Seek the Traitor's Son (The Burning Empire #1) by Veronica Roth

 Seek the Traitor's Son (The Burning Empire #1) by Veronica Roth-416 pages

⭐⭐⭐⭐

A new epic romantic, dystopian fantasy begins in Seek the Traitor's Son, from #1 New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth

Elegy Ahn did not ask for destiny to find her.

She is happy with her life as a soldier, defending her small country from the Talusar, a powerful nation who worships a deadly Fever. A fever that blesses half of its victims with mysterious gifts.

But then she’s summoned to hear a prophecy–her, and the most ruthless of Talusar generals, Rava Vidar. Brought face to face, they learn that one of them will lead their people to victory over the other…but they don’t know which. And at the center of both of their fates: a man. A man that, Elegy is told, she will fall in love with.

In just one day, Elegy’s old life–her job, her purpose, and her future–is over. She and Rava are destined to collide, with the fate of their nations hanging in the balance. And when they do, only one will be left standing.

Elegy intends to make sure it’s her.

Thoughts: I have read most of Roth's previous books and I've met her at author events twice now (both were great experiences). This is probably my favorite of hers since Divergent. It starts a bit slow, but really picks up in the second half. I look forward to the second and final book of the duology, which the title was recently revealed to be Curse the Left Hand. 

When Among Crows by Veronica Roth

 When Among Crows by Veronica Roth-166 pages

⭐⭐⭐1/2

Dymitr seeks out and acquires a special fern flower to break a zmory's curse so that he can exchange the potential cure for a potential audience with the legendary Baba Jaga. He doesn't say why he wants an audience with Baba Jaga. He only says that he wants one. Dymitr appears to be a "normal" human surrounded by monsters in Chicago. He is unafraid, however, and the "creatures/monsters" wonder why he's not afraid. There may be more to him than meets the eye. 

I liked reading this, but I found the world building a bit lacking which is why I didn't give it 4 stars or higher. I like that the book is short, but that is both good and bad because it doesn't allow for enough background and world building. 

Arch-Conspirator by Veronica Roth

 Arch-Conspirator by Veronica Roth-112 pages

This is a futuristic, dystopian retelling of Antigone. The world is desolate (supposedly) except for one lone city. Women are compelled to give childbirth when at the proper age to proliferate the dwindling population. However, having kids naturally is frowned upon and undesirable. Antigone and her siblings Ismene, Eteocles, and Polyneikes were conceived naturally and are, therefore, considered pariahs and to be without souls. People's souls (ichor) are extracted from their corpses and stored in the Archive to be selected from later for children. Antigone's and her siblings' parents are killed in a revolution/uprising and their uncle, Kreon, takes control of the city. He allows them into his home, but only out of self-preservation/common courtesy and not because of any attachment felt with them. Revolution is never far away in this post-apocalyptic city. When a terrible event happens, Antigone breaks the rules out of love. Will she be executed or given another punishment? I thought this book was an okay read, but far too short and not enough depth of character. I rate it 3 out of 5 stars. 

Poster Girl by Veronica Roth

 288 pages

Veronica Roth tells the story of a woman's desperate search for a missing girl after the collapse of the oppressive dystopian regime--and the dark secrets about her family and community she uncovers along the way

WHAT'S RIGHT IS RIGHT.

Sonya Kantor knows this slogan--she lived by it for most of her life. For decades, everyone in the Seattle-Portland megalopolis lived under it, as well as constant surveillance in the form of the Insight, an ocular implant that tracked every word and every action, rewarding or punishing by a rigid moral code set forth by the Delegation.

Then there was a revolution. The Delegation fell. Its most valuable members were locked in the Aperture, a prison on the outskirts of the city. And everyone else, now free from the Insight's monitoring, went on with their lives.

Sonya, former poster girl for the Delegation, has been imprisoned for ten years when an old enemy comes to her with a deal: find a missing girl who was stolen from her parents by the old regime, and earn her freedom. The path Sonya takes to find the child will lead her through an unfamiliar, crooked post-Delegation world where she finds herself digging deeper into the past--and her family's dark secrets--than she ever wanted to.  --from the publisher

I found it a bit disjointed, but the plot is good. I give it three out of five stars.

