Set in a futuristic dystopia where society is divided into five factions that each represent a different virtue, teenagers have to decide if they want to stay in their faction or switch to another - for the rest of their lives. Tris Prior makes a choice that surprises everyone. Then Tris and her fellow faction-members have to live through a highly competitive initiation process to live out the choice they have made. They must undergo extreme physical and intense psychological tests, that transform them all. But Tris has a secret that she is Divergent, which means she doesn't fit into any one group. If anyone knew, it would mean a certain death. As she discovers a growing conflict that threatens to unravel her seemingly perfect society, this secret might help her save the people she loves... or it might destroy her.

In a futuristic Chicago, society is divided into 5 factions. Abnegation the selfless, Dauntless the brave, Erudite the intelligent, Candor the honest, and Amity the peaceful. When all teenagers reach the age of 16, they must choose to either stay in their faction of birth, or transfer into another faction. Beatrice Prior must make the decision to stay with her family in a faction she feels she isn't right for, or to transfer into another faction, and leave her family behind. What follows is a highly competitive initiation, where the newly renamed Tris must make some tough decisions, but she must also keep a secret that she was warned could mean death, while she juggles friends, initiation, and a newfound love interest. But there is a secret lying beneath everything that threatens to tear the city apart.

In a world divided by factions based on virtues, Tris learns she's Divergent and won't fit in. When she discovers a plot to destroy Divergents, Tris and the mysterious Four must find out what makes Divergents dangerous before it's too late.