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Mon, January 7, 2013

Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi Review

Unravel Me
By Tahereh Mafi
Publication date: Feb. 5, 2013
HarperCollins, 465 pages
Source: Borrowed from Sash

ick, tick, tick, tick, tick
it’s almost
time for war.

Juliette has escaped to Omega Point. It is a place for people like her—people with gifts—and it is also the headquarters of the rebel resistance.

She’s finally free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch.

Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible.

In this exhilarating sequel to Shatter Me, Juliette has to make life-changing decisions between what she wants and what she thinks is right. Decisions that might involve choosing between her heart—and Adam’s life.

— Goodreads.com description

You know that feeling when you can’t keep reading because it’s just to painful and raw and emotional and you’re worried that you’re being slowly and fully depleted and the words are like shards of glass, attacking your heart, shredding it, but you have force yourself to turn the page because you also can’t imagine living another moment not knowing what happens next and when it’s over you can barely breathe and you just want to throw yourself to the floor in a fit and just lie there and process and try to move on with your life but how can you move on without knowing what will become of these people you’ve so grown to love and to hate hate hate with every fiber of your being?

Yeah.

That feeling = Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi, the sequel to her stunning debut, Shatter Me.

Look, I think a lot of things about this book. No, I FEEL a lot of things about this book. Love, anger… I can’t even begin to think about it logically. If you couldn’t tell, it’s like this book summoned up a tornado within me. And I’m sort of angry about it all.* But, damn, that’s a powerful reaction. And when a book can make you feel that way? That’s a beautiful thing.

*Warner can kiss my #$%!!!

Thu, September 8, 2011

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me
By Tahereh Mafi
Nov. 15, 2011
HarperCollins, 352 pages
Source: Review copy

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.

Juliette has to make a choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior.

— GoodReads.com description

SO. FREAKING. INTENSE.

From the action to the romance, “intense” is the best word to describe “Shatter Me.”

Let’s start with the action. Think “X-Men,” but almost grittier. The novel – Mafi’s debut – starts out in a jail cell, where Juliette has spent most of the year in complete silence and isolation. It’s bleak and frightening and locks you in from the get-go. From there, things are fast-paced, more intriguing and more intense as the twists and turns keep coming. I could not put it down.

Oh, as I write this I can’t help but feel that if I had my copy of this book next to me right now, I’d hug it. That’s how in love with it I am.

Speaking of love. Look, sorry Mom, Dad, Sister and In-Laws who are reading this, but I just have to say: This book is just plain steamy. It’s not smarmy or skanky either – it’s just got the best sexual tension I’ve read since, well, a long time. I think at one point I was actually fanning myself off. INTENSE.

And, the cherry on top? It actually ends. Oh, sure, there’s setup for a sequel. But no cliffhanger! I felt perfectly content at the end to sit and wait for round two. LOVED!

PS: I can’t go without commenting on the cover. Wow…so gorgeous, but so not even remotely reflective of this book’s DARK tone. An odd choice.