Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi

Ignite Me

by Tahereh Mafi
published on February 4th, 2014 by HarperCollins
Young Adult/Dystopia/Romance
Last book of Shatter Me  series
416 pages
I'M WARNER-ING YOU. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNER-ED.

***

The heart-stopping conclusion to the New York Times bestselling Shatter Me series, which Ransom Riggs, bestselling author of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, called "a thrilling, high-stakes saga of self-discovery and forbidden love"

Juliette now knows she may be the only one who can stop the Reestablishment. But to take them down, she'll need the help of the one person she never thought she could trust: Warner. And as they work together, Juliette will discover that everything she thought she knew-about Warner, her abilities, and even Adam-was wrong.

In Shatter Me, Tahereh Mafi created a captivating and original story that combined the best of dystopian and paranormal and was praised by Publishers Weekly as "a gripping read from an author who's not afraid to take risks." The sequel, Unravel Me, blew readers away with heart-racing twists and turns, and New York Times bestselling author Kami Garcia said it was "dangerous, sexy, romantic, and intense." Now this final book brings the series to a shocking and climactic end.

First of all, how much Juliette's character has changed SHOCKED me. It's a big surprise, really. She went from this super insecure girl who always view herself as unworthy, a danger to everyone else because of her power, constantly keeping people away (I really dislike her old character, to be honest, with all those crossed words, weeping, self-hating, remember? And if it wasn't for the beautiful prose or the BOYS, I might have neglected this series long time ago), to this new girl who has realized how precious and powerful her ability is. This new Juliette Ferrars is BRAVE, she doesn't hesitate anymore to do what she thinks right, and most importantly, she's very determined. Now she knows what she wants, and she'll kick anyone who dares to stand in her way. There's no stopping her. YAY.

"I don't know how to be sad when all I feel is an unrelenting determination to do something.

I am no longer afraid of fear, and I will not let it rule me.

Fear will learn to fear me."

Secondly, Kenji! Really, this guy's one of the best things in Ignite Me. He's the true light of the story! To read all of his moments and conversations with Juliette really warmed my heart. He's utterly awesome for being SUPERfunny, genuine, and very supportive toward his bestfriends. It isn't easy being stuck in the middle of all the dramas and angsty times, but Kenji strictly knows where he should stand. No bullshit here. I would be ecstatic to have a guy bestfriend like him! A message to Tahereh Mafi: Please tell us where we can order and have this human being delivered to us instantly. Also, this guy deserves his own story. Pls, thx and kbye.

“I am going to MURDER YOU—”

“No,” he says, pointing at me as he shifts backward again. “Bad Juliette. You don’t like to kill people, remember? You’re against that, remember? You like to talk about feelings and rainbows—”

“Can you, like, see invisible people, too?"

"No," Warner says to him, eyes focused in front of him. "I can feel your presence. Hers, most of all."

"Really?" Kenji says. "That's some weird shit. What do I feel like? Peanut butter?"

“Are you out of your goddamn mind? You think we can take on two hundred soldiers? I know I am an extremely attractive man, J, but I am not Bruce Lee.”

“Who’s Bruce Lee?”

“Who’s Bruce Lee?” Kenji asks, horrified. “Oh my God. We can’t even be friends anymore.”

“Why? Was he a friend of yours?”

“You know what,” he says, “Just stop. Just—I can’t even talk to you right now.”

There aren't so many things happening in Ignite Me, though. Most of the time it's persuasing, planning, discussing, strategizing, practicing their powers, and all. Their goal is to bring down The Reetablishment, and to kill Anderson, of course. But even with all of these 'preparations', I feel like the dystopian aspect isn't the focus of the story, anymore. From all the build up, we expected that there's gonna be an epic battle, or a tough fight, at least. In reality, it seems like the resolution happened too easily, too rushed, with not so much resistence from the other party. Minimum explaining on Anderson's part is also kind of a problem. I mean, I won't mind to know a little backstory, actually. About what makes him such a horrible person, the reason that he is the way he is, and all that, but there's none of that. Actually, I can say that this applies to almost all characters, even our Juliette herself. Have you ever asked, like, what about her family? How could they abandoned Juliette just like that? Where did all these powers came from? How did it start? Lots of questions don't get answered. And there are SO MUCH thread left hanging on the edge. This is quite disappointing, but wellllll, I do not mind very much because it means most of the focus is centered around....

The romance.
NYAAAAAAAH, the romance.
I'm trying so hard to restrain myself right now because
CHAPTER    FIFTY   FREAKING   FIVE, PEOPLE. Holy moly. Remember this. FIFTY FREAKING FIVE!

You have to understand that I'm not a person who can easily change #team, if you know what I mean, but then Tahereh Mafi successfully did it *kicks self* While one boy cannot stop being annoying (and kinda clear somehow that Tahereh is TRYING to make us dislike this one person... Just my two cents), the other boy continues being utterly awesome and totally desirable. Oh, and while we're at this, I want to say that I'm also kinda surprised by the amount of STEAMINESS in Ignite Me. NGGGGGH. It's hot. Mmmmm, too hot, even. Is this still categorized as a young adult book? I asked myself. Ha. Beware of the fifty-ish chapters, that's what I'm saying! There are LOTS of sexytimes that will make you squirm in your seat and make your face goes red from all the blushes. It's hard, but try to control your face when you read Ignite Me in public.

Lastly, which makes the whole series from Tahereh Mafi most awesome is the amount of FEELS it will expose you to. I cry, I feel mad, I'm embarassed, I LAUGHED, I giggle uncontrollably, I blush, I'm angry, I want to fight, I want to hug Juliette, I want to lie on the rooftop with Kenji and talk to him all night, I want to tease James, I long for Warner, I.... Ugh, I just can't. ALL the emotional levels! Ignite Me is a quite satisfying series-ender, and though not without some imperfections, Tahereh Mafi has managed to give us a good closure (Though I won't mind if there's ever gonna be another book from this world) which makes me a very happy reader! :)

A treat for you all, behold the beautiful proses, Tahereh Mafi's style:

“Words, I think, are such unpredictable creatures.

No gun, no sword, no army or king will ever be more powerful than a sentence. Swords may cut and kill, but words will stab and stay, burying themselves in our bones to become corpses we carry into the future, all the time digging and failing to rip their skeletons from our flesh.”

“This isn't about Adam or Warner," I tell him, "This is about me and what I want. This is about me finally understanding where I want to be in ten years. Because I'm going to be alive, Kenji. I will be alive in ten years, and I'm going to be happy. I'm going to be strong. And I don't need anyone to tell me that anymore. 

I am enough, and I always will be.”

“He and I would end up like water going nowhere. Water that never moves-- It's fine for a little while. You can drink from it and it'll sustain you. But if it sits too long it goes bad. It grows stale. It becomes toxic. 

I need waves. I need waterfalls. I want rushing currents.”

“Hey--jazz hands!" Kenji barks. "Get your ass back over here." He makes it a point to look as irritated as possible. "Back to work. And this time, focus. You're not an ape. Don't just throw your shit everywhere.”


Read what other readers think about Ignite Me: Kai from Amaterasu Reads | Mimi Valentine on Goodreads

Have you read Ignite Me? Have you read SHATTER ME, even? (Because, if you haven't, really, what kind of planet do you live in?!) WHAT DO YOU THINK? Any book similar to this one that you think I have to read next? Do not hesitate to share with me! And as always,
have fun and read some more ❤