It was a bit confusing thinking that the Shatter Me-series ended with Ignite Me, then to find out about this fourth book, Restore Me, and two more coming books to the series. But since I really, really loved the original trilogy (it's one of my favorite dystopian series of all times!) I was so excited for continuing the series. Sadly though, this book was a disappointment.

It’s hard to explain, but this book felt a bit off somehow. The characters that I had loved so much for their complexity suddenly felt one-dimensional and the plot was kind of slow.
 
I was so taken by the character developments in the series, especially in Ignite Me. It was amazing to see a character grow as much as Juliette did and I really loved the new, stronger her. And the way we got to know Warner, how he revealed his true self bit by bit. I absolutely loved all the Warner and Juliette moments and the feels, the attraction, the way they were equals and supported each other, how they opened up and were vulnerable and honest to each other. But in Restore Me, most of that seems to be gone.
 
I think the main reason that I’m feeling a bit disappointed is that the story kind of reverted in some major aspects. The strong Juliette that we got to know in Ignite Me was replaced by her old insecure and whining self again. And the romance with Warner just didn’t fly this time. They were both too occupied with themselves to really connect. And the plot was much slower this time. Honestly, I don’t think very much happened other than spending time with the characters. Not until the end that is (and the end was a completely shocking cliff-hanger).

What I did enjoy was the flashbacks to Juliette’s diary, which added a great extra dimension and connected the dots to the first book, and to see more of Kenji again. But I’m still a bit confused about the purpose of the book and the ending, and I feel that I will not continue the series. Instead, I’ve decided to see it as the series actually ended after three books, so that trilogy can remain my favorite dystopian, without this book bringing the previous ones down.

Rating:
3 stars

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​Author info:
Tahereh Mafi

We Were Never Here is an honest and emotional story about illness and how life can change in a moment. It is also a bittersweet romance story between a hospitalized girl and a troubled boy, and about recovery and healing.

At a summer camp, teenager Lizzie suddenly falls ill and to her shock finds out that she’s suffering from an inflamed colon and need surgery. This is probably one of the most embarrassing illnesses for a teenage girl, having a bag attached to you doesn’t really make teenage life and the idea of being intimate with anyone easier… Understandably, Lizzie is mortified and has a lot of self-pity, pushing her friends and family away. But eventually, she meets Connor, who appears to be this sweet golden boy who visits the hospital patients with his dog and who can help Lizzie get her confidence and hope back, as he sees more to her than her sickness. Soon though, it becomes clear that Connor has his own demons and although he doesn’t have scars to show for them, his wounds might be harder to heal.

I have some mixed feelings about this book. I absolutely loved some parts of it, but some parts didn’t work quite as well. I loved that the heroine, Lizzie, was so true about the pain and struggle to handle her disease and her humor dealing with it, but still there were so many parts of her and her way of reacting to other people that I really didn’t like at all. It’s understandable that having to deal with a lifelong illness, and such an awkward one, was a struggle and that she had a right to be upset and acting out, but there were moments when she was just unreasonably mean and rude to her friends and people who were interested in her wellbeing. I definitely felt for Lizzie, but I wasn’t really able to connect with her. And then strawberry-golden boy Connor, who was such a cliché at first, but who grew on you when it turned out that he wasn’t that perfect after all, only to act so badly that I ended up not liking him very much in the end after all. I also didn’t really feel any chemistry between Connor and Lizzie. Their love story was sweet, but it didn’t move mountains.

The character I loved most in the book was Stella, Lizzie’s new friend. I loved how she changed Lizzie for the better. And the dogs! They must be some of the best written dog-characters ever. They really added to the story and are a part of the book that I liked the most.

Overall, I enjoyed this story and Lizzie’s character development. It wasn’t the greatest love story, but as a story about an unusual illness it was very real, thought-provoking and meaningful. I really appreciated the way it emphasized how important it is to see beneath the obvious; mental illness isn’t always visible and it’s not always the person in the hospital that suffers the most.

Rating:
3 stars

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Jennifer Gilmore

This book was one of my most anticipated releases this year. Ever since I read the first book (The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue) I couldn’t wait to return to the wonderful world of the Montague siblings once again. The first book was one of my favorite books of all time. It was just utterly amazing, unique and completely addictive, and I fell completely in love with the sassy, hilarious Monty and the sweet, darling Percy, as well as Felicity, Monty’s fierce and ambitious younger sister.

This time, the story was told from Felicity’s POV, and focused on her ambition to study medicine and her problems to be taken seriously as an intelligent woman and be admitted to a medical school. Just like in the first book though, adventure comes knocking and soon Felicity finds herself on a quest across Europe and on a dragon hunting expedition in the Atlantic that will bring her back to her childhood best friend, Johanna, who she hasn’t spoken to in years, and Sim, the girl with a secretive past. I liked the headstrong Felicity already in the first book and can certainly relate to her and how she’s not able to do what she really wants, as opposed to what society dictates she must do. So I was happy to get a chance to get to know her even better in this book, but I must confess that I really missed Monty’s POV. A lot of what made the first book so amazing and hilarious, was that it was told in Monty’s engaging, sassy voice. In the first book, Felicity felt like something of a Hermione Granger on speed, so I thought she’d be able to carry the story as well, but sadly not. With the story being told from Felicity’s POV this time, it lost that unique way of telling the story and made it less fun.
 
