Author: Veronica Roth
Rating: ★★★ (3/5 Stars)
Hardcover, 285 Pages
Published July 2014
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Books #0.1-0.4 in the Divergent Trilogy
Read my review of:
Divergent (Divergent, #1)
Insurgent (Divergent, #2)
Allegiant (Divergent, #3)
Summary: Two years before Beatrice Prior made her choice, the sixteen-year-old son of Abnegation’s faction leader did the same. Tobias’s transfer to Dauntless is a chance to begin again. Here, he will not be called the name his parents gave him. Here, he will not let fear turn him into a cowering child. Newly christened “Four,” he discovers during initiation that he will succeed in Dauntless. Initiation is only the beginning, though; Four must claim his place in the Dauntless hierarchy. His decisions will affect future initiates as well as uncover secrets that could threaten his own future—and the future of the entire faction system. Two years later, Four is poised to take action, but the course is still unclear. The first new initiate who jumps into the net might change all that. With her, the way to righting their world might become clear. With her, it might become possible to be Tobias once again. From #1 New York Times bestselling author Veronica Roth comes a companion volume to the worldwide bestselling divergent series, told from the per-spective of the immensely popular character Tobias. The four pieces included here—The Transfer, The Initiate, The Son, and The Traitor—plus three additional exclusive scenes, give readers an electrifying glimpse into the history and heart of Tobias, and set the stage for the epic saga of the Divergent trilogy.
When Veronica Roth announced that Four would be coming out and that it would contain several different short stories from his point of view, I couldn't help but fangirl a little bit. Four was totally swoon-worthy and gorgeous and strong and rebellious and perfect throughout the entire Divergent trilogy, even up until the bitter end of Allegiant. *sniffles* However, I went into this book excited and expecting a lot more than I got.
I figured that even though Four/Tobais seemed a bit fierce and intense when the story was told from solely Tris' point of view, this book would go more into depth with his emotions and thoughts and wants and desires, including and especially about Tris. In a way, I did get to see some important situations of the story through his perspective (such as Tris being the first jumper, his first conversation with her in the cafeteria, and when he slipped and told her that she looked good by the chasm), but I didn't learn that much more about Four. At least, not nearly as much as I was expecting to learn, and that's what made me hesitate and give this book three stars instead of four.
But enough about the negativity.
This was still a good book that I enjoyed reading. I was a bit worried about if this book was going to keep my attention because I thought it was just going to be Divergent all over again, told from a different point of view, which would have bored me. However, my worries weren't anything to worry about at all, because a majority of Four actually takes place before the beginning of Divergent even begins. I got to read about Four's family live, his Choosing Ceremony Day, his own initiation and also how he came to be such a highly ranked member of the Dauntless faction by the time Tris came around.
It was definitely an interesting thing to see the life of an important character of a trilogy before the trilogy actually begins, because that's something that I (along with many other people, I'm sure) tend to wonder about when I'm reading a book--what are they like before the story starts? What are they like after the epilogue? I think that the Divergent fan base would be pleased if Roth came out with another book showing Tobais' life a few years or so after Allegiant, when the city goes back to restoring itself. We need to know!
All in all, Four was a good book that I enjoyed reading. It was interesting to see Tobais' life before the whirlwind known as Tris came into it, and also to see certain important events throughout the first book told in his perspective--because we all wanted to know what he was thinking when he first laid eyes on Tris, and now I can gladly say that yes, I know what he was thinking. Great prequel to the Divergent trilogy and I'm still pushing for a final book after Allegiant told in Four's perspective, too!! <4
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