Poster Girl by Veronica Roth

 Poster Girl by Veronica Roth-288 pages

I've read many of Veronica Roth's works, so I was intrigued when I learned this one was being released. I read the plot synopsis and I was all the more intrigued. I liked this book and would recommend it. Sonya Kantor lives in the Aperture, which is a prison for former known Delegation members. The Delegation was the former governmental regime that was toppled ten years ago and replaced by the current government, the Triumvirate. Everything was regulated under the Delegation. Married couples could have only 1 child, unless they were given an exemption by the Delegation. Every move was watched and judged good or bad based on an eye implant called the Insight. The Insight was turned off for those considered friends of the Triumvirate, but to those considered loyal to the Delegation it was left on and monitored. A law is passed by the Triumvirate releasing all prisoners from the Aperture who were under 16 when the Delegation was toppled. Sonya, however, was 17, so she doesn't quite qualify. Also, she posed for a poster in support of the Delegation at 16 and everyone knows her as "Poster Girl," hence the title. This complicates her case, also. She's given an offer by a childhood "friend" who joined the Triumvirate uprising a few months before the Delegation crumbled. She can look for a girl who was an illegal second child named Grace Ward and if she finds her she can have her freedom from the Aperture. Sonya is determined to find the girl (or at least what became of her) and the investigation leads to many twists and turns. It leads Sonya to question everything she thought she knew about the Delegation and her family. She discovers many shocking revelations. It made me think critically about government and privacy. I would rate this 4 out of 5 stars. 

Chosen Ones (Chosen Ones #1) by Veronica Roth

Chosen Ones (Chosen Ones #1) by Veronica Roth-432 pages

I've previously read the Divergent series, the Carve the Mark series, and a collection of short stories by Roth. I have enjoyed reading these, so I chose to purchase and read her latest novel. This one's target audience is adults instead of teens, like her previous novels. This is the story of 5 "Chosen Ones" who defeated a "Dark One" 10 years ago and are now coming together for a remembrance/memorial of the Dark One's defeat. Sloane, Matt, Esther, Ines, and Albie are their names. One of the group dies of an overdose soon after the memorial and nearly immediately following this death Matt, Sloane, and Esther are taken to a different, once parallel, universe (Cordus, specifically). They soon find out that they have been brought to Cordus to defeat a "Dark One." However, everything in this universe may not be as it seems. I found this an intriguing read, especially near the end.

The End and Other Beginnings by Veronica Roth

The End and Other Beginnings by Veronica Roth-256 pages

This is a collection of short stories by Veronica Roth, author of the Divergent Series and the Carve the Mark Duology. I especially enjoyed reading the story "The Armored Ones" which is set in the Carve the Mark world. It delves into the story of Akos Kereseth defeating an Armored One and gaining Shotet armor. I also enjoyed the story called "The Spinners." Overall, this is pretty good, but I don't like it as much as the Divergent Series or even Carve the Mark.

Allegiant by Veronica Roth

Allegiant by Veronica Roth - 526 pages
We start off the last book of the series with Tris arrested for treason after the take down of Erudite and the traitor dauntless.  It is clear pretty fast that with Evelyn in charge things have not really improved. Things might be different, but they are not necessarily better. Tris, along with her friends that are still alive, find out about a community outside of the fence and they escape to go see what it is and to find out answers. They find out what being divergent means and it is pretty shocking. Tris and Four have a hard time in their relationship through a good portion of this book. I was glad to see them work it out. I knew I didn't like it when Tris and Four separated to fight battles in different places. His was wrapped up a little too easy and I don't even want to get into how wrong Tris’s battle went. I really liked the first two books, but this one I had a hard time with. I had a difficult time with the end of the book. I enjoyed it up until the final battle. I can only recommend this book if you are ok with and ready for a surprisingly sad ending.

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Insurgent by Veronica Roth - 525 pages
We start the second book off with Tris and Four on the run from Jeanine. They are running with several friends and Marcus, Four’s abusive dad. They try to get sanctuary from Candor first. Only, after both of them had to undergo truth serum to reveal several things they didn't want to reveal to everyone, did Tris and Four find out they cannot trust Candor enough to stay. They then ran to the peace-loving Amity. It was sad to see how Four went from a seemingly confident adult to an abused and scared child when his father was around. It was nice to see Tris open up to her brother some while they had downtime at the Amity compound. They are both grieving a great loss. The scene when Tris gets the peace serum injected was pretty funny. It put a small amount of humor into a depressing area of the book. After they are chased out of the Amity compound by Jeanine and the traitor Dauntless they run into some factionless.  The Group with Tris is taken to a building where they find out the factionless are not so unorganized. Tris is in for a big surprise at who the leader of the factionless is. She has a hard time working with her and planning the next step of the attack since she doesn't like the leader and is still messed up from the last attack and when she was taken, hostage. She delivered herself to Jeanine after some people were hurt, with the promise of more being hurt in the future if she didn't. She went through some horrible thing before she escaped. This part was hard to read.  I was glad when they finally got to attack Jeanine and the traitors. This book definitely had some dark moments but it was a good book. One I can recommend.

