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michellemaas's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
* Beware of minor spoilers
3.5 - ⭐⭐⭐💫
First Installment in the Shatter Me series. Young Adult Dystopian Novel featuring the "lethal touch", "childhood friends to lovers", "dead parent", and "forced proximity" tropes. Deals with themes of human nature, isolation, and morality.
The beginning and middle were phenomenal. Mafi's writing is beautiful but to have it end the same way Mockingjay began was a huge disappointment.
“All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being not just with my hands but with my heart.”
Juliette is cursed. Or so she believes. She cannot come into physical contact with anyone for fear that her touch will kill them. While she spent her entire life isolating herself and resenting her powers, government official Warner believes she is the key to getting the rebel forces under control once and for all. Shatter Me explores Juliette's journey as she learns to love herself and offers some meaningful insights about human nature, isolation, and the small pleasures in life.
“I spent my life folded between the pages of books. In the absence of human relationships, I formed bonds with paper characters. I lived love and loss through stories threaded in history; I experienced adolescence by association. My world is one interwoven web of words, stringing limb to limb, bone to sinew, thoughts, and images all together. I am a being comprised of letters, a character created by sentences, a figment of imagination formed through fiction.”
I'm weirdly uncertain how I feel about this book . . . The beginning and middle were phenomenal. The use of typography and writing style to illustrate how isolation has affected Juliette's mind was brilliant. And the characters? Amazing. Mafi's writing in general is truly magnificent. Even Juliette's time at the Reestablishment was really interesting. Exploring Juliette's powers and Warner's obsession with her, and watching Juliette come to terms with the possibility of being loved and accepted was all great to read about. Then came the ending.
“The moon is a loyal companion. It never leaves. It’s always there, watching, steadfast, knowing us in our light and dark moments, changing forever just as we do. Every day it’s a different version of itself. Sometimes weak and wan, sometimes strong and full of light. The moon understands what it means to be human. Uncertain. Alone. Cratered by imperfections.”
I was incredibly disappointed when all this buildup ended in a plain old, same as every other dystopian book ever, Hunger Games knockoff. The beginning had me so gripped and there was so much potential for this book but the author botched it by trying to be like every other dystopian author at this time. The Hunger Games was great, but I don't want every SciFi book to follow in its lead.
“Killing time isn't as difficult as it sounds. I can shoot a hundred numbers through the chest and watch them bleed decimal points in the palm of my hand. I can rip the numbers off a clock and watch the hour hand tick tick tick its final tock just before I fall asleep. I can suffocate seconds just by holding my breath. I've been murdering minutes for hours and no one seems to mind.”
I decided to still give it 4 stars because the great majority of the book truly was amazing, and despite the trajectory that was introduced in the last few chapters, I still have great hope for this series.
“Truth is a jealous, vicious mistress that never, ever sleeps.”
I would recommend you read Shatter Me because it was a masterclass in the power of words. Tahereh Mafi . . . sigh. I have no words. Her writing is an experience. She has already gone super far, but I know she's going to go even farther because she is undoubtedly one of the most talented writers of our time, even if her plot might need a little work.
“Hate looks just like everybody else until it smiles. Until it spins around and lies with lips and teeth carved into the semblance of something too passive to punch.”
* Please note that while this is a Young Adult novel, there are several themes that may be triggering to sensitive readers. Be sure to check content warnings on the author's website before reading. Your entertainment is not worth risking your mental health for!
3.5 - ⭐⭐⭐💫
First Installment in the Shatter Me series. Young Adult Dystopian Novel featuring the "lethal touch", "childhood friends to lovers", "dead parent", and "forced proximity" tropes. Deals with themes of human nature, isolation, and morality.
The beginning and middle were phenomenal. Mafi's writing is beautiful but to have it end the same way Mockingjay began was a huge disappointment.
“All I ever wanted was to reach out and touch another human being not just with my hands but with my heart.”
Juliette is cursed. Or so she believes. She cannot come into physical contact with anyone for fear that her touch will kill them. While she spent her entire life isolating herself and resenting her powers, government official Warner believes she is the key to getting the rebel forces under control once and for all. Shatter Me explores Juliette's journey as she learns to love herself and offers some meaningful insights about human nature, isolation, and the small pleasures in life.
“I spent my life folded between the pages of books. In the absence of human relationships, I formed bonds with paper characters. I lived love and loss through stories threaded in history; I experienced adolescence by association. My world is one interwoven web of words, stringing limb to limb, bone to sinew, thoughts, and images all together. I am a being comprised of letters, a character created by sentences, a figment of imagination formed through fiction.”
I'm weirdly uncertain how I feel about this book . . . The beginning and middle were phenomenal. The use of typography and writing style to illustrate how isolation has affected Juliette's mind was brilliant. And the characters? Amazing. Mafi's writing in general is truly magnificent. Even Juliette's time at the Reestablishment was really interesting. Exploring Juliette's powers and Warner's obsession with her, and watching Juliette come to terms with the possibility of being loved and accepted was all great to read about. Then came the ending.
