A review by mgitelman8
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

This book retains 1 star solely because the author tried

something, even if it didn't work out.

Truly, lam so disheartened to know this novel is revered by my generation, and I'm so glad I didn't read this in my formative years where I might have been at least a little convinced by whatever the hell happens within these pages. What happens, in fact, is very little. This book is kind of like the Walking Dead if the Walking Dead had no plot and was focused on a love triangle between teenagers. Juliette is the ultimate pick-me girl who needs a man to show her she has worth, and Warner is her abuser and captor. Don't even get me started on Adam, a possessive victim of the insta-love trope. Kenji, the most beloved of the fandom, is a womanizing asshole that sticks his nose is everybody's business.

Beyond basic physical descriptors, none of the characters have any personality or depth, and each character is just a literary cliché. I gave the writing style a chance for originality, but when Juliette refers to herself as an old creaky staircase, the was the final nail in the coffin. The world building is vaguely explored, relying on other literature in the genre to fill in the gaps where the author didn't feel like making it make sense and the plot is incredibly low-stakes despite the setup being so dramatic.

Problems come up out of nowhere and get resolved just as quickly. I would say this book has an appropriate level of complexity for children, but the depictions of unhealthy romantic relationships that the author models here would be really irresponsible to give to children without a follow-up discussion. Ultimately, this is a book perfectly made for short-form internet consumption with its surface level characters and plot.

Save yourself the time and read the plot summary online so you can understand and enjoy the related TikToks.