Divergence is a young adult novel set in a dystopian world where the population is grouped under what might be described as 'their natures'. There is Abnegation, Dauntless,
Erudite, Amity, Candor and Erudite.

The heroine, Tris(Beatrice) shocks her Abnegation family when, at a 'choosing ceremony' when adolescents make the choice of which group they will enter, and thus 'manage' their lives, she chooses Dauntless, a group where the conquest of one's fear and acceptance of risk is a way of progressing. Although to where one progresses and to what is not made very clear.

The plot revolves around the fact that there are 'DIVERGENTS' who, although seeming to belong, do not.

Tris finds that she is one of these as is her mentor.

Together they fight to prevent the 'Erudites' from taking over completely, and by opposing, it seems that they will have caused the artificial division of society to fail.

Granted the theme of the book moves on at a rapid pace, the speed of the story unfolding made it, for me, less than it could have been, which is perhaps a pity.

Again, I found that my suspension of disbelief was strained past breaking point with some of the incidents. Particularly when Tris got shot in the shoulder and still, after a brief pause, managed to function at a very high level. It reminded me of the old black and white Westerns I saw as a child, when the hero would have been 'just winged', having taken a half inch slug of lead in his shoulder, and still fight off the Baddies, kiss the heroine and get on his horse and rise into the sunset.

I think teenagers are much more sophisticated these days and that this and other similar incidents severely flaw the book.

So for me, a second rate effort, and a tribute to the power of advertising.

The author would have to be 23 (hot with resentment at 16 years of schooling) to make the Erudites the villains. Were she older, she would realize that it is the Abnegations that are, and always have been. Haven't read the book, but your reviews above are extremely telling.

What interested me a great deal was the level of what I would call 'interpersonal' violence. It is not a question of whether I like it or not, that is neither here nor there, nor do I want to make a 'moral' question, not on this thread anyway, but is this level of violence needed to sell a book?

I am trying to write a YA novel, where the chief protagonist is a young girl, and there scenes in it where there is, if you like, 'graphic' and I hope fairly shocking descriptions, but they are not 'personal' in the sense that one young woman is trying to knock the shit out of another and, eventually, enjoying the process.

Mmm, maybe I am a bit fashioned here, but I am still concerned about it. My 15 yr old grandaughter has read and said she DIDNT like it, but that is a marketing sample of one and a bad premise.

What do you think?

I think you have a point and it a disturbing trend. I was also shocked at the level of violence, especially the boy who got stabbed in the eye and Tris being dangled over the railing and (come to think of it) the fight scene where Tris gets the you know what kicked out of her by a boy. Maybe I'm old fashioned too, but it doesn't sit well with me either.

The same is true of Hunger Games (though we are not discussing yet) but I found it shocking that the book was aimed at children as young as ten!

Karen, make sure you get these two's subs.

Sammy, I read it by mistake. Yes, I know....

Yes, I tend to agree it's a made up genre, but then aren't they all?

Perhaps this age group like to read about characters of their own age and adult fiction rarely is.

What age group is YA meant to encompass?

DC