Review: Shatter Me (Shatter Me #1)

Title: Shatter Me (Shatter Me #1)
Author: Tahereh Mafi
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publisher: HarperCollins
Source: Purchased
Format: Paperback
Release Date: November 15, 2011
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads 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.

Review:

I loved this book! I keep hearing about the series, so I bought a boxed set to see what it’s like. I read this book in one sitting, all one afternoon. I couldn’t put it down!

The story is unlike other similar YA dystopians I’ve read. It starts with Juliette already locked up to prevent her from using her powers. Typically, the main character discovers their powers in the first book in a series. I liked how this one jumped right into the story.

Juliette’s growth throughout the story is physically demonstrated on the page. At the beginning, she crosses out a lot of words and lines on the page. The author says at the beginning that these crossed out parts are intentional. As the story progresses, Juliette crosses out less of her story. She becomes more confident in her narrative. When she is more uncertain, the lines return on the page. I loved the way that her character development was portrayed in this way.

This book was an amazing start to the series! I can’t wait to read the next book!

What to read next:

Have you read Shatter Me? What did you think of it?