Watch Me by Tahereh Mafi

Intro

In a new series based off the Shatter Me books, what remains of the Reestablishment and the New Republic which was created after the fall of the Reestablishment, are enemies. When James, who is loyal to the New Republic, goes on a mission to find out new information about the Reestablishment and breaks into Ark Island where the remaining members of the Reestablishment lives, meets Rosabelle, a loyal member of the Reestablishment whose only goal is to protect her little sister Clara. When dangerous attempts on Rosobelle’s life unfold, James takes her back to the New Republic even though she is the enemy, despite the anger of everyone else at the Nee Republic. As they spend more time together, they start being drawn to each other, to the anger of both parties, as it is not ideal to fall for the one person you are supposed to kill.

How I came across the book

Watch Me is the first book of a new series by Tahereh Mafi called Shatter Me: The New Republic.

Other books by the author/In the series

Tahereh Mafi is the author of the Shatter Me series: Shatter Me, Unravel Me, Ignite Me, Restore Me, Defy Me, and Imagine Me, as well as the Shatter Me novellas: Destroy Me, Fracture Me, Shadow Me, Reveal Me, and Believe Me.

The Good

• JAMES IS IN THIS BOOK I GASPED

• He is in a prison cell and when he is talking to himself his words are exactly like Kenji's

• JAMES TELLS ROSABELLE IT LOOKS LIKE THERE ALONE WHEN THEY ARE SHOOTING AT EACH OTHER AND EVERYONE ELSE IS DEAD AND HE CALLS HER BEAUTIFUL

• The relationship between Rosabelle and Clara is so similar to the relationship between Adam and James

• When Rosabelle begs James to tell the Reestablishment to take care if Clara and she is just a child James stops and is probably reminded of when Adam went to war and had to leave him behind

• Rosabelle reminded James of Adam since she is desperately fighting for her sister like Adam did with James

• HIS FULL NAME IS JAMES ALEXANDER ANDERSON

• ROSABELLE IS TRACKING JAMES AND STUDYING THE WAY ARK ISLAND USES SURVEILLANCE AND KNOWS SHE HAS TO KEEP AN EYE ON HIM SO SHE SAYS HE IS HER LIFE NOW

• James is bathing in the like and since Rosabelle is tracking him shes not allowed to look away from the screen and she says SHE CAN'T LOOK AWDY FROM THE SCREEN AND THE BLOOD DOWN HIS NECK HEIGHTENS HIS PHYSICAL APPEAL AND THE POWER OF HIS BEAUTY IS TERRIFYING

• ROSABELLE SAYS JAMES IS MEZMERIZING TO WATCH

• SHE TRIES TO FORCE HERSELF TO GROW TIRED OF LOOKING AT HIM

• I FEEL LIKE THIS IS GONNA BE A FORBIDDEN LOVE BC ITS LIKE TWO KIDS WORKING FOR OPPOSING GOVERNMENTS

• James is trying to save Rosabelle

• James is letting Rosabelle come with him but on the condiiton that when they land in the New Republic he will turn her in and she will be locked up and if she tries to run he will kill her

• James says he can’t look at gummy bears anymore without remembering Rosabelle

• JAMES SAYS HIS INSTINCT TO PROTECT ROSABELLE COMES SO NATURALLY AND HOLDING HER FELT NATURAL AND EASY

• JAMES BROUGHT ROSABELLE FOOD BECAUSE SHE'S STARVING EVEN THO WARNER THINKS OF HER AS THE ENEMY

• OH MY GOD JULIETTE AND WARNER ATE GOING TO HAVE A BABY

• It broke James to see Rosabelle cry while trying to eat a piece of chicken and even though she is the enemy he genuinely cares about her

• ROSABELLE SEES JAMES AND SAYS SHE HAS NEVER PHYSICALLY REACTED TO ANOTHER HUMAN BEING BEFORE

• THE SCENT OF JAMES IS MAKING ROSABELLE WANT TO PRESS HER FACE TO HIS CHEST AND BREATHE HIM IN

• James slapped Leon for annoying Rosabelle

• RODABELLE SAYS JAMES IS WHAT'S WRONG WITH HER AND AFTER YEARS OF BEING DEAD INSIDE JAMES MAKES BER FEEL ALIVE

• THEY KEEP TRYING NOT TO LOOK AT EACH OTHER

• JAMES SAYS HE PAYS ATTENTION TO ROSABELLE AND SHE GOES PINK AND JAMES SAID HE WANTS TO DIE AND ROSABELLE SAYS SHE PAYS ATTENTION TO HIM TOO

• James is supposed to take Rosabelle to prison but there is so much tension betweeen them that they are forced to ignore

• James knows that Rosabelle is scared and he says help him understand and she says she cant because shes not used to working with other prople and she doesnt know if she can teust his tram and hr says CAN SHE TRUST HIM AND SHE THINKS THAT HE IS THE GREATEST WEAPON AGAINST HER DEFENSES

• WARNER SAYS HUGO WILL TAKE ROSABELLE TO PRISON AND ROSABELLE REALIZES THAT HUGO IS HER FATHER WHO SHE HASNT SEEN IN TEN YEARS

The Bad

• It’s interesting how in this book Rosabelle and the people of sector 52 hate the New Republic and its leaders who are the children of the dead supreme commanders after the fall of the Reestablishment but in the Shatter Me series the fall of the reestablishment was widely celebrated and it was the primary mission of the series

• Soledad says that for as long as they can’t know Rosabelle’s mind she will always be a question mark is she somehow related to Juliette?

• Ark Island has the only remaining presence of the Reestablishment

• THE GIRL FROM THE PRISON SLIT JAMES’ THROAT

• THE GIRL FROM THE PRISON IS ROSABELLE

• Klaus is the new controlling leader of the Reestablishment who built it back up and is torturing Rosabelle and he seems ljke Anderson

• NO AN EXPLOSION HIT JAMES

• Rosa wants to kill the man she is supposed to marry

• THE REESTABLISHMENT IS TAKING ROSA AWAY AND TORTURING HER IN FRONT OF CLARA

• THIS IS SO SAD ROSA SAYS WITHOUT CLARA SHE HAS NO WORTH AS A PERSON

• If Rosabelle tries to save Clara she will be executed for treason and when she is executed Clara will die so there is nothing she can do to save her sister

• NO KENJI AND WINSTON GOT DUMPED BY NAZEERA AND BRENDAN

• Leon is so creepy and annoying to Rosabelle

• Leon is trying to kill Rosabelle

• Leon says that Rosabelle has been sent to the New Republic to die

Who else would like this

Fans of the Shatter Me series and fans of dystopian and romance books.

Rating

9.5/10 I was a little confused in the beginning of Rosabelle’s story when we first are introduced to her and the story never really explains how Rosabelle gets to James in prison after just being with Soledad outside her house in the previous chapter. Overall I thought the story was amazing, I LOVED the tension between Rosabelle and James, I thought of their story as a Romeo and Juliet situation since they fall for each other but can’t be together- but also don’t act on their impulses- which I think is interesting and smart of Mafi as this is the first in a series so maybe it is meant to happen in the later books, like how Juliette and Warner only first admitted their love for each other in Ignite Me. I liked the inclusivity of the Shatter Me characters who are still advising James even though he is 21 now, so it is safe to say I absolutely enjoyed this book and can’t wait for the rest of the series to be published.