As seen on my blog: 
 I'm going to make this review short and to the point. I'm not usually a fan of writing lengthy reviews for books that are surrounded by so much hype, and have already accumulated umpteen amounts of reviews. 
 I picked up this book pretty much knowing exactly what I was in for (the joy and curse of reviews!). I knew that I had to separate myself from my intense love for the dystopian mastery that was The Hunger Games, and start the Divergent trilogy with a completely open mind. With that said, and with a mind completely open to all possibilities..I was disappointed not even halfway through. 
 Like many other reviews point out, the back story for this book was lacking and almost non-existent. I felt disconnected from Beatrice ("Tris") very early on in the book, and spent the remainder of the book trying to find something relatable and redeeming. Her character just came across as very bland and whiny-ironic, seeing as how the entire book is spent trying to convince the reader that she has rid herself of these exact qualities. The reader is suppose to believe that she's actually "evolving"..I just didn't buy it. If I were to use an analogy, reading about her character felt like trying to remember a dream that I had, but it's quickly slipping away-she just wasn't memorable to me. 
 As for her relationship with Four-didn't care for it. The numerous descriptions of Tris having a severely under developed body just rubbed me the wrong way-and picturing her with Four's older character just bordered slightly on perverted. 
 The climax of the story seemed a little "toy soldier-ish" to me. Almost as if I were reading a play instead of a "thriller filled with electrifying decisions[...]". The motives were poorly explained-that could be on account of, again, the entire book having almost zero back-story explanation. 
 Ok, so much for this review being short. I didn't completely dislike this book. It was quick-paced and entertaining-just not in a way that made much sense. I am definitely going to-and in the process of-reading the other books in this series. It has to get better from here *fingers crossed* 
 **EDIT** (November 2013): Okay, so I just finished rereading this book, and I am sad to say that my initial opinions have not changed-I still find Divergent to be incredibly annoying, and poorly written. However! On the plus side, I no longer pictured Tris as a scrawny, little, 12-year-old male, as she is so incessantly described as in the book. I now had a very well-formed Shailene Woodley to picture, which DEFINITELY helped during her intimate scenes with Four.