Insurgent (Veronica Roth)

Title: Insurgent

Series: The Divergent Trilogy

Author: Veronica Roth

Released: 2012

Rating: 5/5

Basic Plot: Chicago is now at the brink of war. Tris must now do what is right while figuring out who is friend and who is foe.
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Bigger and Better
I will just say 'wow'. Divergent (first book in the trilogy) was awesome but was the first part and, therefore, the setup. Everything expands from the first book here. Tobias/Four's relationship with Tris is explored with many ups and downs (great thing about this, no love triangle in sight!). The reasoning behind Jeanine Matthews' (the leader of the Erudite) plans to mind control the people of Chicago is explained (which made me more understanding of why she did what she did, though still not thinking of her as a good character). Plus there are good characters that turn out to be traitors and bad characters that end up doing good things.

Many Plot Twists
There are many points in this novel where there are plot twists. I won't mention any names here for the sake of keeping this spoiler free as possible. I will say that one made me feel like I was in extreme pain. The reason behind this was because I didn't think the character had it in him/her to do it. Truthfully, I don't think I'll ever get over what that character did and might do in the sequel (which hasn't been officially named yet, I believe). Another plot twist (where it is revealed a character isn't straight) didn't make any impact on me. It didn't really do much for the story.

The Growth of Tris
Tris is recovering from the events of Divergent as more painful events happen in this novel. How she reacts to the grief is sometimes annoying to me. The main thing is when she can't fire a gun (for the majority of the novel). I know Veronica Roth was trying to be realistic but it was still annoying to see a strong female character not being able to fire a gun. That being said, I am proud of her for pursuing truth so she doesn't mess up.

Final Thoughts
Holy flying penguins! This book was just awesome. I read this over 500 page book in two days (the large print, simple words, and shape of the book did help) and I would've read it quicker if I didn't have anything important to do. The twist at this ending will leave you breathless and craving for the final part of the trilogy. I won't mention the twist here (might make a post about it in another post, though) due to it being probably the biggest thing in the trilogy yet far. How big? It will change everything you think you know about the Divergent Universe. Yeah, that big. And I can't wait for it to be fully explained in the final part of this series.

Update (January 4, 2013)

I inform you of some future changes as well as some announcements.

Divergent (Veronica Roth)

Title: Divergent

Series: The Divergent Trilogy

Author: Veronica Roth

Released: 2011

Rating: 5/5

Basic Plot: Beatrice "Tris" Prior leaves her family (and faction) to join another. While going through Initiation she must also deal with her being a Divergent and keeping it a secret.
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A Real Page Turner
I could hardly put this book down. If all I could do all day was read I would've. I admit this review is out later than it should be since once I finished this book I had to start reading Insurgent (the sequel) right away.

Where One Belongs
A theme that this novel covers is where one belongs. Tris is a Divergent (aka someone who can fit into more than one faction) and so she can't tell anyone what she really is. This would be hard enough on its own but she's also a sixteen year old girl who is still growing up. She is trying to make friends as well as defend against enemies (who aren't above killing her). A lot is talked about the different Factions and how they interact with each other. In the Divergent Universe you belong to one of five factions (that dictate how you live your life) or live Factionless (who are basically the Untouchables). This makes fitting in very important.

Treats Young Adults Like Adults
This book is for young adults but it's not gentle at all. There is romance but there are also scenes that are hard to get through. At the end of the book it feels like Veronica Roth has personally beat you up to the brink of death. With that said, I would only recommend the strong willed to read this. It's a great read but you will be disturbed through many parts of this book.

Final Thoughts
I cannot say enough how great this book is. I decided I wanted to read this after I saw its good reception. I admit that I am biased for this book due to liking the dystopian future genre. I got this book as a Christmas gift. There is going to be a movie version released in 2014.

Kludwika's Arts & Craps

I have added another link to my "Sites to Visit" links. That is to the etsy shop Kludwika's Arts & Craps . The shop is run by a good friend of mine. revrezner and my tree has a bunch of the ornaments from the shop on our tree.

The items are poop related so if you're childish like me you'll enjoy them.

Have a Merry Christmas!

Taken Review (Part 2)

I talk about Liam Neeson in the movie Taken.

jtrc: Elementary (Part 1)

I begin this two parter by talking about adaptations.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

Title: An Unexpected Journey

Series: The Hobbit

Director: Peter Jackson

Starring: Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, and Richard Armitage

Rated: PG-13

Released: 2012

Personal Rating: 3.5/5

Oscars: N/A

Plot:  A younger and more reluctant Hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, sets out on a "unexpected journey" to the Lonely Mountain with a spirited group of Dwarves to reclaim a their stolen mountain home from a dragon named Smaug.
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Beginning Scene Went On Too Long
I can understand that Peter Jackson wanted to tie The Hobbit Trilogy (starting with An Unexpected Journey) into his Lord of the Rings Trilogy. So when Bilbo started giving some backstory needed for this Trilogy, I didn't mind. It was nice seeing Bilbo, I won't deny that. But then it just on for way too long. I don't care about tying this up to the beginning of Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring to the point where Frodo mentions that he's going to surprise Gandalf. I went to see The Hobbit and not Lord of the Rings. This is a scene that needed to be shortened since it really adds nothing to the film as a whole (except the backstory given by Bilbo).

Gollum is Creepier
I can't believe that Gollum got creepier. I really don't know how that's possible since he is always creepy. The only reason I can think of that Gollum is creepier is due to the fact that he is in his element. Besides that, I really have no idea why Gollum creeped me out this time more than in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy.

The Misty Mountain Song
This was my favorite piece of music in the movie. I admit I'm biased towards music with lyrics. But it is really the vocals that makes this song so good. The atmosphere the song creates is wonderful to behold. The first time you hear it (the second time being during the credits) is when the dwarves are in Bilbo's house. What makes it seem to take on an even sadder tone during this scene is what Bilbo is going through. So hearing the song is both a reminder of what the dwarves have lost and the guilt Bilbo is experiencing.

Final Thoughts
I  went into this expecting a bad film. I have been angry for awhile that The Hobbit is being split up into three films (due to me seeing this as a blatant money grab thing). So with that low expectation, the movie was better than I was expecting. There wasn't a moment that I was bored during the entire movie. For those wondering, I haven't seen it in 48fps and saw it in the usual 24fps.