Reviews with content warning for Panic attacks/disorders - Разбий ме

Reviews tagging 'Panic attacks/disorders'

Разбий ме by Tahereh Mafi, Техере Мафи

64 reviews

gracesvcr's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This is a spoiler free review. Other than the parent section but it's blurred out. Full review on my Goodreads

Warning: This will be a long review.

Preface: (You can skip this part if you just want the book review) This was the first real book I read on the kindle (other than some kid books that I couldn't annotate in), and honestly, it was a great introduction. It really made the book fly by so quickly (and the writing style too). The kindle was so much easier to bring around than a physical book especially one that is 300 pages or more. I've now found the beautiful world of kindle annotations where I can yap until my heart gives out.

The Characters:

Many characters and storylines in the romance genre tend to be extremely surface level and flat to me (hence why it's not my first choice genre). Mostly, many characters in romance novels are typically just quite boring, but in Shatter Me, it pleasantly surprised me.

Anytime I found something to be a little unrealistic (like a communication between or feeling about another character from one to the other), it was later explained. Though, I do understand that this is a fantasy/dystopian novel. It's not made to be realistic, but I feel like for any book regardless of fiction, fantasy, or otherwise, the characters being realistic plays a crucial part in my enjoyment of a book.

The characters were so well rounded and some of them really grew on me. I oftentimes have a hard time actually connecting with the characters in many books I read (this is coming from a contemporary fiction and nonfiction reader). The characters in this book surprised me with having genuine deep layers to them. They aren't just one cookie cutter idea. They don't just have one motive or just one feeling, they are complex. They have a reason behind every emotion and every action. This is what made them feel real to me and also played a major part in me coming to a 5 star rating. So I definitely enjoyed this aspect of Shatter Me.

Young Teen/Parent Friendly:
For any parents reading this, depending on parenting style and personal boundaries, this book is appropriate for ages 12-13 and up. Further detail in minor spoiler below.

Even though there is a romance aspect to this book, there are no depictions of sex. Since this is a dystopian/fantasy book, if you have ever seen Maze Runner, Hunger Games, or any other dystopian film, there are depictions of some physical violence like fight scenes or use of guns. The scenes in my opinion are not graphic, but they are included for the story to progress

How this aspect contributed to my rating:
I don't think this is a spoiler but I'll blur it out in case. Includes talking about the spice level. This is just a personal preference, but

I loved that there were no graphic depictions of sex in this book. It was still extremely passionate and the romance aspect/tension between characters was definitely still there. Many people enjoy romance for the spice aspect, but I tend to really enjoy the interpersonal communication and relationships being built rather than steamy scenes every other chapter. If a spicy scene is included in a book, I am not against it, but I enjoy when there is a purpose behind adding it in like how it would improve the story in a way.

The Prose:

What really got me other than the characters was the writing style. Something about Tahereh Mafi's voice through writing this book was beautiful. I personally love when there are so many good quotes for me to highlight and look back or comment on. The style of writing was very different from what I'm used to reading but different in a very positive way. I really enjoyed the creativity and beauty that seeped through every page of this book.

Lastly, the book was so well thought out. This kind of goes hand in hand with the character aspect I talked about earlier. While reading, it really felt like Tahereh Mafi spent so much time perfecting this book. Every action, every scene, every feeling was so well thought out which contributed to the readability and emotional investment.

Feedback/Comments:
I appreciate if anyone took time to read this review. Although I rated this 5 stars and thoroughly enjoyed it, I am open to your own criticisms you may have of the book. I do ask that if anyone feels compelled to comment and disagree with my review that it remains civil. I really enjoy hearing constructive criticisms and different view points, but I do not enjoy an argument.

Thank you for your time, I hope that anyone considering this book that enjoys fantasy/dystopian novels with a little romance picks this up and loves it as much as I did.

Content Warnings

hannalizzy's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious reflective relaxing sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

An outstanding audiobook performance. I was so intrigued by the way they did the book’s constant strikethroughs in audio format. It worked perfectly in my brain and was a whole new experience of one of my fav books. Bravo!!!!

Content Warnings

natashareadsbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Why did I wait so long to read this book?

Shatter Me followes Juliette - who has always viewed herself as a monster, with a curse. She has the power to harm others with just her touch alone. After an accident when she was fourteen, she was cast away. For years she was tested, until they put her away in an asylum.

Until one day she gets a roommate. Then her life is flipped upside down. From the bleak nothingness, to being taken. She has to make a choice, if she will become a warrior or a weapon.

So, this is a YA dystopian novel that I have had sitting on my shelf for ten years now. It was recommended to me, so I grabbed the first book, without knowing any info about it. I have been hesitant to read it, bc the FMC character shares the same name as my daughter. But I finally decided to pick it up, and I'm glad I did.

I love YA & dystopian novels - so this was no different. It follows Juliette in a world that is dying. People can't afford to live, to eat, to survive. The reestablishment was supposed to help save the world, but they haven't. And Juliette ends up in the middle of having to make a choice- with multiple powerful people who have heard of her powers wanting her for their causes she has to decide what she will do.

Overall it was a good intro to the books, and world and I am looking forward to reading more about Juliette and the other characters. I definitely recommend if you like YA dystopian books.

4⭐ out of 5 ⭐.

Content Warnings

infjkiki's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

Content Warnings

guessgreenleaf's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

spatterson7's review against another edition

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mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Content Warnings

madi_reads13's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

evarinya's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

The Good:
It was a quick read - I managed to get through the book with surprising speed, it never felt like it dragged too much or got boring, which was very refreshing after just having read a bunch of books that just felt "too long".
Also the plot itself was... fine? Not too much yet, clearly setting up something bigger, but... it does make me want to read more!
And (spoilers for the last few chapters)

I rather liked the whole Omega Complex X-Men style idea, even if there wasn't too much done with it so far. And Kenji was fun, admittedly.

The Bad:
Some actions felt a bit contrived, like how there always seemed to miraculously be something around Juliette that would help her solve her current issue.
Also - but that's a very personal thing for me - I just don't like dystopian settings too much. Especially those that (spoiler for the last few chapters)

end up becoming "big evil group of people/fascists has all the power but small team of heroes will fight to take them down!" - too many similarities to certian space operas, I presume.

The Ugly:
I, for the love of anything, cannot understand how people hype up Warner that much. I know that there probably will be something up with him in later books, but in this book? He's just a horrible human being. With some depth, sure, and probably his own family trauma, but... That doesn't mean he should get a free pass as to how he constantly manipulated Juliette to turn into what he believes/wants her to be!
And that she partly even accepts this already just because he's good-looking and she sometimes feels sorry for him - just to then in the next paragraph be absolutely disgusted by him again... I don't know. Doesn't really make me want to root for them at all, so far.

I worry how this will turn out in the later books, as a proper redemption arc is really difficult to pull off, but I'm willing to at least check out the next book to see how things will develop.

And again, I didn't hate this book, not by a long shot - I just, perhaps, expected something a little different based on what I have seen fans of this series discuss online... But oh well. I'll see how it goes.

Content Warnings

mckinzie6242010's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

Content Warnings

akgeekgirl's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

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