Book Hangover is defined as “the struggle a person goes through trying to connect with reality after finishing an amazing book” and “the inability to start reading a new book because one is still living in the old book's world.”
After reading Tahereh Mafi’s Shatter Me Trilogy, I was in such a daze for a couple of days. I couldn’t get the story out of my mind, much less pick up one of the many books piling up in my ‘to read’ list. So I did the only logical thing I could think of to put me out of my Shatter Funk: I wrote a fanfic.
My favorite character in the entire trilogy, hands down, is Kenji Kishimoto. Then Warner takes a solid second place (Team Warnette all the waaaay!).
I absolutely love Kenji’s characterization. You see, he’s not just the ‘comic relief character.’ I love how Mafi shaped Kenji into something more human and relatable by taking great care in showing the other sides to his personality—like how he’s sometimes sick of being the funny guy, and that he can be terrified, angry, caring, responsible, and so much more. He’s so real I could almost hug him (and I wish I could).
After reading the trilogy, I found myself constantly wondering about Kenji—especially about his backstory, since not much is revealed about his past. And being the hopeless romantic that I am, I also wanted to believe he’d eventually fall head over heels in love with someone…which led me to start wondering what Kenji would be like when he falls in love (since he admitted to Juliette in one of the books that he’s never fallen for anyone). This, then, led me to start wondering what kind of girl he would fall in love with.
Thus, this fanfic was born.
This fanfiction is a novella that takes place five years after Ignite Me. It’s narrated by a new character named Hiroko Miyuzaki and the story is set in Japan (which, for all intents and purposes of this story, is no longer called Japan, but Sector 21). In fact, almost all the characters in this novella are purely of my imagination. The only characters I borrowed from the original trilogy are Juliette, Warner, and of course, Kenji, who make an appearance a few chapters later. The other characters from the trilogy, however, are only mentioned.
If you haven’t read Tahereh Mafi’s groundbreaking trilogy yet, this goes without saying that reading this novella would only confuse you. Therefore, go and devour the trilogy first (and only then will you truly understand this Shatter Funk I’m in), then read this.
To all of Tahereh Mafi’s fans, and to amazing Miss Mafi (if ever you’re reading this): I hope you enjoy the story.
- Nocturnal Scribe
P.S. I know there are some errors here (plot, accuracy, grammar, etc.). Please feel free to point them out in the comment sections and I'll make the necessary corrections. Thanks!
DISCLAIMER: All rights to the story and characters of the Shatter Me trilogy belong to Tahereh Mafi and Harper Teen. "Transform Me" is a work of non-canon fiction based on the world established in the original books. All characters (except for Juliette Ferrars, Aaron Warner, and Kenji Kishimoto) and events are purely fictitious and of my own imagination. Resemblances to any persons living or dead is purely coincidental.
WARNING: The following story contains spoilers from the original trilogy. In addition, while most chapters range in rating from G to PG, others are PG-13 or even R. This means that there will be adult content, such as the use of profanity, mild violence, and (maybe even) intimate scenes. Read at your own discretion.
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Transform Me (A "Shatter Me" Trilogy Fanfiction)
Hayran KurguSYNOPSIS After Juliette Ferrars takes over Sector 45, she spends the next five years liberating the other sectors, until the whole continent of North America is almost entirely free from the Reestablishment. Their resistance gave hope to the other...
