Allegiant by Veronica Roth Review

Title: Allegiant
Author: Veronica Roth (Twitter)
Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
Publish Date: October 22, 2013
Genre: YA, Dystopian
Pages: 526
Source: Personal Copy

The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories.

But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love.

In my time as a book blogger, I've reviewed very few series in their entirety. This is for several reasons. First and foremost, it's daunting to have to schedule reviews for one series on a blog. Second and, perhaps, most importantly though, series tend to have some very high highs for me, and some very low points, as well. However, I've been invested in the Divergent trilogy from the start, and I'll admit that I fell prey to the hype as much as the next person. As such, in many ways, Allegiant proved to be what I consider to be a worthy end to a fantastic series.

Allegiant has a bit of dichotomy to its reviews. It seems as though readers either love it or hate it, and there really is no middle ground. Veronica Roth took a true risk with this novel, knowing full well that she had us waiting with baited breath and turning the tables on us. This book offers us what we've been waiting for, but at the same time, it rips away that facade of happiness we've had all the while, too. Book three is one of emotional turmoil from start to finish, and it's a roller coaster. Throughout books one and two, I felt as though I always had Four and Tris's solid companionship to fall back on, but everything about this novel threw me for a loop.

When I get to the heart of the matter though, Allegiant is about a war. Yes, we're taking a journey with some incredible characters, and we've witnessed Tris's growth into a force to be reckoned with. Yes, we've come to know and love Four's strength, his resilience, his defiance and his heart. Yes, we've always known that war comes with casualties, but I don't think any of us were truly prepared for how very high the stakes were in this novel. At the end of the day, war comes at a cost, and people will always pay the price. Sometimes, it is the ultimate price, and while we think we're prepared to take these things in stride, there is a feeling of emptiness when it actually comes to pass.

My feelings for Allegiant run very deep. I do believe that Ms. Roth gave us a fitting end - albeit perhaps not the one I might have wanted. She made it abundantly clear that there is no real glory, or romance, or beauty in war. It will only bring about death, and grief, and destruction. I enjoyed that Allegiant diverted me from what I expected. I learned more about this world outside of the factions than I ever thought I would and, though it didn't necessarily make me happy, it worked. I did, however, have issue at times with the dual narration, was well as a few very abrupt character changes that I struggled to reconcile with. I think that  so much time was spent leading up to the grand finale that we lost some of the meat that would have made important scenes and events clearer in the end.

Overall, I understand why some readers really disliked the ending, but I have to say that I can appreciate what we received with Allegiant. It's not what I wanted, but at the same time, I think it's everything that I needed for closure in this series. I highly recommend lots of tissues when reading this book, and I give it a 4 out of 5. This book will be great for all lovers of YA and dystopian novels.