Review: Restore Me (Shatter Me #4) by Tahereh Mafi

Dear Tahereh,

Are you sure this book is really entitled “Restore Me”? Because this didn’t restore me AT ALL. This DESTROYED AND SHATTERED ME. Which, now that I think about it, is the title of the whole series so I should’ve expected that.

Love,
Kai

Title: Restore Me (Shatter Me #4) by Tahereh Mafi
Release Date: March 6, 2018
Published by: HarperCollins
Source: Bought (Kindle)

Buy online: National Bookstore


Summary:
Juliette Ferrars thought she'd won. She took over Sector 45, was named the new Supreme Commander, and now has Warner by her side. But she's still the girl with the ability to kill with a single touch—and now she's got the whole world in the palm of her hand. When tragedy hits, who will she become? Will she be able to control the power she wields and use it for good?

I thought I was done with this series. I will admit that I was surprised when I found out there was another book because I always thought stories that could’ve ended the way they did must be left that way, and I've read quite a few that felt forced and was continued for the sake of having more books because it was popular, but I am so glad this series have more books still! It’s been years and I was hit with the realization that I craved for a continuation, and now here I am, a big ball of feelings.

The story starts where Ignite Me ended, and Juliette now faces life as Sector 45’s Supreme Commander. She thought it was going to be easy, but being a leader is putting her through such a tough test, not just of confidence but her ability to lead. She’s always lived such an enclosed, sheltered life, mostly disconnected to humans that she finds herself lacking in many ways. Warner, on the other hand, is facing enough challenges on his own. He isn’t the unfeeling commander anymore, but instead is hit with unexpected grief for his father’s death.

I love how Tahereh managed to move forward with the story without it feeling forced or making it look artificial with a shallow plotline. Without giving much away, what transpired gave me something to look forward to, and made me realize how much more there is to tell about the characters I love. 

The pacing in this book was much slower, but I’m glad it was because it gave me time to soak in what was happening in the aftermath. The sense of nostalgia was there upon seeing so many familiar characters and reading of their life after the events in Ignite Me. And though many things are changing as the story moves forward, I am glad that some things remain constant, like how Kenji is still an insufferable dork! His sense of humor gives me a brief break from Warner and Juliette's emotions. It felt more intense because the alternating POV between Juliette and Warner gradually increases not just the tension but the conflict not just between them, but with how they deal with things. There was so much work to do, so much to fix that sometimes they didn't know where to start. What happened in the previous book wasn’t an ending but a beginning of something much bigger and more complicated. 

Going through Juliette’s fragmented thoughts on paper and seeing those broken lines, feeling so much from it made me realize how much I missed being in their world, no matter how dark it felt compared to the other books in the series.

I would like to think that with the slow pace, we are instead given a chance to delve more into Juliette’s and Warner’s psyche, their worries and fears, their doubts and insecurities, their feelings and  all the aspects that made up their relationship. So much has been left unsaid and not discussed that it was one of the integral points of the story that left me so frustrated. Without giving away anything major, I think this book affected me more because I am presented with so much emotions and thoughts going back and forth that I can’t help but absorb and be immersed with them. I see faults and flaws. I see shortcomings. I see things that gave me more perspective when it comes to both Juliette and Warner. They felt more human here and more in touch with themselves than in the 3 books combined. 

I am delighted by the plot twist right in the middle of the book. I never thought it would come but when it was there, I had to brace myself because now the story is heading somewhere. New characters were introduced and with it comes the intrigue and that sense of foreboding that things really will start unraveling soon. In case no one's noticed in my tweets, I totally love Nazeera! And I feel like Juliette's world is expanding, and with it comes frightening truths about not just herself but Warner as well.

And that ending. THAT. ENDING. I can't believe the book ended that way! That ending, after I sat there speechless for a full minute, made me scramble to look at the calendar and count the days until the next book comes out because I have so many questions that needs to be answered! What a freaking roller coaster of emotions! One moment I was so happy and giggly and then the next I want to pull my hair out of my head and hit the table so hard because of extreme frustration. Tahereh gives me life only to kill me over and over again.

