Oh. My. Gosh.
You guys.
I just finished Veronica Roth’s Allegiant.
I don’t want to spoil any of it for you.
I won’t, I promise.
But you should know that her Divergent trilogy is 100% worth reading. The characters are dynamic and complex and the story is compelling and relevant in all kinds of ways I never suspected
And the ending!!
I can’t talk about it. It hurts too much—in a good way. I admire Veronica’s bravery. (You think she minds if I call her Veronica?) She wrote strong, beautiful characters into impossible situations and was true to those characters every step of the way.
Full of action and unfamiliar cultural situations, there is absolutely never a dull moment. Throw in some friends who may actually be enemies and a few enigmatic leaders and you’ve got quite a story. The characters are constantly growing and evolving, pulling you along on their journey whether or not you’re ready for it.
Allegiant addresses what it means to live with purpose and take risks. It explores rather deeply what it means to be hurt and to hurt others. Loyalty, prejudice, loneliness, trust, sacrifice, forgiveness, the struggle between compassion and justice, bravery and self-preservation—it’s all in there.
It’s not strictly a love story (that would be boring), but there is love in it and it’s the real kind. The kind that sharpens our edges and wears away at the rough parts until we’re better than we ever dreamed we could be. The following quote made me so happy, because real love isn’t often talked about in movies or books—it’s either uncommonly tragic or all rainbows and butterflies—neither of which is remotely realistic.
I used to think that when people fell in love, they just landed where they landed, and they had no choice in the matter afterward. And maybe that’s true of beginnings, but it’s not true of this, now.
I fell in love with him. But I don’t just stay with him by default as if there’s no one else available to me. I stay with him because I choose to, every day that I wake up, every day that we fight or lie to each other or disappoint each other. I choose him over and over again, and he chooses me.
~Allegiant, Veronica Roth
And that, ladies and gents, is real love. The love that lasts is the kind that chooses and then feels, rather than feeling and then choosing.
And now I’m off track.
Let me sum up: Allegiant (and Divergent and Insurgent) is a beautifully written book that will keep your attention to the very last word. The whole series is action packed, and if you see me tattooed, packing a knife, and jumping from moving trains you’ll know why. 😉
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I’m working on a new schedule for blog posts and Mondays are going to be book days!
I’ll always keep it short and sweet and give you the facts.
There is one small problem in that I cannot for the life of me
think of something clever to call these Monday posts.
Book Hangover Monday just doesn’t have a ring to it.
I’m at a total loss.
Any ideas? Help!
kaelaprall.com 
Bookwormy Mondays? LOL I’m useless when it comes to naming blog series.:)
Oh gosh, me too. Evidently we’re not a very good pair here. Ha! I’m thinking I may need to move it to a different day of the week.
Perhaps you could call it Mondays Mention. I love to read so much and I may well try Veronica’s books. Perhaps a sort of book club could evolve here. After all, are we not all budding authors? Your quotation on love was very good, but has anybody ever really defined it?
Ooh, a book club would be lots of fun! We could decide on a book to read and all post on it the same day, then discuss it in the comments on everyone’s posts. It would be easy for us to do one a month. I’m always up for reading with others! I like being able to discuss the book after.
I agree that everyone would define love a bit differently because we all view the world differently. I think the most important, universal thing about love is that it isn’t moody. “Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds, or bends with the bender to remove…” (Shakespeare’s Sonnet 116)
That would make for an interesting project—compiling a collection of different people’s takes on love.
I hope you have a great day, Keith!
It totally want to read these books. I need to start at the beginning though.
Yes, start at the beginning. The books go quickly because there’s so much action. When you’re done, let me know what you think!
That will only take me until the end of 2014. I still have two books in front of them. But it makes me want to hop trains now.
My sister has been reading these books and she’s been enjoying them too! (or as far as I can tell)
Also, Bookish Mondays? Not sure how literal you want to get with the whole book theme but I think this is a great idea!
I thought Bookworm Mondays, which is close. How do people come up with clever names? I was hoping it would come to me in a caffeine induced stupor, but no luck yet.
Thanks for the encouragement, Lillian! Hopefully this will be fun for all of us. 🙂
I just finished a book last night and I’m looking for a new one so perhaps I will start this series.
I hope you like them, Nora!
The Monday Assessment? or A Week’s Introduction, A Novel’s Conclusion? …. Not so Melencholy Monday?
Thanks for the ideas, Chels!
I didn’t know the books yet, but after reading your post, I’m putting that om my to read list. I love that definition of love, so beautiful! If you’re doing these book Mondays, I’m definitely hopping over each week, cause I’m always on the lookout for new books!
I’m glad you enjoyed it, mama x! I am planning on doing a book review every Monday or Tuesday–haven’t decided which yet. I’m so excited that you’ll be joining in!