“The moon is a loyal companion. It never leaves. It’s always there, watching, steadfast, knowing us in our light and dark moments, changing forever just as we do. Every day it’s a different version of itself. Sometimes weak and wan, sometimes strong and full of light. The moon understands what it means to be human. Uncertain. Alone. Cratered by imperfections.”
I was incredibly disappointed when all this buildup ended in a plain old, same as every other dystopian book ever, Hunger Games knockoff. The beginning had me so gripped and there was so much potential for this book but the author botched it by trying to be like every other dystopian author at this time. The Hunger Games was great, but I don't want every SciFi book to follow in its lead.
“Killing time isn't as difficult as it sounds. I can shoot a hundred numbers through the chest and watch them bleed decimal points in the palm of my hand. I can rip the numbers off a clock and watch the hour hand tick tick tick its final tock just before I fall asleep. I can suffocate seconds just by holding my breath. I've been murdering minutes for hours and no one seems to mind.”
I decided to still give it 4 stars because the great majority of the book truly was amazing, and despite the trajectory that was introduced in the last few chapters, I still have great hope for this series.
“Truth is a jealous, vicious mistress that never, ever sleeps.”
I would recommend you read Shatter Me because it was a masterclass in the power of words. Tahereh Mafi . . . sigh. I have no words. Her writing is an experience. She has already gone super far, but I know she's going to go even farther because she is undoubtedly one of the most talented writers of our time, even if her plot might need a little work.
“Hate looks just like everybody else until it smiles. Until it spins around and lies with lips and teeth carved into the semblance of something too passive to punch.”
* Please note that while this is a Young Adult novel, there are several themes that may be triggering to sensitive readers. Be sure to check content warnings on the author's website before reading. Your entertainment is not worth risking your mental health for!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Gun violence, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Murder, Gaslighting, Abandonment, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Ableism
wahreads's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Stalking, Murder, and Sexual harassment
devinder's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Overall, I found the book very enthralling I liked the prose of the book and found it unique and refreshing and gave the reader a deeper knowledge of Juliette's mind. I am rating highly for the actual writing more so than the plot, the writing was beautiful but the plot felt slow at the start but then quite rushed at the end.
Personally, I didn't like either Adam or Warner as characters so I am looking forward to their character development in the next book. Adam was bland, quite possessive and couldn't take a joke. Also, it was basically insta-love with Adam, which wasn't that appealing. Warner was creepy, sexist and controlling and made me feel uncomfortable at points and don't really see how he gets better. <
Juliette as an MC was generally likeable and at some points, I found her character and bit boring and whiny but had so good moments too. The plot, especially the ending, was different to what I personally expected and that was good, I like a book that will keep me guessing, but again the ending was rushed to me. However, will continue to carry on the series.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, and Sexual assault
lh_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Gun violence, Mental illness, and Sexual assault
pocketsable's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Shatter Me is the story of Juliette. A girl who's been locked up for years because of the terrifying ability to kill people with her touch. However, her life changes in an instant when she's taken out of her locked room by a man who is looking to use her ability to as a weapon to fuel his power.
I'm not even sure where to begin, really. This book has a very interesting, albeit not exactly unique, premise. It has a vaguely interesting, although again not unique, dystopian world setup. However, it fails so spectacularly on everything else that it honestly doesn't matter. It doesn't help that the book doesn't seem to think those two things matter, either.
The writing is something you'll either love or hate. I personally hated it with every fiber of my being. There were sentences that waxed poetic about irrelevant things, like the fact someone was wearing clothing. There were multiple paragraphs filled with metaphors dedicated to Juliette's feelings which were then completely discarded by the next paragraph. There were sentences meant to be filled with passion and young love, only they sounded more like they came out of an early copy of Fifty Shades of Grey. I cringed and laughed my way through the ridiculousness of it. I could have forgave it if the book was meant to be full of beautiful imagery or psychological insight into a teenage girl who suffered terrible trauma. Sadly, none of these applied. The world was a generic dystopian stereotype, a psychosis of the main character which is implied but never really mentioned and the character didn't have any backstory or clue to why she would be speaking this way. It came off as pretentious and overtly obnoxious most of the time.
This book also suffers from a severe case of YA drama stereotypes. Which are including but not limited to, two main characters falling in "Insta-Love" despite not having any real interaction beforehand, the main character being inexplicably attractive to every male character that she crosses, sexual tension between the 'bad guy' and the main character despite multiple assault and one dubiously close-to-rape scene, the character having one flaw but is seemingly perfect at everything else, boring generic 'nice guy with no personality' love interest, male friend of love interest being flirty constantly with main character, main character seems to have lost her ability to actually think because the plot says so and, my personal favorite, lose all ambition to live (or in this case, survive) without the man you barely know.
