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Series · young adult dystopian romance

Shatter Me

by Tahereh Mafi

The Shatter Me series by Tahereh Mafi has 13 books and is best read in publication order, starting with Shatter Me (2011). The next book, Escape Me, is due 29 September 2026.

Books
8 novels + 5 novellas
First published
2011
Status
ongoing
Last checked

Start here: Shatter Me (2011) — then read straight through in publication order.

Book one

Cover of Shatter Me, the first book in Shatter Me

Shatter Me (2011)

Reading order

The order the books were released — the default way to read the series.

  1. Shatter Me

    Novel

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  2. Destroy Me

    Novella

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  3. Unravel Me

    Novel

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  4. Fracture Me

    Novella

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  5. Ignite Me

    Novel

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  6. Restore Me

    Novel

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  7. Shadow Me

    Novella

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  8. Defy Me

    Novel

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  9. Reveal Me

    Novella

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  10. Imagine Me

    Novel

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  11. Believe Me

    Novella

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  12. Watch Me

    Novel

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  13. Release Me

    Novel

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The order the story's events happen in, novellas slotted where they belong.

  1. Shatter Me

    Novel

    View book

  2. Destroy Me

    Novella

    View book

  3. Unravel Me

    Novel

    View book

  4. Fracture Me

    Novella

    View book

  5. Ignite Me

    Novel

    View book

  6. Restore Me

    Novel

    View book

  7. Shadow Me

    Novella

    View book

  8. Defy Me

    Novel

    View book

  9. Reveal Me

    Novella

    View book

  10. Imagine Me

    Novel

    View book

  11. Believe Me

    Novella

    View book

About the Shatter Me series

Shatter Me opens in a cell: seventeen-year-old Juliette Ferrars has been locked away because her touch is lethal, her every thought spilling onto the page in the fractured, strikethrough-laced prose that became the series' signature. When the totalitarian Reestablishment decides her curse could be a weapon, Juliette is pulled into a world of soldiers, secret resistances, and two magnetic young men — one who seems to offer rescue, and one who seems to embody everything she should fear.

What begins as a claustrophobic dystopian romance grows steadily bigger and stranger: superpowered rebels, global conspiracies, and a heroine whose journey from broken prisoner to force of nature drives all six novels. Tahereh Mafi's great trick is perspective — characters you think you've judged correctly in book one look radically different by book five, and the series' most divisive figure becomes its most beloved. Four novellas told from other points of view deepen exactly those reversals.

The style is the make-or-break: feverish, metaphor-drunk first-person narration that readers either devour or bounce off within pages. For fans of character-first YA — where the war matters mostly because of what it does to the people fighting it — Shatter Me remains a defining series, and its recent spin-off has introduced a new generation to Juliette's world.

Frequently asked questions

How many books are in the Shatter Me series?

Eleven entries in the original series: six novels (Shatter Me, Unravel Me, Ignite Me, Restore Me, Defy Me, Imagine Me) and five novellas (Destroy Me, Fracture Me, Shadow Me, Reveal Me, Believe Me). A spin-off trilogy set in the same world began with Watch Me in 2025.

What order should I read Shatter Me in?

Publication order: Shatter Me, Destroy Me, Unravel Me, Fracture Me, Ignite Me, Restore Me, Shadow Me, Defy Me, Reveal Me, Imagine Me, Believe Me. The novellas fit between (and, for Believe Me, right after) the novels at their half-numbers (1.5, 2.5, 4.5, 5.5, 6.5).

Do I need to read the Shatter Me novellas?

The story makes sense without them, but they add point-of-view chapters from key characters and set up major turns — Destroy Me and Shadow Me are the two most often called essential, and Believe Me (2021) gives the six-book arc a romantic epilogue from Warner's point of view. Destroy Me and Fracture Me are collected in print as Unite Me, and Shadow Me and Reveal Me as Find Me.

Is the Shatter Me series finished?

The original six-book series concluded with Imagine Me (2020), followed by the closing novella Believe Me (2021). Tahereh Mafi has since launched a sequel trilogy set about a decade later, starting with Watch Me (April 2025), with further installments following — read those only after finishing the original series.

Is Shatter Me appropriate for teens?

Yes — it is published as young adult. Romance grows steamier in the later books and the spin-off skews older, but the original series sits comfortably in upper-YA territory.

Reading order last verified .