Shatter Me (Shatter Me, #1)

by Tahereh Mafi

[Kim Deister]

I have had this book on my TBR pile for too long. Why did I wait so long to read it?! I loved just about everything abou this book! The premise was unbelievable, albeit terrifying.

The world that the author has create is bleak, very bleak. The environment is almost a wasteland, changed and damaged almost beyond hope. Society is almost unrecognizable to what we know, ruled now by what is essentially a global conglomerate. The world is so damaged that it has even begun to genetically change the living organisms that inhabit it. Those humans affected are hunted down, locked up or even killed for their newfound abilities.

The beginning of this book was horrifying, setting the mood for the way the world is now. Juliette is one of those changed people, now hovering on the brink of insanity. She is lost, confused, and desperately alone. Until she unexpectedly meets a boy, a boy from her past. The way they initially interact truly shows just how isolated Juliette really is and it is heart wrenching.

The characters are simply amazing. None of them can be clearly delineated as good versus bad. Most have moments of both. What makes them good or bad is how they feel about the things they have done. It makes for some real depth and emotion. That's the thing... despite the bleak world, this is truly a beautiful book. The world of Shatter Me is just enough like our own to be terrifying with the possibilities. But some of these characters still have hope and spirit and that is a beautiful thing.

My absolute favorite thing about this book was the writing style. At first, it threw me... the use of strikethroughs, choppy phrases, run-on's, and lack of punctuation from time to time. But you quickly realize that those things are deliberate and perfect. They completely underscore Juliette's state of mind as she goes through some of the things that she does. It's a brave choice and an absolutely effective one.

Things to love...

--The depth of the world. Bleak, yes, but totally able to be envisioned.
--The writing style. Such a great way to create mood.
--The characters. There are no clear-cut good versus bad.

My Recommendation

This is a fantastic and unique take on the dystopian/post-apocalyptic genres! The writing style is creative and the characters are absorbing.