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A review by olivialandryxo
Believe Me by Tahereh Mafi
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I really like the Shatter Me series, and I was so excited for this novella. Although Tahereh Mafi kept teasers vague to avoid spoiling anyone who wasn’t up to date, those of us that had read all the books knew what this was supposed to be: a wedding novella.
Unfortunately, we didn’t get what we were promised. This was 180 pages of Warner worrying that Juliette didn’t love him, moping when things didn’t go his way, and being a complete asshole to everyone around him, interrupted only a few times by sweet moments with Juliette whenever they could get some privacy. I will say, I still really like Juliette and Warner’s relationship. I love how much they love each other, and was quite surprised (though not in a bad way) that one chapter got sexier than I thought Tahereh would make it. In that regard, I thank her for her service. 👀👏🏻
Other things I liked included Kenji, Nazeera, and Kenji and Nazeera. I was amused by both their banter, and the banter that ensued when they were with Juliette and Warner. They have a fun ensemble dynamic no matter what I think of Warner himself, which in this case meant I was pretty sick of him and wondering why he has so many fangirls in the book community. Sorry not sorry.
The novella ended with the wedding ceremony, which sounds fine, right? And it would be, except we didn’t even get to freaking see said ceremony. The last paragraph was Warner being awed (and horny) when he saw Juliette walking down the aisle in her wedding dress. I turned the page, eager for more… and saw it was an excerpt from Mafi’s 2022 release, followed by another excerpt, this one from her latest contemporary novel, and then some promotional material for the rest of the series. That’s what the last 40 pages were. Not the heartwarming wedding we’ve been waiting literal years for, or any spicy activity after the fact. Promo for the author’s other books. *sigh*
((Me realizing just how much I’ve rambled in a review for a tiny novella: 🤡))
So yeah, I think that covers everything. I hoped for a cute throwback to one of my OG favorite series, where everything not wrapped up at the end of Imagine Me and was finally wrapped up and I got one more fun time with some of my OG favorite characters. Sadly, that’s not what I got. What I got… well, it wasn’t bad, per se, but if I’m being honest, it was a letdown.
Representation
Unfortunately, we didn’t get what we were promised. This was 180 pages of Warner worrying that Juliette didn’t love him, moping when things didn’t go his way, and being a complete asshole to everyone around him, interrupted only a few times by sweet moments with Juliette whenever they could get some privacy. I will say, I still really like Juliette and Warner’s relationship. I love how much they love each other, and was quite surprised (though not in a bad way) that one chapter got sexier than I thought Tahereh would make it. In that regard, I thank her for her service. 👀👏🏻
Other things I liked included Kenji, Nazeera, and Kenji and Nazeera. I was amused by both their banter, and the banter that ensued when they were with Juliette and Warner. They have a fun ensemble dynamic no matter what I think of Warner himself, which in this case meant I was pretty sick of him and wondering why he has so many fangirls in the book community. Sorry not sorry.
((Me realizing just how much I’ve rambled in a review for a tiny novella: 🤡))
So yeah, I think that covers everything. I hoped for a cute throwback to one of my OG favorite series, where everything not wrapped up at the end of Imagine Me and was finally wrapped up and I got one more fun time with some of my OG favorite characters. Sadly, that’s not what I got. What I got… well, it wasn’t bad, per se, but if I’m being honest, it was a letdown.
Representation
- hijabi side character
- side characters of color (includes Black and Japanese rep)
- queer side characters (includes a sapphic couple and an achillean couple)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content
Moderate: Gore, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Mental illness - anxiety. All things tagged moderate are referencing events prior to the story that are discussed a few times on-page.