Fifteen years after ‘Divergent’ launched her career, Chicago author Veronica Roth returns to her famous dystopian universe with a new, alternate-timeline novel, seeking to shed the weight of past criticism.
The line snaked down the hallway at Navy Pier. a familiar sight for an author who spent a decade and a half navigating the intense scrutiny that follows a global phenomenon. For Veronica Roth. the recent weeknight signing offered a moment of reflection—not just on the books that turned her into a household name. but on the burden she carried while writing them.
Fifteen years ago, “Divergent” debuted, hitting No. 1 on the New York Times Bestseller list and evolving into a film franchise starring Shailene Woodley as the heroine. Tris Prior. Now. with the Tuesday release of “The Sixth Faction. ” Roth is returning to that same futuristic Chicago—where society is divided into five virtue-based factions: Abnegation. Amity. Candor. Dauntless. and Erudite. Yet, this time, the story diverges. A tragedy at the choosing ceremony forces Tris down an entirely different path. a narrative pivot Roth describes as a way to “lighten that load” of negativity she felt during her early 20s.
Success came with a heavy price for the Chicago-based author. While “Divergent” granted her the freedom to pursue passion projects. it also brought widespread criticism she wasn’t mentally or emotionally prepared to process. She recalled absorbing that negativity like a sponge. struggling to distinguish her own vision from the reader backlash regarding the original series’ conclusion. Therapy helped her unlearn the belief that painful criticism was inherently true. a perspective she sharpened after reflecting on mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I need to worry less about other people and worry more about the joy and fulfillment of writing,” Roth said.
Her craft has evolved alongside her mindset. She now employs rigorous outlining to avoid repeating the challenges she faced with the original series’ final installment. “Allegiant.” Having authored at least 10 books since 2011. she approaches her work with a new sense of agency. Fans at the Navy Pier event. many of whom have read the series annually for 15 years. echoed the appeal of the “what if” premise. Attendees like Hadeel Abderrhaman and Dania Amora—who noted the series “changed my entire brain chemistry”—found the alternate reality resonated with their own life experiences of questioning past choices.
This new iteration of Chicago feels different to the author. While she once described the original “Divergent” as feeling like a “tourist going to Chicago,” her current work feels “a little more grounded, like someone who lives here.”
For readers. “The Sixth Faction” requires no prior knowledge of the series. though it clearly speaks to those who grew up within its walls. As Roth looks ahead, the sequel, “The Last Testimony,” is already finished and scheduled for release on Feb. 2, 2027. For the author. the project serves as more than just a return to a beloved world; it is an exploration of human capacity. “Writing books really exposes what you believe about humanity and whether people are capable of change,” Roth said. “This series is definitely like a treatise, an accidental treatise on that for me.”.
Veronica Roth Divergent The Sixth Faction Chicago literature books Tris Prior