbreaking story of her young life. Alyss trusts this author to tell the truth so that someone, somewhere will find her and bring her home. But he gets the story all wrong. He even spells her name incorrectly!
Fortunately, Royal Bodyguard Hatter Madigan knows all too well the awful truth of Alyss’ story and he is searching every corner of our world to find the lost princess and return her to Wonderland so she may eventually battle Redd for her rightful place as the Queen of Hearts.
The Looking Glass Wars unabashedly challenges our Wonderland assumptions surrounding mad tea parties, grinning Cheshire cats, and a curious little blond girl to reveal an epic battle in the endless war for Imagination.

This book is absolutely wonderful, and I sped through the sequel as well. I haven’t managed to grab hold of the third and final book yet, but maybe I will be able to soon!

Now, on September 22nd, the LADA will be meeting for Book Club and we are extending our invite to you as well! This is open to anyone who has read, or will read, this book by that date and would like to come and hang out in a cool bookstore and discuss this book.

Even better, the author himself, Frank Beddor, will be in attendance that evening to discuss his book with the book club!

Which is SO insanely cool, I can barely handle it. I am SO glad I will be able to make this particular book club event!

So I am hoping that my Los Angeles followers can hopefully make it to this event! This is a super cool thing to happen. I always have such a blast going to book club, and discussing the books, but to have the author in attendance as well is just…its so AWESOME.

So now I bet you’re all wriggling in excitement, and want the details now, right?

Well here they are:

What:

Book Club Discussion on The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor, with special guest appearance by Frank himself

Where: 

Alias Books
1650 Sawtelle Blvd
Los Angeles, CA

When: 

September 22nd, at 4 pm

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I hope to see you all there, and it would be wonderful (if you are 21 and over, of course), if you all popped by the official Los Angeles Dumbledore’s Army page and joined up! We are the second largest Harry Potter fan group in the world, and we have such a blast together. We were also featured on CBS as one of the top Book Clubs in Los Angeles, which you can check out here!

Next month, in October, we will be meeting for lunch and discussing The House of Hades, which I know a lot of you are big fans of Rick Riordan so definitely check out group!

If you have ANY questions at all, feel free to leave comments below, contact me through email or through Twitter, or through Facebook, and I’ll be happy to answer them!

Happy Reading everyone and I hope to see you there!

Book of the Week – Fangirl

I was browsing along GoodReads one day when I spotted a giveaway for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of a book called Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I was immediately intrigued, and read the synopsis for it, and immediately entered. I was not picked as a winner, but I still held that book in my mind as one that I needed to read once it came out.

Once, I had heard of Eleanor and Park, and how good it was, I had to read that, and I loved it, and enjoyed, which only made me want to read this book even more.

I read this book the day I bought it, and it…well, you’ll have to read further to really know what I thought of it.

Continue reading

Book of the Week – Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

I was browsing along GoodReads one day when I spotted a giveaway for an Advanced Reader’s Copy of a book called Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. I was immediately intrigued, and read the synopsis for it, page and immediately entered. I was not picked as a winner, but I still held that book in my mind as one that I needed to read once it came out.

Once, I had heard of Eleanor and Park, and how good it was, I had to read that, and I loved it, and enjoyed, which only made me want to read this book even more.

I read this book the day I bought it, and it…well, you’ll have to read further to really know what I thought of it.

Continue reading

Starcrossed Book Review

Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

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You Can Find the Book At:

GoodReads

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Author Website

GoodReads Summary:

How do you defy destiny?

Helen Hamilton has spent her entire sixteen years trying to hide how different she is—no easy task on an island as small and sheltered as Nantucket. And it’s getting harder. Nightmares of a desperate desert journey have Helen waking parched, information pills only to find her sheets damaged by dirt and dust. At school she’s haunted by hallucinations of three women weeping tears of blood . . . and when Helen first crosses paths with Lucas Delos, visit she has no way of knowing they’re destined to play the leading roles in a tragedy the Fates insist on repeating throughout history.

As Helen unlocks the secrets of her ancestry, she realizes that some myths are more than just legend. But even demigod powers might not be enough to defy the forces that are both drawing her and Lucas together—and trying to tear them apart.

My Review:

I have very mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, I really really enjoyed it and sped through it pretty quickly. On the other hand, I was like, meh, its okay. But I’m not sure if that sort of opinion is coming from the fact that I read this absolutely fantastic book yesterday so its really hard to compare.

I really did like Starcrossed though. I liked the twist on the Greek mythology and the idea of a demigod. The only history I’d had with such things were the actual Greek myths (I’ve been obsessed for as long as I can remember) and then, of course, Percy Jackson. What I thought was really interesting about Starcrossed is that it presented a really different view of the demigod. In Percy Jackson, we get gods and goddesses that just seem to be absent, like their children were the product of one-night stands and that was that. In Starcrossed, they are absent as well but its more of a darker reason, and there is a lot in hanging in their return. The kids in PJ wish their parents would pay attention to them, and the demigods of Starcrossed struggle to keep the treaty that keeps the gods’ involvement OUT Of their life. I thought that was really interesting. Its not a happy thing to be, and to interact with those in different god families is not good.

What I really liked about the main character is that she knew something was wrong with her, and she’s known forever, but she just hasn’t been able to figure out. And when you are with her as she is going through this crazy dreams, and weird feelings, you start thinking that maybe she really is crazy. That’s the sort of good story. You don’t just automatically assume that she has special powers or that she is part of a special race, etc. You honestly, for a time, start to believe that there is something wrong with her. But once she figures out what is going on, and Lucas and his family bring her in, and show her who she is, I really started to love the story. The Greek mythology, combined with the contemporary world was just beautiful, and I loved the various powers that she was capable of. I love that they have different powers, and they discover new ones and can hone them. I liked that once she was able to accept who she was, and where she came from (for the most part), she really starts to step into her own, and she is less afraid than she was before. I feel that she becomes braver, even though the danger increases.

I do have a small complaint that the relationship between Lucas and Helen. I don’t like the idea, all the time, of a tragic romance. When Helen meets Lucas, she wants to kill him, immediately, without even really knowing him, but we learn why later, and eventually, without ruining anything, she…gets past that. And of course, she is immediately attracted to him. Then, in an even more obvious turn of events, he turns her away, but still kind of flirts with her and shows her interest, which only makes the attraction just that much worse. Lucas says that they can never be together, even though he wants to be, and refuses to tell her why. So that was a small determent from the story, for me, at least.

I will say this though, the way the book ends with their relationship is not at all what I expected and it made me immediately addicted and immediately want to go and read Dreamless, the sequel. It was unexpected because its not something that you see in a lot of books. I know that I’m being incredibly vague but I don’t want to ruin that book for you. Let’s just its a plot device that we don’t see often in recent, contemporary books, though we do see it similarly in one of my favorite series, and so I thought it was pretty juicy to add into this story.

All in all, it was an enjoyable book, one that I sped through fairly quickly, and one that I definitely will read again, and it encouraged me enough to make me want to read the second one, which I’ll hopefully be buying soon.

Rating:

4 out of 5 stars