Defy Me (Shatter Me)
2019
- fantasy fiction
- science fiction
- soldiers, fiction
- children's fiction
The story
Juliette and Warner’s story continues in the thrilling fifth installment of Tahereh Mafi’s New York Times bestselling Shatter Me series. Juliette Ferrars isn’t who she thinks she is. Nothing in her world is what it seemed. She thought she’d finally defeated the Reestablishment. She thought she’d finally taken control of her life, her power, and her pain. But Juliette has only just begun to unravel a lifetime of lies, and she finds herself faced with a familiar choice: Be a weapon. Or be a warrior. This time, she’s not alone. Stronger, braver, and more resilient than ever, Juliette will fight for life and love with her friends by her side—but first, she has to survive the war being waged against her mind: She has to remember who she was. Narrated by Juliette, Warner, and Kenji Kishimoto, this gripping novel will leave readers hungry for Imagine Me, the sixth novel in the series.
What it’s like
Restless, close-up interiority scattered across the page: short fragmented lines, shifting type, and words struck through mid-thought, so the text itself feels unsettled. The palette is dystopian grey and bruised blue, with flashes of heat in the fight scenes and colder, quieter stretches in ruined streets and sterile rooms. Three narrators rotate, so the mood keeps shifting between Juliette's panic, Warner's brooding tenderness, and Kenji's wry humour cutting through the tension. The pace is brisk, with long chase and confrontation sequences giving way to intimate, lingering moments. The register is urgent, emotionally charged and a little melodramatic, with a sense of identity slipping and being rebuilt. Violence is frequent and sometimes brutal, including captivity, torture, battle injuries and some gore. Romance brings kissing and charged physical tension but no explicit sex. It suits a late-night read, a weekend binge or a long flight when you want to be swept up. It's for YA dystopia readers who want rebellion, romance and an unreliable sense of self.
More books like Defy Me (Shatter Me)
Closest in mood, pacing and theme. Tell us why you loved Defy Me (Shatter Me)and we’ll explain which ones fit you.