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Divergent by Veronica Roth - 487 pages
In this society, everyone is split up in 5 different factions. Each faction is dedicated to a particular virtue- Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day every year, all sixteen-year-olds must choose a faction and are considered an adult from that moment on. Tris is the character we follow from the day of her choosing ceremony. We watch her struggle with leaving her family or staying in the same faction with all of her friends and family. Usually, when you leave your childhood faction your old friends and family no longer speak to you, they treat it as a betrayal. They use advanced technology to find out what faction you are best suited for. Everyone is only supposed to be suited for one. Tris finds out that she is suited for more than one and then is told how dangerous this is. She leaves her faction of Abnegation for the Dauntless faction. We find out this is a very brutal and corrupt faction. She not only has to watch her back from the other new initiates when she finds out only ten new people get to stay in the faction and everyone else is made factionless, which is basically homeless. We watch her toughen up and make friends with some of the new initiates. She also starts having feelings for one of her instructors named Four. We watch her struggle when one of her friends gets jealous and tries to kill her and when her new faction tries to harm her old one. I really enjoyed this book.  It definitely had some very sad parts that are hard to get through, but no more than you would expect from a dystopian book. It looks like the factions can never be the same at the end of this first book.

The Fates Divide (Carve the Mark #2) by Veronica Roth

The Fates Divide (Carve the Mark #2) by Veronica Roth-443 pages

I met Veronica and had this book signed soon after it was released back in April at an author event in St. Charles. I enjoyed Carve the Mark, the first book in the duology, so I wanted to read this one to see how it turns out. I liked reading The Fates Divide a little more than Carve the Mark. I have read the Divergent series by Roth, also, and I liked it a little better than the Carve the Mark series. I did like the ending of The Fates Divide better than the ending of Allegiant, though. Overall, I enjoyed reading The Fates Divide and would recommend it to readers of Sci-Fi/Fantasy and for readers of teen fiction.

Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth

Carve the Mark by Veronica Roth-468 pages

I started reading this in June for the Teen books challenge, but didn't finish until now. I have read Roth's entire Divergent series and met her in person at an author event in St. Charles in April. I wanted to read Carve the Mark because of this and next I am going to read The Fates Divide, which is the next and final book in this duology. I enjoyed reading this book. It is not my favorite book, but I do enjoy a good Sci-Fi story and a good teen story and this hit on both. I am looking forward to reading The Fates Divide and seeing how Cyra and Akos's story ends.

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Divergent by Veronica Roth -- 487 pages

In Beatrice Prior's dystopian Chicago world, society is divided into five factions, each dedicated to the cultivation of a particular virtue—Candor (the honest), Abnegation (the selfless), Dauntless (the brave), Amity (the peaceful), and Erudite (the intelligent). On an appointed day of every year, all sixteen-year-olds must select the faction to which they will devote the rest of their lives. For Beatrice, the decision is between staying with her family and being who she really is—she can't have both. So she makes a choice that surprises everyone, including herself.

Allegiant by Veronica Roth

Allegiant by Veronica Roth  526 pages

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.

Insurgent by Veronica Roth

Insurgent by Veronica Roth  525 pages

One choice can transform you - or it can destroy you. But every choice has consequences, and as unrest surges in the factions all around her, Tris Prior must continue trying to save those she loves - and herself - while grappling with haunting questions of grief and forgiveness, identity and loyalty, politics and love.

Tris's initiation day should have been marked by celebration and victory with her chosen faction; instead, the day ended with unspeakable horrors. War now looms as conflict between the factions and their ideologies grows. And in times of war, sides must be chosen, secrets will emerge, and choices will become even more irrevocable - and even more powerful. Transformed by her own decisions but also by haunting grief and guilt, radical new discoveries, and shifting relationships, Tris must fully embrace her Divergence, even if she does not know what she may lose by doing so.