Destroy Me by Tahereh Mafi

Destroy Me by Tahereh Mafi
Genre: Dystopia
Publisher: Harper
Publication: October 2nd
Page Count: 103

The Synopsis:
Perfect for the fans of Shatter Me who are desperately awaiting the release of Unravel Me, this novella-length digital original will bridge the gap between these two novels from the perspective of the villain we all love to hate, Warner, the ruthless leader of Sector 45.
In Tahereh Mafi’s Shatter Me, Juliette escaped from The Reestablishment by seducing Warner—and then putting a bullet in his shoulder. But as she’ll learn in Destroy Me, Warner is not that easy to get rid of. . .
Back at the base and recovering from his near-fatal wound, Warner must do everything in his power to keep his soldiers in check and suppress any mention of a rebellion in the sector. Still as obsessed with Juliette as ever, his first priority is to find her, bring her back, and dispose of Adam and Kenji, the two traitors who helped her escape. But when Warner’s father, The Supreme Commander of The Reestablishment, arrives to correct his son’s mistakes, it’s clear that he has much different plans for Juliette. Plans Warner simply cannot allow.
Set after Shatter Me and before its forthcoming sequel, Unravel Me, Destroy Me is a novella told from the perspective of Warner, the ruthless leader of Sector 45.

Least to say, I was peer pressured into reading this.  Geo from Auntie Spinelli Reads was very, very adamant that I read this as soon as I can because--WARNER!!!  And if you've not read her very fangirly review of Destroy Me, le click here.   Even before then, I had heard nothing other than Team Warner.  I was confused; how could I remotely fall for some twisted psychopath from Shatter Me?  How delusional everyone must be to like him!  Did these people read the book right?  I will admit that--while I did fall a little for Adam--I wasn't 100% convinced with him.  So, after winning an ebook of Destroy Me from Geo, I decided that I should read it and give Warner a chance.  I had nothing to lose. 

So . . . here goes . . .

And possibly--

 
Because WARNER!!

Destroy Me is not only a perfect example of how an author can manipulate the emotions of an audience, but also make us judge a character before we even get to meet or know them.  How in the world Mafi did this in one short novella, I have no idea.  I myself feel bad that I judged Warner before I got to see his side of the story.  He may not be a sweetheart or be sentimental, but his complexity was incredible.  So he wasn't 100% bad guy, but he also wasn't 100% good guy.  He was in the middle, but there's a reason behind his behavior and stone-cold facade.  But I don't want to say too much that I'd ruin it for other who've not read this novella yet.

The similarity between Warner and Juliette was uncanny.  I didn't realize the similarity until Warner actually brought it up in the novella.  But when I did realize it, I was blown away.  The little romantic in me was going crazy over this piece of information.  Also, Warner is MAD for Juliette!  He loves her.  He just has a different way of expressing his affections.  Mafi expertly wove their lives together and made for an interesting back story that would come into play in Unravel Me (which I am extremely excited for and impatient to read).  In Shatter Me, I thought that Warner's supposed affectionate feelings toward Juliette were just--I don't know--fake?  No, just  part of his obsession with her, I guess.  I didn't think that he actually love-loved her.  So, in all, it was great to get into Warner's mind.

And do any of you realize how talented Tahereh Mafi is?  I was in love with her writing in Shatter Me.  I found it to be a little much at times, but I was in heaven reading the writing.  I jumped into Destroy Me expecting there to be the same kind of writing, but boy, was I wrong!  Warner had such a unique and different voice from Juliette, and not only did it surprised me, but I was glad for it.  It wouldn't have made sense for Warner to have the same voice as Juliette, right?  I'm not saying that her writing wasn't as amazing in this novella--I just mean to say that the versatility of her writing is amazing and probably knows no bounds.

Destroy Me may just be a short novella, but it that doesn't mean to say that it was dull or pointless.  I felt as if it were a privilege to be inside Warner's mind.  It was such a private thing, Warner's mind, and it was fantastic.  I actually . . . felt for the bad guy.  I had feelings . . . for the villain.  Crazy, right?  I can't tell you if I'm exactly Team Warner yet; he still hasn't proven himself to me yet, but if you've read Shatter Me, I highly suggest you read this novella!

