Today in Jen's Library

I. Am. Exhausted. This book is exhausting. Non-stop action. People dying. Conflicted relationships. You want a roller coaster ride? Well, here you go.

Not that these things would made you dislike a book. I really did like this sequel. I had a few minor problems with it, but nothing that would make me decide not to read the final book in the series. I'm very interested to see what happens.

Sometimes a story goes a direction you wouldn't prefer. Not that you hate the direction it went, but you just would have preferred it went somewhere else. And not that you might have a better suggestion as to where it should have gone, but you would have preferred somewhere else. That's what Insurgent was for me. Somewhat maddening, somewhat uncomfortable. I come away feeling a bit disturbed, a bit unsettled. And I don't think that is necessarily a bad thing.

Let's face it, the comparisons to [b:Mockingjay|7260188|Mockingjay (The Hunger Games, #3)|Suzanne Collins|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1358275419s/7260188.jpg|8812783] are inevitable. Middle book of the series, world leaders are bad guys, heroine is in an impossible situation yet triumphs, etc. But truth be told, I liked Insurgent a lot better because of its connection to reality.

I had a love/hate relationship with Tris. Although I always understood the place where her feelings originated, I wanted to strangle her for her dishonesty! At one point, I was convinced that her relationship with Tobias had to be over, because she'd never earn his trust again. The way this guy just kept coming back to her mystified me - what person in his right mind would continue to love and trust someone who keeps betraying him "for the greater good?" The only redeeming thing for me there was that Tris finally got over herself and decided she wasn't the answer or the sacrifice to solve the world's problems. Sometimes it is difficult to remember that these characters are only 16 and 18 years old. But . . . that does explain a lot. They're both idiots. And they're both not.

One thing I do believe Roth did do right. I never felt stupid for not seeing that there were deeper reasons for the behaviors of those in charge. As much as Jeanine was a stock character, Marcus is not. I can appreciate the layering that begins to happen. The turning of black and white into grey - while I never lose my moral center as a reader, I can see the characters dancing around it and working their way through it. I could remain a spectator without being drawn completely in, and I think only a really gifted author could do that.

If you liked [b:The Hunger Games Trilogy Boxset|7938275|The Hunger Games Trilogy Boxset (The Hunger Games, #1-3)|Suzanne Collins|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1360169398s/7938275.jpg|11349083], you may like this series better. Same network, different channel.