And you thought a butter knife to the eye was violent.

Veronica Roth’s “Allegiant,” the final novel in her “Divergent” trilogy, focuses on post-apocalyptic teen heroine Beatrice “Tris” Prior’s continued battle to find the truth about the damaged society she lives in. This time around, however, Roth delves deeper into intense topics and crafts even darker action scenes.

The novel picks up where the second book of the trilogy, “Insurgent,” left off. The society Tris lives in was once divided into five factions, though the factions have recently been intermixed in multiple rebellions and are plagued with questionable leadership. In “Allegiant,” Tris must rely on her friends and new allies to determine what should be done about their crumbling society.

Despite covering more twisted topics like genetic warfare and extreme prejudice, “Allegiant” can still read as a washed-up teen novel at times, especially during scenes describing the relationship between Tris and her love interest, Tobias “Four” Eaton (as nicknamed due to only having four fears).

Additionally, the novel fails to develop many of the characters any further than in previous books. The only significant backstory presented is that of a character that had already passed away in the first book of the trilogy. The novel does, however, reveal many details about the world beyond Tris’s city of Chicago, which is closed off from the rest of the world by large gates.

One of the most powerful scenes of the novel is when Tris and some of her friends get the chance to see and travel in an airplane for the first time. The flight reveals the world around them that they have never had the chance to see, including the vastness of Lake Michigan, which had begun to transform into a marsh near the coastline.

This expansion of setting adds a new sense of excitement to the novel, as do the characters (some of whom were previously believed to be dead) that they find beyond the gates.

As someone who lives in the Chicago area, it was also interesting to hear about local areas in their post-apocalyptic state. Previous novels explored landmarks like the Hancock building and the Navy Pier Ferris wheel, while “Allegiant” allows the reader to explore other well-known places, like Millennium Park and O’Hare Airport.

A welcome change in “Allegiant” that sets it apart from the previous two books of the series is the fact that it isn’t just told from Tris’s point of view; this time around, Four narrates nearly every other chapter, which offers a fresh perspective on the plot and the relationship between the two characters. The shift in perspectives is always smooth, and adds a needed complexity to the novel without being confusing.

The series is entertaining, but like most commercial literature, I don’t see it withstanding the test of time like other dystopian classics. Additionally, the novel is about a teenage girl forced to fight for her life in a post-apocalyptic society built on corruption and the division of its people- sound familiar? “The Hunger Games,” which came out in 2008 (three years before the 2011 release date of “Divergent”), is grounded in a similar plotline, and is written in a more elegant, exciting manner.

Additionally, the book’s controversial ending, in which Roth kills off one of the novel’s principal characters, has caused plenty of chatter amongst reviewers and fans. It’s praiseworthy that Roth was gutsy enough to take this giant literary step, but the true purpose of the death is questionable and, frankly, it seems unnecessary.

For die-hard “Divergent” fans that have already finished the series and are still dwelling on its questionable ending, there is some good news on the horizon.

A film version of “Divergent” is set to be released on March 21 of next year, which, like the book, is set in post-apocalyptic Chicago. Nearly all of the principal photography for the movie was taken in and around the city.

The sci-fi adventure film is directed by Neil Burger, who also directed the 2011 mystery thriller “Limitless,” and stars Shailene Woodley as Tris. Woodley has previously appeared as pregnant teen Amy Jurgens in ABC Family’s “The Secret Life of the American Teenager” and as Alex King alongside George Clooney in “The Descendants,” a role for which she received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture.

Other well-known actors have joined the cast as well. “Titanic” star Kate Winslet, playing the first villainous role of her career, is portraying Jeanine Matthews, and Theo James (Turkish diplomat Kemal Pamuk from “Downton Abbey”) stars as Four, though he’s 10 years older than the 18-year-old character.

Zoë Kravitz plays Tris’s good friend Christina, and coincidentally, her father Lenny Kravitz recently played Cinna, Katniss’s stylist, in the similarly dystopian “Hunger Games” films.

Hopefully, this film platform will allow the novel’s complex settings and imagery to come to life for millions of new fans. Until March rolls around, though, I’d recommend picking up at least the first book of the trilogy if you’re looking for an intense sci-fi read. Just make sure you’re prepared for a bit of cheesy teen romance woven throughout.