The characters themselves fare no better. The main character, Juliette, is pretty self-insert written in the vein of Bella from Twilight. She has no real personality and she doesn't effect the plot so much as do things to move it forward. Her inner dialogue rarely goes outside of "I'm full of angst" and "I want to do the horizontal tango with this guy". She has nothing that makes her unique, sans the whole 'kill people with her touch' bit, yet men fall at her feet like she's the second coming. Speaking of, our male lead, the best way of describing him is 'generic'. He's a strong. He's nice. He's hot. And he will do anything to protect Juliette. Oh and he conveniently isn't effected by her 'kill people with touch' power. He really doesn't have that much personality outside of 'love interest'. Our main bad guy has a bit of personality and backstory but I fear it's just to make the reader feel less bad about the whole 'Juliette might also have the hots for him' bit. You can't make him TOO evil, otherwise you might take away all that sweet sexual tension that the writer seems to think the readers want.
There were a few more characters but they didn't appear until the end and only served as a way to further the plot, so I feel no need to mention them here.
Overall, I disliked this book for many reasons. The biggest being this COULD have been a decent book. If you removed the invasive and pointless romance and used that time to supply more character moments or backstory. If the writing didn't come off as pretentious and hard to read. If the events happened naturally and not because 'the plot says so'. The potential was there but it's so far out of reach that I can't even imagine this book series getting even remotely better in my eyes. Which, of course, is not helped by the conclusion of the book. Juliette putting on clothes followed by a couldn't-get-any-more-generic line, "I'm Ready."
Yes, Juliette. I'm ready as well.
Ready to stop reading your story.
I'm not even sure where to begin, really. This book has a very interesting, albeit not exactly unique, premise. It has a vaguely interesting, although again not unique, dystopian world setup. However, it fails so spectacularly on everything else that it honestly doesn't matter. It doesn't help that the book doesn't seem to think those two things matter, either.
The writing is something you'll either love or hate. I personally hated it with every fiber of my being. There were sentences that waxed poetic about irrelevant things, like the fact someone was wearing clothing. There were multiple paragraphs filled with metaphors dedicated to Juliette's feelings which were then completely discarded by the next paragraph. There were sentences meant to be filled with passion and young love, only they sounded more like they came out of an early copy of Fifty Shades of Grey. I cringed and laughed my way through the ridiculousness of it. I could have forgave it if the book was meant to be full of beautiful imagery or psychological insight into a teenage girl who suffered terrible trauma. Sadly, none of these applied. The world was a generic dystopian stereotype, a psychosis of the main character which is implied but never really mentioned and the character didn't have any backstory or clue to why she would be speaking this way. It came off as pretentious and overtly obnoxious most of the time.
This book also suffers from a severe case of YA drama stereotypes. Which are including but not limited to, two main characters falling in "Insta-Love" despite not having any real interaction beforehand, the main character being inexplicably attractive to every male character that she crosses, sexual tension between the 'bad guy' and the main character despite multiple assault and one dubiously close-to-rape scene, the character having one flaw but is seemingly perfect at everything else, boring generic 'nice guy with no personality' love interest, male friend of love interest being flirty constantly with main character, main character seems to have lost her ability to actually think because the plot says so and, my personal favorite, lose all ambition to live (or in this case, survive) without the man you barely know.
The characters themselves fare no better. The main character, Juliette, is pretty self-insert written in the vein of Bella from Twilight. She has no real personality and she doesn't effect the plot so much as do things to move it forward. Her inner dialogue rarely goes outside of "I'm full of angst" and "I want to do the horizontal tango with this guy". She has nothing that makes her unique, sans the whole 'kill people with her touch' bit, yet men fall at her feet like she's the second coming. Speaking of, our male lead, the best way of describing him is 'generic'. He's a strong. He's nice. He's hot. And he will do anything to protect Juliette. Oh and he conveniently isn't effected by her 'kill people with touch' power. He really doesn't have that much personality outside of 'love interest'. Our main bad guy has a bit of personality and backstory but I fear it's just to make the reader feel less bad about the whole 'Juliette might also have the hots for him' bit. You can't make him TOO evil, otherwise you might take away all that sweet sexual tension that the writer seems to think the readers want.
There were a few more characters but they didn't appear until the end and only served as a way to further the plot, so I feel no need to mention them here.
Overall, I disliked this book for many reasons. The biggest being this COULD have been a decent book. If you removed the invasive and pointless romance and used that time to supply more character moments or backstory. If the writing didn't come off as pretentious and hard to read. If the events happened naturally and not because 'the plot says so'. The potential was there but it's so far out of reach that I can't even imagine this book series getting even remotely better in my eyes. Which, of course, is not helped by the conclusion of the book. Juliette putting on clothes followed by a couldn't-get-any-more-generic line, "I'm Ready."
Yes, Juliette. I'm ready as well.
Ready to stop reading your story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
bookbrainrot's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Abandonment
Moderate: Gun violence
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual content
margojune's review
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence
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