Restore Me is a great set up for what is sure to be an action packed, intriguing fifth book. Reading it felt like meeting an old friend after a long time and catching up because there's so much more I have to know. What an exhilarating ride that was. And what an amazing way to introduce me back to a series I love so dearly. Restore Me delivered, and boy did it deliver so much. Now I sit here and wait for another year to read the next book!

Kai's favorite quote:

“I have a great fear of drowning in the ocean of my own silence.”

Content (plot, story flow, character):

I just love this book so much. I missed Juliette. I missed Warner. I missed Kenji. I missed literally everyone in this book that I was overcome with emotions the moment I flipped to the last page. IS THAT ALL? WHERE IS THE NEXT PAGE?!

Stunning: Worthy of a Goddess' Praise!

Book Cover:
I am so glad that cover is consistent with the design of the other four books! You guys don't know how relieved I am for that.

Read More

Recap: Tahereh Mafi, Ransom Riggs and Veronica Rossi Book Signing in Manila. #VTRinPH

Yes, there's really a hashtag for the event. How awesome is that?

I didn't sleep much the previous night, because this was easily one of the most anticipated events in my YA book blogging/ book lover life. THREE New York Times bestselling authors in one event? National Bookstore just keeps on arranging these awesome events and now they've brought the big guns out with this! I've met Tahereh and Ransom the previous year, but what upped the excitement for me was the fact that I'd also get to meet THE Veronica Rossi herself. Filipinos have always been enthusiastic about events like this, and if you don't believe me, let me show you this:

At 10 am, the mall was open for about 10 minutes and I see this. PEOPLE! TONS OF PEOPLE!

I arrived at the venue with Leslie @ The Bibliophile Kid before Powerbooks even opened! I always look forward to meeting these wonderful authors up close and interacting with them and despite the lack of sleep, that got be going throughout the day. And I am always thankful for the chance given to me to be able to at least ask them questions about their works and the way they write. Couple that with the fact that I get to see my blogger friends again and I knew it was bound to be an amazing event!

And then they arrive, and I start shaking because that anticipation to see them seriously gets to you and when you see them up close, larger than life, you think "Oh my God, I love this author's book and now he/she's in front of me."

A quick rundown of things that happened:

- Before the Q&A started, Ransereh opted to share a mic. MY HEART! A few things had to be rushed so we started asking questions almost immediately. Ransom and Tahereh's flight arrived here in Manila at 4 am and they were clearly jetlagged, but we still had fun!
- We prepared shirts filled with quotes from the authors books and as Ransom said, it was clearly okay to check our bodies out.
- I had a chance to ask V. Rossi a VERY LONG question, and it was this: "Perry's from Outside and Aria's from Reverie and they were initially at odds with each other, with their own prejudices for each other to deal with, but then they realize that they aren't really different. When you were writing the novel, did you intend for your story to explore this particular kind of "social/cultural differences"?" And V. Rossi said yes, it was her intention from the start, and she wanted her characters to eventually deal with their differences themselves.
- V. Rossi has a new adult book coming out under the pen name Noelle August, and for her it started with a Skype conversation with a friend and they decided to write it. For her, it was a fun book to write and when asked if she had difficulties in transitioning from writing YA dystopian to NA, she said it wasn't, because the UtNS series has more of herself in it than her NA book.
- For those who are wondering if Tahereh knows who Juliette was going to end up with while she was writing the novel, she said she did. Hah!
- When asked which characters Tahereh would like to be friends with in their books, she said Kenji in her series, who is like a combination of her brothers, Roar from V. Rossi's series and Emma from Ransom's Miss Peregrine series.
- Ransom had a hard time answering this question: If his books were made into a picture, what picture would it be? He said it'll be a real heart, beating and with blood. (Creepy!)
- Ransom said he didn't really write controversial books, so when people disagree with what he's written, he still reads those messages!
- When asked what message V. Rossi wants her readers to get out of her UtNS series it was that she wanted her readers to take away the one they wanted to hear the most, but in the end there are two ideas: treat others well, love and kindness and that one can be happy and find happiness. Home, and the idea of it. Is it a place? The people in your life? Home means you.
- Also, people tend to say how Juliette is weak and whiny in the books, but Tahereh intentionally wrote her that way because she wanted people to see how she grows. Tahereh likes this idea of women who are physically weak but strong mentally, and that's what Juliette was.

