Defy Me: Book 5 in the Shatter Me series

Intro

This book is from the perspectives of Juliette/Ella, Warner/Aaron, and Kenji. As Ella and Aaron are both kidnapped, they try to find ways to escape, we get a closer insight into Ella’s relationship with Evie. Meanwhile, Kenji’s relationship with Nazeera strengthens, but causes suprises along the way with Nazeera being suspected as untrustworthy. Taken under captivity by Max and Evie unknowingly, Aaron has to do his best to find Ella and escape with Nazeera’s help. In Oceania with the the help of Emmaline, Ella is able to outsmart and find her way back to the people she cares about most.

How I came across the book

Defy Me is the 5th book in the Shatter Me series.

Other books by the author/In the series

Besides Defy Me, Tahereh Mafi has written the other main Shatter Me books: Shatter Me, Unravel Me, Ignite Me, Restore Me, and Imagine Me. She has also written the Shatter Me novellas: Destroy Me, Fracture Me, Shadow Me, Reveal Me, and Believe Me, with the first book of a new Shatter Me series published, Watch Me.

The Good

WARNER AND JULIETE USED TO BE FRIRNDS AND IN THE SECOND CHAPTER IT'S WARNERS PERSPECTIVE TALKING TO ELLA

ELLA AND EMMALINE NAZEERA ALL USED TO BE FRIENDS WHEN THEY WERE LITTLE

KENJI AND NAZEERA KISSED BUT SHE SAYS SHE CANT BE HIS GIRLFRIEND BOO

NOURIA IS ACTUALLY CASTLES DAUGHTER NOT HIS WIFE

YOUNG WARNER CAN'T FORGET YOUNG JULIETTE'S FACE AND SAYS HE REMEMBERS HER LIKE HE SAW HER IN A DREAM

Delalieu says he is Warner's grandfather on Warner's mother's side which means Delalieu knows about Adam being the illegimate son

THE REASON ANDERSON HAD TO KEEP WIPING AARON AND ELLAS MEMORIES IS THAT NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES AARON ALWAYS FELL IN LOVE WITH ELLA

The needle Max stabbed into Ella makes her remember everything about Emmaline

Ella can only remember Aaron and says he is the only reliable heartbeat she has ever had

Emmaline is somehow reaching out to Ella with telepathy

Anderson accidentally revealed to Aaron that he and Ella have known each other for over a decade and he catches it and says it is just an exaggeration but Aaron knows the truth by now

Anderson shows Aaron how Ella has been suffering and he throws a knife into his throat and murders him

Emmaline is talking to Juliette in her mind as she escapes

SHE MEETS EMMALIME WHO IS IN A TANK AND NOW IS A CREATURE AFFECTED BY WATER

Juliette just killed Evie to save Emmaline

After Ella and Aaron find each other Ella apologized and Aaron has never had anyone apologize to him and realizes that she still loves him after everything he did and he says he wants to spend the rest of his life with her

Aaron says HE HAS LOVED ELLA HIS ENTIRE LIFR AND NOW THEY BOTH COMPLETELY REMEMBER EACH OTHER and he says he wants to spend the rest of his life with her

ELLA SAYS YES TO AARON'S PROPOSAL

Ella and Kenji threw Aaron a birthday party because he’s never had a good or meaningful birthday

The Bad

When Warner and Juliette first meet, Juliette is crying because Anderson is taking her to her house and Warner asks what her name is and Anderson says her name is Juliette and she is tragic just like her namesake

ANDERSON IS SHAMING WARNER FOR BEING WORRIED ABOUT HIS MOM BUT WHO WOULDNT BE WORRIED IF THEIR MOM WAS LOCKED IN HER ROOM AND NOT SPEAKING

OH MY GOD WARNER ASKS WHY WONT THRY MOVE TO THE CAPITAL AND ANDERSON SAYS NOT UNTIL THEY DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM AND WARNER ASKS WHAT THE PROBLEM IS AND ANDERSON SAYS HIS GIRLFRIEND IS RUINING HIS DAY AS USUAL AND WARNER SAYS LENA ISNT HIS GIRLFRIEND AND ANDERSON SAYS DIFFERENT GIRLFRIEND BUT HOW DID HE ALREADY KNOW

In one of Juliette's flashbacks Anderson confronts her about killing the little boy and she tries to explain it was an accident but he calls her a liar

Juliette is angry at her parents for taking away her friends and her mom slaps her they are not her friends and she and the man are her parents and Juliette should be grateful that they took her home

She is confused and yelling at her parents and her mom asks her dad to handle it and her dad stabs a syringe into her neck

Delaliey says that Anderson changed the terms of Juliette's agreement and purposely chose abusive parents for Juliette so that she would end up back in his custody and he could further manpulate and control her just so that he would get promotions for her abuse

Anderson used Warner's attraction to Juliette to emotionally torture him

Anderson chose for Aaron and Adam to hate each other and he made them both fall in love with the same girl

OH MY GOD ANDERSON IS ALIVE

JULIETTES FATHER STABS HER AND LETS HER JUST BE ALONE WITH THE PAIN THESE PEOPLE ARE SO EVIL

EVIE IS BURNING ELLA ALIVE AND TESTING HER SHES SO CRUEL

EVIE SAYS ELLA BELONGS TO HER WHY IS ELLA ALWAYS AN EXPERIMENT HER OWN MOTHER DOESN'T EVEN CARE ABOUT HER

DELALIEU IS DEAD AND ANDERSON KILLED HIM

NAZEERA IS A TRAITOR AND HAS BEEN TELLING ANDERSON EVERYTHING CASTLE HAS BEEN DOING

Kenji is now in the same prison Juliette was in and he was captured by Anderson

He is starting to experience the same things Juliette did when she was in the prison he hears things that aren't there and has hallucinations

Young Ella is in Young Aaron's room and tries to remember her room and her parents but she can't

Juliette's memories were supposed to be erased but she remembers everything so she has to pretend in front of Evie that she is completely clueless

Kenji decides that he will have to kill Nazeera since she lied to him

Oh my god Warner is being kept captive by Max and Evie

Ella says she has to kill Emmaline because Emmaline no longer wants to live this is heartbreaking

Who else would like this

Existing Shatter Me fans (including all those who are rooting for a second chance for Juliette and Warner) and fans of dystopian books and romance books.

Rating

10/10 I LOVED THIS BOOK SO MUCH there was an unexpected plot twist in what felt like every chapter and I loved how it was told from three perspectives instead of just one because that way we get multiple sides of the same story and how each character navigates their seperate struggles. I appreciated the introduction of Emmaline into the story and how she is able to communicate with Ella so that Ella can escape, and I liked Ella’s crafty way of lying to her mother about her memories and then escaping after she murders Evie. Of course I thought the ending with Ella and Aaron was just perfect. This book had so much unpredictable suspense (I was crying at some parts) and parts of the book that made me so happy I wished I could be in the Shatter Me World.