Have you ever loved a book and felt disappointed at the same time? If not, I envy you. Because that is exactly how I felt after reading the last book from the
Shatter Me Series by
Tahereh Mafie, which is
Ignite Me. But before everything else, I am not trying to criticize or judge the author with my post. I just wanted to write how I felt about it. And oh,
spoilers ahead!
First things first. Let me say my opinion regarding the most asked question in the
Shatter Me Universe:
Team Adam or
Team Warner?
Personally, I was on
Team Adam. I was actually surprised that there were
freaking
teams during the first book. For heaven's sake, Aaron was
described as a psycho. And just until
Destroy Me was released was I able to understand the need for
freaking teams. I admit that after reading
Destroy Me and while reading
Unravel Me I got swayed by Aaron, but I still wanted Adam.
Fracture Me
had not much effect on me. I fully understand why Adam chose to save
James first before looking for Juliette. Adam was being described as the perfect guy for Juliette in the first half of the series. He is sweet, kind, and everything, while Aaron is the psychopath who would want to possess Juliette for personal desires. But then for the sake of having the ultimate twist, the author decided to flip the way we look at both guys. Aaron's character was gloriously redeemed while Adam became the jealous, insecure ex-boyfriend. When Adam told Juliette in
Ignite Me
that he was happier when he thought that she was dead, who would be pleased with that? Congratulations Aaron,
Team Adam had just lost another soul, if there is still a Team Adam after that encounter. And then I don't care anymore because it was too obvious that Juliette would be with Aaron. Seriously, I don't really care that she did not end up with Adam. I loved Gale more in The Hunger Games and uselessly rooted for Xander in Matched. And despite the heroines not choosing them, I still love the books. I just felt a little betrayed for what she did with Adam's character.
Anyway, that was not the entire reason why I was not satisfied with the last book. The next one would be the main reason why I am giving it a 3 out 5 stars.
Shatter Me is just one of the few Dystopian YA novels that I really came to love. Having a kick-ass heroine is a really big plus for me so my fondness for the series isn't really a surprise. I really, really like the series until the last few pages of the final book. I usually feel so much excitement while reading the last book in a series. The final confrontation between the protagonist and the antagonist and the war that comes with it draws me. And that is exactly why I got a little disappointed with the last installment.
I'm not a war freak or something. It's just that I've always dreamt of becoming a story writer. And I couldn't write fighting scenes. I don't know how to put them in words. That is why I was always anticipating the final battle. And in my opinion,
Ignite Me somehow fell short with this. The end seemed so rush for me. I think so much chapters were spent for the characters' trainings and preparations for the war to the point that I really got excited because it does seem like a really
BIG war. But as the end draws near, the pages just got thinner and thinner and still nothing was happening. I almost convinced myself that this must not be the last book.
There must be another one solely written for the fight between the
combined forces of Sector 7 and Omega Point's survivors and the
Supreme Commander and its army. You don't think it was rushed? Well, from what I remember here's what happened during the final battle that was written on the last few, and I do mean
FEW, pages of the book:
Juliette announced the war to Sector 7 --> Warner rallied everyone for the big fight --> And while they were fighting, not sure where and how, Juliette and Kenji snuck on the Supreme Commander's ship. --> Juliette ran in to and killed the pressure wave guy. --> Juliette shot the Commander twice. --> The End.
My thoughts after: Uhm... He's ALREADY dead!? Where is my war?
Again, I am not trying to criticize the author. Maybe she is not comfortable in writing those scenes or it's just her style. I just did not know that it was actually possible for me to feel disappointed with its end. Anyway, it was my fault for expecting too much.
“Maybe we both fell in love with the illusion of something more.”
- Juliette Ferrars
