Genre: Young adult fiction, Romance novel, Dystopian Fiction
Key Stage: Upper KS3+ recommended for 14-17 years
Overall Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi (2011)
Shatter Me tells the story of a teenage girl called Juliette who has a lethal touch she calls a curse. She is considered a freak, a monster, a murderer to societ. She ends up locked away in an asylum isolated from the world behind the bars, forgotten about or so she thought…. One day ‘The Reestablishment’ decide they want to use her curse to their advantage.
The moment Juliette enters The Reestablishment, she knows she can never go back to her old life: the truth of the world begins to unravel before her eyes and she unwinds lies of her upbringing. Aaron Warner is another key character who is the chief commander of Sector 45 and everyone loves to hate him. People think he is a ruthless murderer who lives only to control and rule but once Juliette arrives that all changes.
What I like about the Shatter Me book is the way the characters are displayed throughout the book and how the “villain” in the book is shown to actually like and care for the main character but it’s something you have to work at understanding. One thing I didn’t like was the pace at first; it was slow and stretched but once you get into the 6th chapter it gets much better and the story really begins and interests you then.
The genre of the series is YA dystopian, romance, action and adventure and would appeal to readers 14+ as the characters are teenagers too so it’s easier to understand their emotions through the book. If you like series like the Hunger Games or Divergent then this is the perfect book for you.
Overall, I would rate this book 4 out of 5 stars – it was one of the first books that got me into reading it will always be one of my favourites.
Reviewer: Humaira, Year 9