Review: Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi

Genre: YA, Dystopian
Publication: 02/04/2015 by HarperCollins
Series: Shatter Me #3
Pages: 409 Pages
Source: Hardcover
Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars
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Goodreads Summary
With Omega Point destroyed, Juliette doesn’t know if the rebels, her friends, or even Adam are alive. But that won’t keep her from trying to take down The Reestablishment once and for all. Now she must rely on Warner, the handsome commander of Sector 45. The one person she never thought she could trust. The same person who saved her life. He promises to help Juliette master her powers and save their dying world . . . but that’s not all he wants with her.

The Shatter Me series is perfect for fans who crave action-packed young adult novels with tantalizing romance like Divergent by Veronica Roth, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, and Legend by Marie Lu. Tahereh Mafi has created a captivating and original story that combines the best of dystopian and paranormal, and was praised by Publishers Weekly as “a gripping read from an author who’s not afraid to take risks.” Now this final book brings the series to a shocking and satisfying end.

My Thoughts
I finally read this book! How long have I been saying I was going to read this book? Months! I did it, another series done. High fives for me. And surprisingly, I really enjoyed this book. If you have been following my reviews, then you know that I didn't overly enjoy the first 2 books in this series. I only found Shatter Me and Unravel Me to be just okay and problematic so I was very surprised on how much I enjoyed Ignite Me. 

Now, I still don't think Ignite Me is perfect. I still find the romance to be quite problematic. Warner did grow on me but I do still think the whole relationship isn't the healthiest. However, I can look past all of that if I am enjoying the story. This book is about 75% romance love triangle drama and I couldn't get enough. I felt like I was reading a soap opera. I can see why so many people are into this series now.  I am a sucker from romance, what can I say?

I did find that this book wrapped up very quickly. The action at the end only consisted of a few short chapters. I wish that some more attention was put on how they were going to overthrow the Resistance and some of the aftermath from what occurred. It all just seemed too easy. However, I am still in shock that I actually really enjoyed his book and I am excited to pick up other this the Tahereh Mafi writes. 

Review: Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

I decided to pick up the second book in the Shatter Me series, it happened. Unravel Me is the sequel to Shatter Me which follows our heroine Juliette and she just so happens to have the ability to kill with just her touch. Now, this is the second book in a series so go check out my review of Shatter Me to see my thoughts on how the series began. 

Now, I think I enjoyed Unravel Me. It was entertaining but I wasn't super invested in the story. I think one of my biggest issues with this series is that I don't click with the writing style. I find the author over used metaphors and it got tedious to read. However, I know many people really enjoy this style but I am just not a fan. No shame, I like what I like. What I did enjoy was the twists and turns this book delivered. There was definitely some VERY exciting plot revels that I honestly didn't see coming. That is what kept me going throughout the novel. I really enjoyed how the story built and am excited to see where it is going.

The other thing that bugs me at times throughout the book is the romance. There is a major love triangle developing which I find is a plot line that is way to overused in YA. Realistically, how many people have really been in an intense love triangle? Very few. However, I can understand why this one is building. In one corner you have Adam, the guy that Juliette really loves and cares for. Then you have Warner who she has a passionate connection with, BUT is also kind of the villain (Or maybe a developing anti-hero). Both of these guys and their relationships with Juliette bother me. Adam holds Juliette back from reaching her full potential, while Warner is very obsessive over her. I don't think either of these guys are right for Juliette, and I would rather her dump them both and be a strong independent women.  

Conclusions: Overall, I enjoyed Unravel Me but wasn't blown away. The plot is interesting and I am very interested to see how this series wraps up in Ignite Me. However, I don't gel with the writing style. I would also like to say that this is a romance book in a dystopian world. I really focuses on the romance, which can be a good or bad thing depending on what your are expecting or looking for.As long as you are in the mood for some romance, this is a good option. I do enjoy this series, I don't love it but I would recommend to YA lovers.

