Partial Rating: 2 stars
Book Name: Shatter Me (Shatter Me, #1)
Genre: Young Adult, Dystopian
Book Boyfriend: None
From Goodreads:
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.
As of this time, I am currently reading the sixteenth chapter of Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi and these are what I have observed:
Reading the first fifteen chapters of Shatter Me is very frustrating, in fact infuriating. I can’t exactly pinpoint the depth of my annoyance, but in general I don’t like it that much. Maybe if I will rate it, I will only give two (2) stars, which means it is below my standard of a good novel. As a matter of fact, this will be the first time ever that I will rate such low when it comes to any books I have read.
Juliette. I’m struggling to understand her because I can’t really imagine a heroine so weak and undetermined and confused of what she will do with her own self. I’m not fond of comparing but if I were to compare Juliette with other heroines from other stories I read, well, I can obviously say that she is the most weak of them all. Sometimes I get very angry about her that I want to break some necks, kick some groins and maybe slap some faces. She’s totally, undeniably and superfluously insane.
I hate her.
She’s nonsense, and because of that I want to shatter her face.
And here comes the repetitive words and phrases, with matching strikethroughs. What the hell is going on with the author? I mean, it’s just like a trash if you write something for three times and crash it out. I think Shatter Me is just a draft, isn’t it?
Lastly. there are certain things that are vaguely described (if it is described) by the author that leads to insanity of her readers:
1. I just don’t get how Juliette got her power (if it is one). It was not stated.
2. What really happens (in detailed form) when someone touch her or when she touches them? How did they die (if they did die).
3. What is the story actually all about? Is there really a plot existing?
UPDATED REVIEW PORTION
When I reached at least more than a half of Shatter Me, I was pretty elated that Juliette made and can make more decisions, right decisions, I suppose. I never thought she can, all I expect is that she’s always doing big crappy things and her life is just a complete waste; that she can’t even put herself into focus and sanity; that she is always confused, always saying “I don’t intend to do it but I did” and “I am insane” or perhaps ” I’m a monster”.
But nevertheless, I saw a great amount of confidence as well as improvement on Juliette and it makes me like the book. I can raise my rating up to 3.5 stars or four because of the revelations mentioned, the new characters that arouse my curiosity and the development of Juliette and Adam’s feelings toward each other.
And another thing that amazed me is the accuracy of Juliette when it comes to digits and numbers of time, of almost everything. She’s so vigilant when it comes to that, I bet.
So, that’s it. Shatter me is both frustrating and amazing at the very same time. “I must be insane”, hahaha.
Joyfully Reading 