
Release Date: November 15, 2011
Publisher: HarperTeen
Series: Shatter Me #1
Format: Hardcover
Number of Pages: 338
Synopsis: Juliette hasn't touched anyone in exactly 264 days.
The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked her up for murder. No one knows why Juliette's touch is fatal. As long as she doesn't hurt anyone else, no one really cares. The world is too busy crumbling to pieces to pay attention to a 17-year-old girl. Diseases are destroying the population, food is hard to find, birds don't fly anymore, and the clouds are the wrong color. The Reestablishment said their way was the only way to fix things, so they threw Juliette in a cell. Now so many people are dead that the survivors are whispering war-- and The Reestablishment has changed its mind. Maybe Juliette is more than a tortured soul stuffed into a poisonous body. Maybe she's exactly what they need right now.
Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.
In this electrifying debut, Tahereh Mafi presents a world as riveting as The Hunger Games and a superhero story as thrilling as The X-Men. Full of pulse-pounding romance, intoxicating villainy, and high-stakes choices, Shatter Me is a fresh and original dystopian novel—with a paranormal twist—that will leave readers anxiously awaiting its sequel.
Review:
Shatter Me, like most HarperTeen books, had an abundance of hype for its release. There were rave reviews left and right, and it seemed like everyone loved this book. I will say, yes, it was a good book, however, I didn't love it.
Juliette Ferrars is
My first problem with this book was Juliette.
The romance was very sweet, although I felt like it was more physical than anything else. Juliette and Adam do truly love each other, however, I think I would've liked their relationship more if I got to see it develop. I don't think that I really knew when they fell in love. It just suddenly happened, instead of it being gradual. Warner is the antagonist, the bad guy. I. Loved. Him. I think I may be insane, but really, I just felt sorry for him, and I wanted him to have a happy ending, despite the fact that he was totally evil. Did anyone else really like Warner?
Another thing that drove me crazy was the writing. Tahereh Mafi is a wonderful writer. She truly is. However, she crossed a line. It's not that she crossed out a lot of sentences. I was okay with that. I felt like it was a refreshing style of writing and I understood why it was necessary. However, I was not okay with the lack of punctuation, most specifically commas. She would write run on sentences that I could barely endure. It's not accidental or anything, so I suppose it's her writing style, but I hated it. I hated it very much. It disrupted my reading experience quite often, reading passages like:
"But his hands become arms around my waist his lips become a cheek pressed against my cheek and his body is flush against mine, his skin touching me touching me touching me and he's not screaming he's not dying he's not running away from me and I'm crying
I'm choking
I'm shaking shuddering splintering into teardrops
and he's holding me the way no one has ever held me before."
That's a pretty long passage. And there's not one comma or period. It drove me bananas!
Although it may sound like I'm just complaining about this book, I really did enjoy it. The characters were brilliantly created, the world was realistic and scary, and the plot was awesome. I especially loved the plot. It twisted a lot and I really liked the ending.
Tahereh Mafi's debut is thrilling, romantic and refreshing. I am very excited for the sequel!
4 keys.
I have a love/hate thing going with Warner, but he was certainly entertaining! So I don't think you are insane, haha. Juliette's dependency on Adam didn't bother me as much as I might have thought it would, I guess because I still didn't feel like she was complete pushover. When books get so much hype, like this one, it's hard to live up to all the expectations. I'm glad you still enjoyed it, though :0)
ReplyDeleteI was one that loved this book and the run on sentences, LOVED! I really felt like it made me 'get' it all so much better. I felt like I felt what she felt. But I get that it's not everyone's thing. It's good that we don't all love the same things, it's what makes us unique :)
ReplyDeleteI've heard so many great things about this book that is now in my must buy asap list. No matter what, I must own it :) Thanks for the great review, I'm sure I'll notice the run on sentences, those always stand out to me :)
ReplyDeleteI love the writing style with this book. So beautiful and poetic. I can understand how readers like you be annoyed with the lack of punctuation. I don't mind though.
ReplyDeleteI love the relationship between Adam and Juliette. I love how protective he's of her, so I don't mind that she's dependent on him. She's been in that cell for so long and lonely that it must be a relief to depend on someone for a bit.
Warner. I love to hate him. He's such a villain that it's totally awesome!
I really can't wait for the sequel!
Chen Chang
Amazing review thank you so much! I'm waiting for this book to arrive, I just purchased it :) Hope it will be a good read :D
ReplyDeleteJust read the Temple Wars Novel on Ganesha! The story is well told through a parallel protagonist Tarun who helps Ganesha retrieve his objects from the spirit world. It's a page-turner that will have you wanting more. You guys should check it out! Temple Wars
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