Rating: 3.25 / 5 

(Unravel Me - If X-Men was a romance)

Shatter Me - Tahereh Mafi

Shatter Me follows a teenage girl named Juliette who had a special power, her touch is lethal. Our story begins where she is locked up in a prison/mental institution and hasn't spoken to anyone in nearly a year. Juliette is broken and believes herself to be a monster. She spends her days looking out her window at the destroyed world outside. Which has changed due to environmental impacts caused by humans. When Juliette gets a roommate, her life is changed forever. 

Honestly, in the beginning I wasn't enjoying this book. I had a very hard time getting into the writing style. I found the metaphors were overused along with certain phrases being crossed out. However, as the story went along it grew on me and I did enjoy it at the end. Once you get passed the beginning and into the meat of the story, it takes lots of interesting turns and keeps you interested. 

One other issue I had was with the love story (because no book can go without a love story :s). There was a lot of love, and not as much action as I would have hoped. I like to read dystopian because of the world building; however, Juliette and Adam were the center of the story. I also found it annoying that they kept thinking about having sex while on the run. Who has time to make out and have sex while running for their lives. Nobody! 

Don't get me wrong I did still enjoyed this book. Warner is a great villain, he is powerful and persistent. I want to know more about him and about what his plans really are for Juliette. Another thing I really like is that I don't know who to trust. You think Warner is the bad guy but is that really the truth? We shall see in future books.

Conclusions: I did actually enjoy this book. It was hard to get into but worth it once you get into it. I see a lot of potential in the rest of the series. I already own them so hopefully I get to them soon. I can see why lots of people love this book, and how others hate it as well. If you want to read it I recommend you give it a shot! 

Rating: 3.5/5  (Anyone else getting an X-Men Vibe?)

The Scorch Trials - James Dashner

 

     The Scorch Trials is the squeal to the Maze Runner, therefore I am not going to say too much about the plot. Since it is a sequel, it takes place after the events in The Maze Runner and the Gladers have a new phase of challenges to face from "Wicked".

   

    I liked The Maze Runner, but I didn't love it. I feel the way same about The Scorch Trials. It was okay, but I didn't like it as much as I wanted to. I felt like the action in this book was slow and I had a hard time getting into the story. My biggest gripe with this book was that I had a really hard time envisioning the descriptions that Dashner was giving us. Especially during the final action sequences, I had a very hard time picturing and even understanding what was even going on. It took me a lot longer than it should have to read just on these gripes alone. I am going to continue with the series, just because this book still leaves you with so many unanswered questions it will drive me nuts if I don't read The Death Cure. (and maybe even The Kill Order).

    Conclusions: I can see this series going downhill quickly. I am very worried about the amount of unanswered questions I'll have at the end. The Scorch Trials were suppose to be exciting and I just couldn't get into it. It will be unlikely that I recommend this series to anyone.

   Rating: 2.75/5 Stars (Do I even like this series?)

The 100 - Kass Morgan

     

   You may know this book from the CW series that everybody seems to be binge watching on Netflix. I read this book with high hopes, it was made into a TV show so it has to be good right? That wasn't exactly how it went however. 

   The 100 is the first book in a series that follows a group of 100 teen criminals that were sent back to Earth after it became uninhabitable. The story takes place in the future where the remainder of the human race is living in a spaceship, The Colony, in Earths orbit. The teens have to figure out how to survive, while love interests blossom in true YA fashion. 

            I was underwhelmed with The 100. It felt like the first half of a book, not just the first installment. What I found the most frustrating was the world building, which was majorly lacking. I was confused about the law system on The Colony, it didn't seem to have a lot of structure for something so influential to the novel. Another gripe that I have is,  if the human race was so endangered, due to Earth being uninhabitable, then why were they putting HUNDREDS of teenagers to death due of petty crimes?  I just didn't understand the justification for that and it really put me off the book. 

Conclusions: The 100 is not the worst book I have every read and it was mildly entertaining if you can look past plot holes and like some adventure with lots of romance. I don't intend to continue this series, I may however watch the TV show on Netflix. 

Rating: 2/5 Stars (Not the Worst, Just Meh)