The story was also much slower this time. Especially the first part of the book, which dragged a lot, until the more adventurous part kicked in. It felt unnecessary that this book was over 500 pages, it would have been better without a hundred of them or so. Where The Gentleman’s Guide felt like a wild roller-coaster ride, this story at times felt too serious and straight forward. I get that some of that is due to the fact that the story is told by Felicity, who is a much more serious person than Monty, but it was still disappointing that the magic and the unique tone and humor from the first book was missing in this one.
 
But, overall, it was still a good book full of story twists and adventures, and strong women, friendship, love and pirates. And dragons! I loved that part of the book, it added some of the magic from the first one again. The best parts of the book were the ones that Monty and Percy were in. My heart melted every time and I had this goofy smile all over my face! So even though this book did not fully meet my expectations set by the previous book in the Montague series, I still really enjoyed parts of it very much.

Rating:
3 stars

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​Author info:
Mackenzi Lee

The Infernal Devices trilogy by Cassandra Clare consists of Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince and Clockwork Princess. It’s a gripping and wonderful historical urban fantasy following Tessa Gray as she descends into the supernatural underworld of Victorian London in the search of her brother. It’s also one of my favorite Shadowhunter series, and my absolute favorite love triangle in any books!

I love Cassandra Clare’s Mortal Instruments series, and this one was just as good, if not even better! The world building with the touches of historical England was amazing, and I loved getting a background to the Shadowhunter world. As in all Cassandra Clare’s books, there were non-stop action and epic battles between good and evil, old family secrets and vengeances, a world full of magical beings, vampires, demons and warlocks living right among humans, as well as a secret organization set out to rule the British Empire with the help of its magical army of unstoppable clockwork creatures.

But the best part was definitely the enchanting characters. Tessa was such a strong and intelligent female lead that I immediately rooted for, and I was so happy and relieved when she found safety and allies at the Shadowhunter Institute, and becoming friends (or more…) with Will and Jem. I took Jem to my heart from the very start, loving him for his kindness and sweetness. As for Will, I was a bit frustrated with him at first, but he worked his magic on me along the way, so in the end I felt that he and Tessa would be the perfect match. I must say though, that Cassandra Clare’s way of solving the issue with the love triangle is so clever! I think it’s the best love triangle solution I’ve encountered in any book, how she let both boys have very separate but beautiful ties to Tessa and how the three of them had such a respectful and mature understanding. Despite both of them loving Tessa, the parabatai bond between Will and Jem were always build upon trust, respect and affection. And the ending of this trilogy just made my heart melt! I’m so happy how it all came full circle, giving everyone a happy ending of sort!

All in all, this trilogy is a historical fantasy masterpiece full of danger and betrayal, love and loss, secrets and enchantment, woven together into a breathtaking and gripping magical tale, that also serves as a prequel to The Mortal Instruments and the whole Shadowhunter world.

Rating:
5 stars

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Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunters

Amanda’s and Dawson’s love story is one of the most beautiful and epic ones I’ve read in a long time, but Nicholas Spark totally broke my heart and left me ugly crying my eyes out after finishing this emotional and utterly unfair novel!

In the spring of 1984, high school students Amanda Collier and Dawson Cole fell deeply, irrevocably in love, despite their different backgrounds. Amanda, came from a rich family and was an A student, whereas Dawson had a very difficult background, with a criminal family and an abusive father. Eventually, he had to leave and ended up finding shelter at Tuck Hostetler's garage. Tuck, a local mechanic who had recently lost his wife, allowed Dawson to live with him and eventually considered him a son of his own. At the safety of Tuck’s home, Amanda and Dawson spend a wonderful summer together, with their love growing deeper each day. But as the summer came to a close, unforeseen events would tear them apart, setting them on radically divergent paths.

Not until twenty or so years later, when Tuck died and left a will summoning them both, they eventually met again and soon realized that their love for one another had survived all those years and was as strong as ever. Forced to confront painful memories, the two started to question their decision and possibly finding a way to be together again. But fate (and Nicholas Sparks) didn’t make it easy for Amanda and Dawson and along the way my heart broke. Literally. I so rooted for them both, and especially Dawson, who’s had his life shattered simply for being born into the wrong family and who deserved all the love he could get.

All in all, this was an emotional, devastating and sad, but yet beautiful read that I recommend with all my heart! Just make sure to have a box of tissues nearby…

Rating:
​5 stars

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​Author info:
Nicholas Sparks