Four Splashes

Waiting on Wednesday: Unravel Me

This is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine where bloggers like me can show you what makes our hands all grabby.

tick, tick, tick, tick, tick
it's almost
time for war.

Juliette has escaped to Omega Point. It is a place for people like her—people with gifts—and it is also the headquarters of the rebel resistance.

She's finally free from The Reestablishment, free from their plan to use her as a weapon, and free to love Adam. But Juliette will never be free from her lethal touch.

Or from Warner, who wants Juliette more than she ever thought possible.

In this exhilarating sequel to Shatter Me, Juliette has to make life-changing decisions between what she wants and what she thinks is right. Decisions that might involve choosing between her heart—and Adam's life.

You guiizzzee!  THIS BOOK!!  Ever since I read Shatter Me because my blogger/twitter friend, Monica from Cover Analysis, let me borrow her SIGNED copy of the book, I cannot stop thinking about Juliette and Adam and Warner. (Team Adam! WOOT!)  Reading Mafi's writing is like being snuggled by this giant fluffy blanket that tastes like marshmallows and smells like clean linen.  Yes.  That is her writing.  And I would like to return to that.  So, I cannot wait for this book. 

Plus, look at that cover!

Tell me what you're waiting on this fine Wednesday!

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

The Synopsis:
Juliette hasn’t touched anyone in exactly 264 days.
The last time she did, it was an accident, but The Reestablishment locked 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.



My Thoughts:
Here is another example of a book I decided to put on the back burner just because it was dystopian.  Well, thanks to my buddy ol' pal, Monica, over at Cover Analysis, she sent her copy of this book to read because she loved it so much.  Also, she said it was like X-Men and I may or might not have went a little crazy at the thought of that.  (If you don't know, I'm pretty much in love with X-Men.  Actually, if it has anything to do with superheroes, I'm all over that stuff.)

Juliette is a damaged girl.  She's been cooped up in this psych ward/jailhouse for just about a year and she hasn't seen or touched anyone in a while.  List time she did touch someone, that person died, and she's almost content to live a life where she won't have to hurt anyone ever again.  She's never had somebody love her, and somewhere deep, deep, deep inside of her, she craves it.  But she can't have that love when she's a monster.

Lemme just say right off the bat here that Mafi's writing was spectacular.  I soaked up each and every single word, basking in the wonderful glow of all the similes and metaphors and whatnot.  The only author that rivals her technique would be Lauren Oliver, I think.  I've never read something so deep before.  If there was a reading geek heaven, Mafi's writing would be it.  The only think that irked me would be how she didn't write out the numbers.  For example, instead of one, it was 1.  It wasn't that big of a problem that I wanted to toss the book aside; it just rubbed me the wrong way a little.

There was plenty of action and adventure tied in with lies and mysteries that left me going 'Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes . . .'.  I tore through all the pages.  I wanted to know what would happen.  I wanted to devour it.  Adam, I thought was so badass, a lot of the time, rocking his tattoos and shooting off his gun occasionally.

Speaking of Adam, I'd like to talk a little about the romance and such of this book.  Alright, it was absolutely adorable, okay?  Just, met-your-heart adorable.  Adam was so sweet and he just swooped and made Juliette realize she isn't that monster she thought herself to be.  Sadly, I felt like it just happened too fast.  It was one of those inst-love situations that bugged me a little bit.  Instantly, they were devoted to one another and all mushy, touchy-feely.  Also, I was a little disappointed with Adam.  Here I thought that he was going to be some really hot guy, completely irresistible.  But, I, for some strange reason, wasn't attracted to him. 

Shatter Me is a book of self-discovery.  It's a book of the impossible love and a world built around an evil society.  I traveled along this journey that Juliette took, getting all depressed when she cried, my heart beating faster when she was in an adrenaline-filled situation.  It was beautiful.  I'm not sure what else I can say about the writing because there just aren't that many words to describe it's intricate beauty.  If you haven't picked up this book yet, I hope you do because it certainly has made one of my top favorites for 2012.