Book Review: Four

Title: Four: A Divergent Collection

 Series: Divergent (companion novellas)

Author: Veronica Roth

Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books

Publication Date: July 8, 2014

Source: Purchased from Barnes & Noble

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.

My Review

“My name is Four,” I say. “Call me ‘Stiff’ again and you and I will have a problem.” 

As a Divergent fan, I was thrilled when I found out that the Four stories were going to be released in a physical format because I'm all for the printed word. (I'm not too big on reading e-books.) I had been wanting to read them for a while, but I didn't want to feel like I had to purchase them for multiple devices if that were the case.

When I started reading these novellas, I decided that I would read each story, reflect, and then rate them on Goodreads. I liked reading them like that, but there is just so much to Four's story.

If you've read Divergent, you know why Four is called Four, but in this story, you actually get to see the moment his new name is given to him. Something about that scene struck me. I really enjoyed it. He takes to his new name quickly. He takes to his new faction reluctantly, but pieces of him are truly dauntless. Readers can see that by the way that he reacts to certain situations. I'm sure he temper came from somewhere, but it really will help him fit it amongst his new peers.

Veronica Roth signing copies. I have one of them!

I enjoyed reading about Four's past through his point of view. I wouldn't say that it was eye-opening, but it really expands on his character in the world of Divergent. We follow Tobias to his Choosing Ceremony, and then he is running to the train tracks with the rest of the Dauntless members. Much of his story mirrors the story of Tris, but a lot is revealed about how Dauntless initiation changes in the course of just a few years, and then Four and Tris' stories overlap.

Once again, Roth's writing is beautiful and easy to read when everything is set up in such a complex world, and her story telling skills are on par. I'm really glad that I picked this up because it's really enjoyable and thrilling. It is a wonderful companion to the Divergent trilogy, and any fan would be ecstatic to have a copy of this on their shelves.

Oh, and get the one with the exclusive bonus scenes. That's the one I bought, and I really enjoyed the extra features. You won't regret it.

Four and a half out of five stars