Book report | Gone Girl, Divergent/Insurgent, Let’s Pretend This Never Happened

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Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn

Okay, okay, so everyone and their uncle already read this book.  But for the few of you who haven’t, go get it or reserve it at your library now.  Gone Girl is a thriller about a woman’s dissappearance and the cloud of suspicion over the woman’s husband.  But it’s not really a who-done-it but more of an edge-of-your-seat-oh-man-what’s-gonna-happen-did-he-or-didn’t-he kind of read.  You’ll be thinking one thing and then TWIST.  IN YOUR FACE!  DID YOU SEE THAT COMING?  So good.  I whipped through it because it made me anxious to find out what the heck is going on.  If you’ve read it or after you read it, let me know what you think about the ending.  WHAT?!

Grade: A

Divergent and Insurgent by Veronica Roth

I am a Hunger Games fan, so when I heard of this series, I jumped right in.  I loved Divergent.  It is Hunger Games-esqu in that the story is set in a dystopian world where lots of bad stuff is going on and the government does all sorts of wacky things and the people think to themselves, “Huh, the leaders are implanting people with chips and using weird mind control to turn people into killing machines.  This must end!”

Divergent starts with Beatrice, the main character, taking her placement exam which, in part, determines which faction she will live with for the rest of her life.  During the exam, she learns she’s more complex than she thought, and the rest of Divergent follows her as she uncovers more about herself and starts to realize that something fishy’s going on with the government leaders.

Insurgent picks up where Divergent left off and delves into just what’s going on with the government leaders, and Beatrice finds herself making hard decisions about who to trust and who to betray.

I liked Divergent more than Insurgent because I enjoyed following Beatrice’s transformation as she unearths more about herself and what it means to be Divergent.  While I also liked Insurgent, I found it a more frustrating read as Beatrice hems and haws about what she thinks she should do and generally acts impulsive in ways that frustrated me more than held my interest.

Divergent: A

Insurgent: B+

Let’s Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson

The mastermind behind The Bloggess writes this pee-in-your-pants memior that had me snorting with laughter on every single page.

Seriously, Jenny is hilarious.

The stories of her family and youth and early married life are funny without being over the top or cringe-worthy.  And it’s not too self deprecating or feeling-less.  It’s humor, with heart.  And I was sad to finish it.  If you want a fun, quick read and can relate to some of Jenny’s neurosis, you’ll love this book.

Grade: A+

I’m currently semi-boo hooing through The Fault in Our Stars, and then I’m planning to go back and read some more Gillian Flyn.  If you’ve read any of the above books, what did you think?  Do you have any recommendations for me?  Leave me a comment or shoot me an email!

  • Marie

    I just finished reading Insurgent and I do think I like Divergent better as well. I wish the second book had been edited down and Beatrice hadn’t been impulsive SO many times. It reminded me of Titanic when Rose gets in the lifeboat, out of the lifeboat, in the lifeboat, out of the lifeboat. TOO MANY TIMES.

    I just started reading Matched, which is a similar futuristic dystopia type of book. So far, I really like it. These books definitely keep your attention!

    • http://www.sarahrosemary.com Sarah Bagley

      I am so glad you felt the same way about Insurgent. I thought, “maybe I’m missing something,” when I read it. But Beatrice just kept annoying me left and right. And I was all about her in the first book. Can’t wait to read the third!

  • http://twitter.com/loveverydaylife Becky

    This post made me add books to my goodreads list and request books from the library – although there are over 1,000 requests for Gone Girl so if you can Kindle share it let me know! :)

  • http://twitter.com/loveverydaylife Becky

    Oh, and I’m reading “When in Doubt, Add Butter,” a novel that is surprisingly hilarious so far – only 100 pages in but so far so good!

    • http://www.sarahrosemary.com Sarah Bagley

      I’m going to check that out – thanks! Sadly, Dan and I both shared it with each other on Kindle, so I think that’s all we can share :( I’ll update my Goodreads with more recommendations!