(Thanks to Louisse of The Soul Sisters & Kate from The Bookaholic blurbs for some of the points from the rundown)

We also had the chance to have our books signed and we also got to take our pictures with these amazing authors. V. Rossi is really nice, and I like how both Ransom and Tahereh were still chatting with us despite being jetlagged!

More deets while they were signing:

- There were literally piles of books on V. Rossi's feet because she had a lot to sign! And I like how she puts messages in every single one of them, including a temp tattoo and a bookmark!
- When Ransom ran out of books to sign, he was waving around his silver sharpie and he said he wanted to sign more. We offered our shirts.
- Ransom calls it "defacing humans". Tahereh defaces books, he defaces humans!
- I wanted to make small talk with Tahereh, but when I was in front of her, I forgot what I was about to say. So glad she recognized me and remembered seeing me last year as well. And she's got awesome shoes and I love her Kate Spade bag that looks like a typewriter! (Check out Louisse's recap so you can see Tahereh's shoes!)

Also! I was wearing a shirt with a Tahereh quote and she signed it! And I ran over to V. Rossi and she signed my shirt too! Behold the awesomeness:

I wanted to go to the public signing with my fellow book blogger friends but in between the crowd and waking up real early just so I can be there in time to give out the shirts and register for the forum, I was too tired to try and squeeze myself in and battle with the sea of people. But you gotta see it! What a sight. There was more than 2000 people waiting in line just to have their books signed. Amazing!

Photo from Kate of The Bookaholic Blurbs

Overall it was a day well spent with friends, book lovers and fellow bookworms. Laughing with these people and discussing our mutual passion for the books that we read is what I'm really looking forward to doing whenever we have a signing to attend. The perks is just the icing to the cake, and we're lucky to be able to get this chance to meet and talk to our favorite authors! I cannot thank you enough, National Bookstore, for organizing this!

Check out other signing recaps here:

Louisse of The Soul Sisters
Kate of The Bookaholic Blurbs
Chyna of Lite-Rate-Ture
Jesselle of The Lifelong Bookworm
Hazel of Stay Bookish
Lyra of Defiantly Deviant
Kazhy of My Library in the Making

As an extra, if you don't mind dizzying videos and hearing me say "awww" and basically swoon at the three of them, check this video with a lovely message from the three of them:

Read More

Review: Ignite Me (Shatter Me #3) by Tahereh Mafi

I can proudly say this: I HAVE SURVIVED.

All the fears.
All the gasping.
All the screaming.
All the frustration. (And mostly me hitting my mattress repeatedly.)
All the feels.

Every single blow Tahereh Mafi can give to her readers in this final installment of her wonderful, wonderful series.

I have survived them all, and still I wish it didn't end.

Title: Ignite Me (Shatter Me #3) by Tahereh Mafi
Release Date: February 4th 2014 
Published by: HarperCollins
Source: Bought (Amazon Kindle Store)
Buy: Amazon | Book Depository

Summary:

Juliette now knows she may be the only one who can stop the Reestablishment. But to take them down, she'll need the help of the one person she never thought she could trust: Warner. And as they work together, Juliette will discover that everything she thought she knew-about Warner, her abilities, and even Adam-was wrong.

Before I started reading Ignite Me, I have this really irrational fear of plunging to the novel head on and finding out everyone ends up dead at the end. I felt like I had to prepare myself for any possible thing that might blindside me. But the funny thing was, the moment I've read that first line? The fear just became a really strong desire to see the story to the very end, no matter what happens.

I've said this before, and I will say this again: Tahereh Mafi is a brilliant writer. What fascinated me with the entire series was more than just the plot, but Tahereh's ability to get into your head with her writing, those disconnected sentences without punctuation marks? The striked out words? She has this ability to make you unable to breathe just by writing. One moment you are happily soaking those warm fuzzy feelings and the next you want to hit your mattress repeatedly because of frustration.

