ARC Review: Unravel Me by Tahereh Mafi

Unravel Me

Shatter Me Series, #2

by Tahereh Mafi

Publisher: HarperCollins (Feb, 5 2013)
Genre: YA, Dystopia, Paranormal
Format: Hardcover, ARC (465 pages)
Source: Publisher
Purchase: Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Book Depository
Rating: ★★★★★ (5 stars)

Summary
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.

At A Glance
I've died and gone to heaven. Why, oh why must it end? Can I just live in this book?

The Good
Decimation...
Yes, ma'am, may I have another? This book will tear you apart, stitch you back together, then decimate you once again. Reading Unravel Me was like reading macabre poetry in a cold, dark room with just a sliver of hope sunlight peeking through the bars of my window. It is both a salvation and a torment. Why must good things come to an end? Because Mafi likes to torture us, that's why.

Juliette...
Where to begin? I feel so lost and found at the same time. Like everything is so clear but also muddled. Okay, let's start with Juliette. We met Juliette in Shatter Me and she was effed up a mess. Being locked up in a prison with no human contact will do that to a person. But we saw her grow and fall in love after Adam rescued her. In Unravel Me, we see Juliette revert back to the shy, self-deprecating, emotional timebomb we have come to know. All her old insecurities came rushing back as the people in Omega Point, a place that is suppose to be a safe haven, started treating her like a leper. With her ability to kill with just a touch, no one is willing to go near her. And the fact that she has killed people before causes everyone give her a wide berth, even the few friends she had. You can't help but feel bad for this girl. It can't be easy to be the freakiest amongst freaks people with special powers. Though I feel Juliette often brought on the misery herself by not even trying to engage people, my heart still broke every time she cried in defeat. Juliette did try to be strong but blow after blow brought her farther into a pit of disappear. But by the end, there was definitely light at the end of the tunnel. I think Juliette will find her resolve because it's there, it's just hidden beneath layers suppression.

Adam...
Adam was his same sexy, caring self. His love for Juliette is so strong it's frightening. I truly think he could not live without her. In the beginning, they had some hot moments. I was surprised they both didn't combust from the sexual tension. Any of us would be lucky to have a love like they do. But then this horrible HUGE revelation about Adam's power comes and all bets are off. Juliette and Adam's relationship takes a hit and I truly don't know how it is all going to work out. Adam is beyond devastated, he is broken. :(

Team Warner...
The biggest surprise was Warner. I love hate him so much sometimes. He has done some horrible things in the past but the question is, can the devil be redeemed? In this book, we really get the full impact of why Warner is the way he is. Warner is not naturally a cold killer. He has been raised and formed to be heartless. Only Juliette can see the real Warner, the one who lays beneath the surface, the one that can love care. I didn't think it was possible to ever see Warner as the good guy. Really, he's not, not yet anyways, but oh the possibilities. And then there is Juliette and Warner...together. I hate to admit it but they have the most out of this world sexual chemistry ever, it's not even right. Them together makes sense, and by the end, you want it to happen. I know, crazy, right? Don't throw things at me when I say this because it must be said. I am so TEAM WARNER. AHHHH!

The War...
Unravel Me takes us further into the war between the corrupt government and the rebels. We see how the people of Omega Point are rallying together to fight The Reestablishment. With their unique powers on their side, I can see the rebels having a fighting chance. But no one could have predicted what the bad guys were willing to do to win this war. We can only hope things will get better from here.

She's A Poet And Didn't Even Know It...
The action was really good and the pacing was spot on because Unravel Me kept my interest the whole time. But, as always, it is the writing that hits this book out of the park. This series is not your basic book. This is art in the form of words. It's as close as a novel will ever come to poetry. I want to live in Mafi's head for forever just a day. It must be like Disney World for book nerds.

The Bad
Juliette continues to self-deprecate and make horrible decisions because of her whacked out emotional/mental state. At one point I just wanted to yell at her, tell her to get her ass up and stop whining.

The Snuggly
Holy Sexual Tension, Batman! Have you ever read a book that actually made you shiver? Not a chill, not a twitch. A bone-deep shiver that eats consumes your being and takes over your body. When sexual tension is so solid, so consumable that all you want to do is ingest it, gobble it up till there's nothing left. Well, that's what Unravel Me is like. I have never read a hotter YA book in my life. If you thought Shatter Me was naughty, then you will pass out, dream of the Hemsworth brothers feeding you calorie-free chocolate drizzled on their bodies, and wake up naked and crying after reading Unravel Me. And yes, we get some sexual touching this time and it is delish.

Final Thoughts
Trying to review Unravel Me is like trying to describe Starry Night by Van Gogh to a blind person. No matter how hard you try, the full impact of the piece can only be fully realized by experiencing it first hand. There is nothing more I can say other than, READ THIS BOOK NOW! Chop, chop. Stop dilly-dallying. Highly recommended to EVERYONE.

Quotes
All I know next are his arms, the desperate edge to his voice when he says my name, and I'm unraveling in his embrace, I'm frayed and falling apart and I'm making no effort to control the tremors in my bones and he's so hot his skin is so hot and I don't even know where I am anymore.

*****

“The man is moody as hell.”

“I am not moody—”

“Yeah, bro.” Kenji puts his utensils down. “You are moody. It’s always ‘Shut up, Kenji.’ ‘Go to sleep, Kenji.’ ‘No one wants to see you naked, Kenji.’ When I know for a fact that there are thousands of people who would love to see me naked—” 

*****
I want to study the secrets tucked between his elbows and the whispers caught behind his knees. I want to follow the line of his silhouette with my eyes and the tips of my fingers. I want to trace rivers and valleys along the curved muscle of his body.

*****

"I want to be the friend you fall hopelessly in love with. The one you take into your arms and into your bed and into the private world you keep trapped in your head. I want to be that kind of friend," he says. "The one who will memorize the things you say as well as the shape of your lips when you say them. I want to know every curve, every freckle, every shiver of your body, Juliette--"

Shatter Me Series:
Book #1: Shatter Me
Book #2: Unravel Me