Restore Me - Taherah Mafi

Restore Me by Taherah Mafi
Genre: YA Dystopian

Blurb (on back of book): Juliette Ferrars thought she'd won. She took over Sector 45, was named the new Supreme Commander, and now has Warner by her side. But she's still the girl with the ability to kill with a single touch—and now she's got the whole world in the palm of her hand. When tragedy hits, who will she become? Will she be able to control the power she wields and use it for good?

MY OPINION: ****

This review is a tad bit late so I might be a bit rusty on some of the details but nevertheless I will try to sum up all of my thoughts about it, which there are a lot of.

What did I just read? I have never previously read this book before and have only finished the first three of the series. This second time around of rereading the series, I have not enjoyed the first or second books as much as I thought I would but the third book was infinitely better. However, this one was truly surprising. It was not bad or anything but the character changes were truly alarming at times.

The writing style was beautiful. Everything was considerably better than the first three books. It was clean, it was polished, it was earth-shattering. I highlighted a considerable amount of lines throughout the book that either were beautifully written or were shocking. I loved how the random metaphors from the first books were gone for the most part. I could actually see the world they were living in, I could see the characters, I could feel the emotions.

Juliette is the new Supreme Commander of North America after getting rid of Anderson in the previous book. While the role appears to be better suited for her boyfriend, Warner, she undertakes the position on her own, but is soon met with many challenges that lead her to believe that she's not worthy of the role. There are many things that she doesn't know or understand about their world and government and to be quite honest, Warner is no help.

Warner is lost in a sea of confused grief and depression. His father was the biggest villain in his life, abusing and manipulating him for his whole life. However, he finds himself missing him after he's dead, which leads him to feel confused and guilty about his feelings towards his dad.

*spoilers ahead*

Juliette did a full one-eighty in this book. Gone was the strong, determined, brave Juliette of the previous book and in its place was a confused, struggling, almost weak girl who didn't know how to handle the sudden responsibility that she was given. I hated the way that she treated Warner, though I partially understand her anger. However, I did not see the point of pushing him away completely, especially since he didn't know the full story of what he had done. He obviously loved her with everything he had and felt extremely guilty about what he put she and her sister through but Juliette became a different person, got drunk and shaved her head, and dumped her boyfriend. It wasn't my favorite version of the girl that I thought had finally embraced her power and strength. SPOILER The ending was CRAZY. Does anyone want to talk about how she KILLED AN ENTIRE ROOM OF PEOPLE BY SCREAMING??? EXCUSE ME? END SPOILER

Warner was the complete opposite. I loved him with all my heart. We finally got too see his perspective throughout the book, which I loved! We got to further understand his character and everything that he's been through to become the person that he now is. He obviously loves Juliette with everything he has. Even though his father abused and tortured him, it was still his father, and that made me want to hug that poor boy and give him the love and appreciation he deserved. I hated the way it all ended and I'm praying for happiness for him in the next book. It is not his fault that he kept secrets from Juliette, especially since he thought he was protecting her.

Kenji was adorable and hilarious as per usual! I ship him with Nazeera, though I can feel that if they ever become a thing, they will be a slow burn couple because of her... dislike towards him at the moment.

Nazeera was an interesting addition to this book. I loved the addition of a strong female character who was on the right side, despite her brother's ambitions. Haider, her brother, was a different story but I can see a lot of tension and possible conflicts in the future between him and Warner and I'm excited to see where that could go.

I hated Castle. Adam became basically non-existent. He was mentioned about 3 times and it was mostly through his newfound bond with Warner after both of them realize they are grieving about the loss of their dad. However, thank god he realized how much of a jerk he was to Juliette in the previous books. James was cute but we only really got one scene with him.

I loved the friendship between Warner and Kenji because it felt so random and yet so right at the same time! Even though it cost Warner his precious hair...

So much happened in this book. It was full of revelations and plot twists that I hope will be further elaborated on in the future books. I also sense many possible relationships occurring in the next couple of stories and I'm excited for them. I'm not sure if I loved or hated how this all ended but I hope it will be salvaged in book five.

I would recommend this book to readers looking for an interesting, romantic, action and drama filled dystopian series.

Main Character: Juliette, Warner
Sidekick(s): Kenji, Nazeera, Adam, James, etc
Villain(s): Other supreme commanders, responsibility, lying, etc
Dystopian Elements: This book was set in a futuristic world.