Title: Restore Me (Shatter Me #4)
Author: Tahereh Mafi
Publisher: HarperCollins
Release Date: March 6th, 2018
Standalone/Series: Series
Genre: New Adult – Fantasy – Dystopian
Goodreads link
My rating in stars: 4 stars
My rating in words: I really liked it
WHAT IT’S ABOUT:
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?
MY THOUGHTS (SPOILER-FREE):
“Like, you thought… you could just kill Anderson and all of a sudden, bam, world peace?”
Sometimes, a reader can become attached to certain characters more than to the actual story. This was the case for me, where I ADORED the original Shatter Me trilogy because of the interesting characters and character development, despite the major lack of worldbuilding. So when we got the news that we would get more of these characters, I was thrilled. I mean, more of these characters and a chance to get some more worldbuilding in? Sounds perfect right?
And rest assured, we get that worldbuilding. Though this book is a lot of set-up for the rest of the trilogy, we get A TON of worldbuilding in. The Shatter Me world is given more definition and questions that the original trilogy left unanswered, are tackled here. We especially take the question “How will a 16-year old girl, albeit one with super strength, rule THE ENTIRE WORLD?” and really roll with it. Because Juliette asks herself that question every day. She kind of underestimated it, and as she learns more about the world, we as readers learn with her. And I loved it. Is there plenty of material still left in this world for this new trilogy? The answer is a resounding YES.
But what I hadn’t actually anticipated myself (and I really should have known better), is the effect that all this new information would have on my beloved characters. Because a new trilogy means more drama. More pain. More emotions, good and bad. I mean, I could not just picture these characters as happily ever after in mind anymore, because here they are, still in the middle of a freaking dystopia and drama inevitably ensues. So what I’m saying is, if you love these characters, prepare for heartbreak.
What more can I say without spoiling anything? New characters are introduced: some you’ll love and some you’ll hate. There is so much more diversity. Warner and Juliette get alternating POV’s and honestly, I don’t know which one I want to hug more. Kenji is still the best wingman ever and always there to provide the humor and the support, but he’s also given some more depth here. Warner and Adam scenes. Warner and Kenji scenes. Juliette and her haircut. Pain. Death. Drama. And major cliffhanger alert!
Overall, I still recommend this book if you loved the Shatter Me trilogy. I’d like to convince you about the benefits of waiting to binge-read them all, so you won’t have the pain of waiting so long before you can find out if they’ll even get their happily ever after. But honestly, I don’t have that patience myself, so who am I to talk? Let’s just embrace the pain together!
FAVORITE QUOTES:
“The destruction of the world didn’t happen overnight, and neither will saving it.”
“Idiots are highly flammable, love. Let them all burn in hell.”
“In the steady thrum that accompanies quiet, my mind is unkind to me. I think too much. I feel, perhaps, far more than I should. It would be only a slight exaggeration to say that my goal in life is to outrun my mind, my memories.”
“Who says you can’t be cute and kick ass at the same time?” Kenji winks at me. “I do it every day.”
“I love that the girl who blushes so easily in my arms is the same one who would kill a man for hurting me.”
I haven’t yet purchased this book but I’m planning on doing that this summer for sure. I can’t say this for sure since I haven’t read the book yet but sounds like since the original trilogy Tahereh Mafi maybe has grown even more as an author. 🙂
I hope you’ll love it just as much as the original trilogy! I think Tahereh definitely managed to expand her world even more and keep the story fresh at the same time.
Loved your review! I have to say, I wasn’t prepared for the heartbreak and the ending that book brought us haha, NOT AT ALL. I still very much loved Kenji, I think he will remain my favorite in the entire series. I can’t WAIT to know what happens next, because let’s face it, that ending was just CRUEL.
Thanks Marie! Same, I think I should have know that a new trilogy meant more heartbreak, but I wasn’t expecting THAT. But it just means Tahereh still manages to surprise us I guess 🙂 Kenji is absolutely amazing and I hope he gets all the love in the next books. And yeah, that ending HURT!
Haha I love Juliette’s hair cutting scene! And when she gets drunk on Anderson’s liquor?? It’s one of my favorite scenes in the whole book 😀 I’m also so glad that Mafi decided to give Kenji a bit more depth. I love him as the comic relief but after a while, you kind of want more for a character. Hopefully the next one will be just as good! Lovely review, Lindsey!
Laura @BlueEyeBooks
Oh yes, that scene was AMAZING! It felt like a long time coming for sure. And totally agree about giving Kenji more depth – he’s a great character and deserves the best writing 🙂