A lot of things changed in this novel. I think Ignite Me is a story of change for everyone but ultimately for Juliette. I tend to think of her as this whiny, emotional girl in the first two books and I loved how in this book, she admitted her faults, looked deep inside and accepted the things she was lacking, the good and the bad. She thought of things in life and love, sorted them out even though it's hard and painful and opened herself to change. She examined her feelings carefully and made decisions for herself. Juliette grew up, and she grew stronger by embracing her faults and putting the effort to make herself better. That moment of self-realization, of finally letting go and breaking free from the walls she'd put up herself and not letting anyone stop her from doing so is one of the most satisfying points for me in the story.

The following quote just about sums up Juliette in this book. It was just a line, just a sentence with eight words, and yet the impact is so great.

"I am enough, and I always will be."

I've long since pledged my allegiance to Warner. From the very first book, there's something about that sinister, stoic facade that intrigued me, and I wanted to see who that broken, struggling boy behind the cold, seemingly merciless persona really was. Find out more about himself, the things that make him laugh and cry, his habits. And it was so hard to see him break even more. If he did so in Unravel Me, he bared himself more in Ignite Me. You see a different side of him, see the pain, the hurt, the doubts plaguing him, the uncertainty, his love for Juliette and the intensity of it, what he's willing to sacrifice for it. And I loved how I got to see more of his vulnerability, that human side, that unapologetic attitude, that acceptance of who he was and what he has done, that brilliance. Every so often I just go "Warner, oh Warner." and sigh. Because he is, by no means, perfect. But his imperfections are the things that made readers like me love him. The quote below is a good example, every single time Warner opens his mouth, the words he utters almost always gives the reader a more complete look at who he really is, the way he thinks and feels.

"I have never claimed to live by any set of principles," Warner says to me. "I've never claimed to be right, or good, or even justified in my actions. I have been forced to do terrible things in my life, love, and I am seeking neither your forgiveness nor your approval. Because I do not have the luxury of philosophizing over scruples when I'm forced to act on basic instinct every day."

Surprisingly, I find myself agreeing with the way the other characters changed in the novel. Reading Fracture Me somehow prepared me of the potential direction the story is headed, especially with Adam. I understand him, and sometimes I don't. Maybe because I loved the way Warner thinks, and it was drastically different from the way Adam does. The way he responded to a lot of things that happened in this book made me analyze his character as a whole, from the first book up to this one. And though he too is imperfect, I find that his imperfections are what actually made him unlovable at times. Also, if there's any other character in this book that I loved, it is, without a doubt, Kenji Kishimoto. He wasn't just the funny, happy go lucky Kenji that he was. He was a leader, a friend and a brother all at once. He had this ability to just make the most unbearable of times bearable for everyone. Those one liners, that strong personality. He was amazing and terribly funny!

People died, secrets were revealed, a new version of selves emerged, evil was defeated, things were destroyed to pave the way for a new beginning. Tahereh Mafi just went ahead and put together an amazing final book in a beloved series. I loved how everything just came together in a really good way in the end, and not just because I got the ending that I wanted, but because it was an ending that was satisfying and it made sense. Just when you thought you can't get enough of the romance, intense action scenes and sequences that will make you hold your breath appears and then moments where you just want to fan yourself pop up. I have never laughed, cried out of frustration and blushed as much as I did while reading this book. I was in a perpetual state of happiness long after I've flipped to the end and then I wondered "was all of it real?". It was like a dream. A very good dream I would gladly dream over and over.

And so I say thank you, Tahereh Mafi, for writing this series. Thank you for bringing to life such a wonderful world and a diverse set of characters. Thank you for the laughter, the tears, those evil moments when you don't know what's gonna happen anymore. It was hard to part with the characters I have loved, and bidding farewell to this world is a bittersweet experience.

Also, thank you for Chapter Fifty-Five.

My rating:

Content (plot, story flow, character):

I have overflowing love for Tahereh Mafi right now. She can have all the butterflies in the world.

Stunning: Worthy of a Goddess' Praise!

Book Cover:
YES. Just YES.

Read More