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

Restore Me (Shatter Me Book 4)

Series : Shatter Me
Volume : #4 of 6+
Year Published : 2018
Genre : YA, Romance, Dystopian, Sci-Fi
Formats : eBook / Paperback / Hardcover / Audiobook
# of Pages : 435 pages (Hardcover)

Review

Note : I’ve strived to make this spoiler-free for the book itself, but for the series as a whole the summary above does contain spoilers for the main plot resolution of Ignite Me.

The Shatter Me series was originally going to be three volumes, but it’s since been expanded and this volume marks a turning point for the series. That said, it remains at about the same level of quality as Ignite Me. Which is to say, quite good, if you’ve enjoyed the series up to this point.

A new addition is Warner’s perspective- the book switches back and forth between Juliette’s POV and Warner’s, switching off with each new chapter. This fresh approach is handled fairly well and he seems consistent in characterization. I do feel that some of the mystique of Warner and his moral ambiguity is mostly gone, save for a few secrets he’s holding that may effect Juliette.

I like that there are some new characters introduced. There is finally one more female character of note aside from Juliette. That’s been a long time in the making. She’s a strong-willed and intriguing addition to the cast.

Kenji, probably my favorite character of the series, has many great moments and bits of fun dialogue as usual.

The love triangle of the second and third books is fully over (it was basically over in Ignite Me though, as well.) Moving forward through the plot, my problem is with the improbability of Juliette being the leader of a whole country. She is just as insecure and kind of clueless about the responsibilities therein as she was in previous books. She’s grown for sure, but not quite enough for her lofty leadership position- and the other characters accepting her as their leader- to be at all plausible. I mean this is YA, so it’s not a huge issue and probably quite empowering for young girls to read about. But still, just something that stood out to me as not ringing quite right.

This issue is addressed, at least in part by the end of the book though. Something far more believable starts to unfold. There’s also a very big plot twist at the end that has a lot of potential to lead toward interesting developments for the fifth book. No spoilers, just wanting to inform people that there are some worthwhile developments.

I’m looking forward to the next book in the series, but will probably take a long break so I miss it more.

A note about the audiobook version, Kate Simses returns and as usual I adore her performances and work on this series. The quality of her narration is one of the major reasons I’ve been able to enjoy the whole series to such an extent. However, another person has been added to the mix to voice Warner’s chapters.

At first I was excited about this- yay, two voice actors to make it more real!! But, and this is going to sound quite unbelievable if not borderline ridiculous, I prefer Kate Simses’s voice for Warner. I like her tones and I just don’t feel like the new male voice fits him.

I’m pretty sure this would count as an unpopular opinion, to prefer a female voicing a male character over a male’s voice. But really, Kate Simses has done a fantastic job and I think it’s a combination of familiarity and performance that has me wishing she did all the Warner chapters.

Overall Rating – 8.5/10

Why You Should Try It – If you’ve followed the Shatter Me series up to this point and enjoyed it, Restore Me has a lot to offer in terms of more of the same good things and some promising plot threads for the future. The couple of new characters are welcome additions. Closes with a bombshell revelation that has me very willing to read the next book.

Critiques / Why You Might Not Like It – If you disliked Ignite Me for some reason, Restore Me probably won’t change your mind. When I re-think the sequence of events, it seems short for how long the book is.

Restore Me (Shatter Me Book 4)

Shatter Me Series Paperback Box Set: Books 1-4 (The Shatter Me Boxed Set, Amazon Link.)

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Many thanks to all who read my review! Are you interested in this series or have you read it before? Do you have any additional questions or comments? If so, let me know your thoughts, I appreciate all likes and comments very much.