WARNING: THIS POST CONTAINS MANY SPOILERS. IF YOU HAVE NOT YET FINISHED Allegiant by Veronica Roth, DO NOT READ AHEAD. ALL OPINIONS ARE COMPLETELY MY OWN.
Allegiant by Veronica Roth
Released: October 22, 2013
Publisher: HarperCollins
Pages: 545
What if your whole world was a lie?
What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything?
What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected?
Review: When I first got this book (and I was lucky enough to be the first one in my library to get it), my immediate thought was, "YEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSS!!! FINALLY!!!" It only took me a few pages to realize that it was all just going downhill from there.
And it did. It was boring, confusing, and too jerky. While I liked seeing things steadily "wrap up," I think Veronica was trying too hard to jam too much information into one book. There were too many plot twists (such as the Allegiant and the Bureau--shocker!--being a hindrance instead of a help, and Tobias not truly being Divergent) that have been done before in her earlier books.
But I think the ending made up for that.
Most every single review of Allegiant that I've read online has said that they were extremely disappointed and devastated at the end of the book and wanted to throw their book at the wall (some did). I disagree.
Veronica's ending was raw, emotional, powerful, and full of hope. It was not only realistic, but in my eyes necessary that Tris stay true to her character by sacrificing herself to show that she truly loved Caleb and to save everyone else. One death for millions of lives. This was foreshadowed earlier in the book.
While I bawled my eyes during every scene after Tris's death (causing me to miss important details, which I reread the next morning--I cried again), especially the bits with Tobias right afterwards where he's standing still and remembering how the Stiff had jumped first, I've come to terms with the ending. Tris's death not only showed how truly amazing Veronica Roth is as a writer/storyteller, made me realize how much I was going to miss Tris, and cause me to instantly Google "Tris dies" to see if others felt the way I did (not many did), but it made me realize that Tris had to stay true to herself. And she did
When Tris first "sacrifices" herself in Insurgent, she screams, "I'm not done here!" because she realized that she wasn't. She still had a job to do. She still had her friends and Tobias to protect. In Allegiant, moments after she's shot and sees her mother, she asks her, "Am I done yet?" Her mother says, "Yes. My dear child, you’ve done so well." Tris's journey came to a close at the right time, the exact moment it should have. She'd finished her job and only went into her mother's arms after she asked about her friends being okay. She was selfless and brave until the end.
Tobias's unusual hurt, weakness, and raw emotion is what hurt me most. His short chapters, his numbness, his slow healing. But in the Epilogue, two and a half years later, he's facing his fears by scattering Tris's ashes while going down the zip-line and he's mending with the help of Zeke, Christina, and all of his friends. As he said, we're all damaged, but, "We mend. We mend each other."
So to me, Tris's death was not only necessary, but tastefully done. It was noble, she was honored, and in that moment she was truly Divergent. She was honest (Candor) by being true to herself, she was intelligent (Erudite) by making the right choice, no matter how hard it was, she was kind (Amity) by being true to herself and by saving those around her, she was selfless (Abnegation) by sacrificing herself for the greater good, and above all, she was brave (Dauntless). In her life and death, Tris was never once too afraid to carry on. She was always brave.
Be brave, Tris. Be mended.
What are your thoughts on Tris's death? Share in the comments! :D
