The book opens where the last left off - a sort of civil war in this city enclosed by a fence. Tris and Tobias are on a train with Caleb, Peter, and Marcus heading to Amity for refuge. The simulation had used Dauntless to destroy Abnegation and was being controlled by Erudite, leaving Candor and Amity to choose sides. And Amity, by nature, won't choose sides. The simulation has ended and Dauntless is split - half choosing to be the muscle for Erudite, and half feeling betrayed and ready to fight Dauntless and Erudite. Erudite is still trying to control the world and particularly is looking for a serum to control the Divergent - those that are immune to simulations and thus can't be controlled. There is also a sixth faction - the factionless - who have united amidst their poverty and rejection and are also ready to fight and dismantle all faction control. We also learn in this book the motivation for the war is in regards to information being protected - information that Agnegation was going to release and Erudite wants to be kept secret. All of this is actually happening to the background of Tris' emotional reeling having to deal with the death of her parents, the guilt over shooting Will, and her relationship with Tobias.
What I liked: It was an easy read - interesting and different enough to keep me engaged where I didn't want to put it down.
What I didn't like: Her guilt over killing Will in the last book got a bit old. I think I would have felt more guilt for the deaths of her parents. Also, her emotional baggage is a bit tiresome. She is dishonest with the one person left who cares about her and seems to believe she has to fix everything and sacrifice herself - as if she is that important, and as if her sacrifice will fix things.
What I'm confused about: Why does Marcus hang out in the water purification room? Why do they need a self sufficient system? (What's wrong with the well water?) This world they are in was built to refine traits they believed to be the basis for peace and well being - and the Divergent a positive mutation - where having been grounded morally, the population's minds become more flexible to embrace other traits that will ensure salvation ... of the world? How did this become the basis for a war? Because the Erudite want to stay inside their "safe" bubble by controlling minds/actions and eliminating human imperfections?
Quotes: "I read somewhere, once, that crying defies scientific explanation. Tears are only meant to lubricate the eyes. There is no real reason for tear glands to overproduce tears at the behest of emotion."
"No selfishness of insecurity kept him from seeing the full extent of her goodness, as it so often does with the rest of us."
"So, the thing we're all not talking about...You almost died, a sadistic pansy cake save you, and now we're all waging some serious war with the factionless as allies."
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