Wednesday, February 20, 2013

Book Review: Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi


Book #2: Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Synopsis:

The last time she did it, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment charged 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.
***
This dystopian is the first in the Shatter Me trilogy. It took me a long time to convince myself to read because I told myself I was going to stay away from dystopians for awhile and try something new. Obviously that idea didn't go as planned. I saw the book on paperback one evening at Barnes & Noble and couldn't put it back after picking it up. The cover alone was enough to make me want to read this book. And it's a good thing I bought it or I would have missed out on a marvelous read!

As with every dystopian, Juliette lives in a society run by a corrupt government that is trying to control everything everyone does and thinks. But the catch is in the synopsis. Juliette has a lethal touch. That addition to the plot made me completely interested in what Juliette is capable of. It is such a different concept, and I loved how it played in to the story. Something else that really made this a unique book was the writing style. Not only is Mafi an incredibly poetic author, but she did something that is rarely seen. Shatter Me contains many strike-throughs of a single word, a sentence, or an entire paragraph or page. The strike-throughs are used to show what Juliette is really thinking even if she wants to think/says something different. I thought is was very effective. Another aspect of the writing I enjoyed was how personal the reader gets with Juliette through the pros. Mafi makes it seem as if we share the mind of Juliette. She uses run on sentences with no punctuation, repetition, and the strike-throughs to make this a more personal experience. That might even be my favorite thing about the novel.

Writing and plot aside, the characters are fleshed out beautifully and the setting and pacing is right on. There is a perfect balance of action and romance. And the ending leaves the 2nd book open to explore so much more. The only thing stopping me from giving this book 5 stars is the love interest. Most people love him, but I found him bland. However, I took a great liking to the villain, so I didn't totally mind the romance. But like I said, most people do like the love interest, so don't let him stop you from reading this book because it's still amazing!

And if you thought this book was good or if you aren't sure if you want to read this, let me just say that the second book (Unravel Me) is even better! By A LOT! And I grew to appreciate this book more after reading the second. 

I will do a review for Destroy Me (#1.5) and Unravel Me (#2) in the near future, so stay tuned for those!

Shatter Me is a definite must-read!

Stars: 4/5

Favorite Quotes:

"I spent my life folded between the pages of books.
In the absence of human relationships I formed bonds with paper characters. I lived love and loss through stories threaded in history; I experienced adolescence by association. My world is one interwoven web of words, stringing limb to limb, bone to sinew, thoughts and images all together. I am a being comprised of letters, a character created by sentences, a figment of imagination formed through fiction."

"His smile is laced with dynamite. 'Go to sleep.'
'Go to hell.'
He works his jaw. 'I''m working on it.'"

"Hate looks like everyone else until it smiles."

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Book Review: The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Book #1: The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Synopsis:

 Mara Dyer once believed she could run from her past.

She can't.

She used to think her problems were all in her head.

They aren't.

She couldn't imagine that after everything she's been through, the boy she loves would still be keeping secrets.

She's wrong.

In this gripping sequel to The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, the truth evolves and choices prove deadly.What will become of Mara Dyer next?

***
The Evolution of Mara Dyer is the second book in the Mara Dyer trilogy by Michelle Hodkin, and it is the first book I read this year. It starts up exactly where the previous book left off. If you didn't think Mara's life could get any weirder, you are wrong. This sequel increases the craziness by about 500 levels. Reading this book will make you just as confused by what is happening as Mara herself. There are a lot of questionable events that occur that make you wonder what is real and what isn't. It is the perfect mix of paranoia, mystery, romance, and action. 

If you are unfamiliar with the plot of these books, here is a brief summary without spoiling anything important: Mara Dyer is a 17 year old girl go gets in an accident with her boyfriend and two friends, but she is the only one to make it out of the accident alive. From there, Mara and her family move to Florida for a fresh start. After that things start to get...complicated. Mara starts seeing the ghosts of her dead friends and people keep dying around her. So what is her issue? Well, you find that out by reading, of course! Along the way we are also introduced to the infamous Noah Shaw. He's your typical bad boy--handsome, flawed, and seductive with just a touch of a romantic side. Needless to say, I fell for him pretty hard. 

In this book, things continue to evolve for Mara and her mysterious knack for making bad things happen. The ending takes a dark turn which I must say I was not expecting whatsoever. The characters develop wonderfully, and Hodkin is a gorgeous writer. It's hard for me to even say what my favorite thing about this book is because every aspect is so well-done. Hodkins had me hooked from the very first page, and trust me when I say that this book is insanely addicting. Once you start, you won't be able to stop until you finish. The dialogue can be witty or deeply beautiful. The characters are incredibly likable which I thought was great because so many female narrators annoy me, but I found Mara realistic and interesting.

There is so much potential for the final book in the trilogy, The Retribution of Mara Dyer which comes out Oct. 22, 2013. It is definitely a book I will be picking up on the day of release because I cannot wait to see how everything finishes. I highly, highly recommend this trilogy to YA book lovers! I admit I was skeptical of these books at first because I am generally not one to read anything categorized as paranormal romance, but I was pleasantly surprised in the best way possible. 

Stars: 5/5

Favorite Quotes:

“Everyone is a little crazy. The only difference between us and them is that they hide it better.” 

“We are far too screwed up for a goddamned love triangle.” 

“What do I sound like?" I asked, more breathily than I intended. God, so predictable.
He considered his answer for a moment before he gave it. "Dissonant," he said finally.
"Meaning?"
Another long pause. "Unstable."
Hmm.
He shook his head. "Not the way you're thinking," he said, the shadow of a smile on his lips. "In music, consonant chords are points of arrival. Rest. There's no tension," he tried to explain. "Most pop music hooks are consonant, which is why most people like them. They're catchy but interchangeable. Boring. Dissonant intervals, however, are full of tension," he said, holding my gaze. "You can't predict which way they're going to go. It makes limited people uncomfortable - frustrated, because they don't understand the point, and people hate what they don't understand. But the ones who get it," he said, lifting a hand to my face, "find it fascinating. Beautiful." He traced the shape of my mouth with his thumb. "Like you.” 

“Someone always says, 'Kids are mean.' 'Kids will be kids.' Which implies that the kid bullies will grow out of it someday." The muscles in his jaw tightened. His stare was unfocused and far away. "I don't think they do. I think kid bullies turn into adult bullies” 

Let's start this now!

Hello!
Sorry about the absence. I've finished quite a few books since my last post, and I still intend to review each one of them in the order that I finished! So my first review is coming up!
Look out for that and many to come! :)

~Veronica