Review: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Genre: Thriller/Suspense

Page count: 464 

Source: Received Copy for review from Simon and Schuster Canada

Release Date: September 27th 2011. PRE-Order it here: US\CAN\Intl

My Review

Mara Dyer was a pretty average girl. That is until she survived a freak accident, that killed three of her closest friends. Now she's suffering from post traumatic stress and amnesia. She can't remember what happened that night and what she does remember comes to her in horrible visions. It gets so bad that her family decided to move to a whole other state to get her away from the memories. Despite the move, however, Mara is still haunted by visions and strange things seem to happen where ever she goes. She begins to wonder if she'll ever feel normal again.

Let me start of by saying this is one creepy creepy book. I started reading it before going to bed and then couldn't put it down, and even though I knew I should go to sleep and get some rest every time I tried all I could think about was the craziness that is Mara Dyer. It ended up being 3:30 am when I finally finished the book and even then, despite my exhaustion, I needed to leave the lamp on. This book will rattle you.

There are a lot of things I want to tell you about but I just can't because it would give too much away and the less you know about this book before you begin the more exciting it's going to be. So instead I'm just going to talk about Mara and Noah. Before the accident Mara seems like your average teenage girl, a little curious, a little insecure. Just trying to figure herself out. After the accident she's a little pouty (which you just can't blame her for) but she has a whole new level of determination. You've got to admire that in a character who has been through hell and back.

And then there's Noah. Bad boy, rebel without a cause. There's been a couple of reviews that have called him a douchebag. I don't know if I'd go that far. He certainly does think highly of himself and can get a little annoying but I don't think he was overly mean. I hesitate to call him swoon-worthy but he is definitely an excellent lead male character and he really cares about Mara, which is always a plus in my book.

My only complaint is that sometimes things seemed to happen a little to easily. At over 400 pages you wouldn't expect a lot of easy resolution. At least I don't. If I'm reading something that's over 400 pages I want depth, I want layers and mysteries. There were also a couple of loose ends and unanswered questions, but this book is set to have a sequel so I'm assuming they'll get answered there. My final verdict: a suspenseful and creepy read, that will have you up all night but is easy and fun to read.

About the Author (from Goodreads)

At the age of sixteen, Michelle Hodkin lost the rights to her soul in a poker game with pirates just south of Natchez. Shortly thereafter, she joined an acting troupe and traveled the world performing feats of wonder and mischief. She has been seen on stages nationwide and earned rave reviews for her one woman performance of Titus Andronicus before writing THE UNBECOMING OF MARA DYER, her first novel. Michelle currently lives with her three pets and may or may not be a reliable narrator of her own life. 

Favourite Quotes

"You could start a fire with the heat between you two."
"You're mistaking bitter animosity for heartfelt affection." 

"You smell good," he whispered into my neck. He was warm against me. Instinctively, I arched back into him and smiled.
"Really?"
"Mmm-hmm. Delicious. Like bacon." 

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