Addictive mysteries in The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

*All reviews I write are spoiler free*

I’ve finally started this series!

(I feel like I say that in every review)

I had no idea what I was going to find when starting this book. I went into it blind, not knowing anything about it.

So let’s talk about the unbecoming of Mara Dyer!

Title: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

Author: Michelle Hodkin

Publisher: Simon & Schuster

Series Status: The 1st in the Mara Dyer trilogy

Number of Pages:  452

(Found on back cover, view different version on Goodreads)

When Mara Dyer wakes up in hospital with no memory of how she got there, or any explanation as to why the bizarre accident that caused the deaths of her boyfriend and two best friends left her mysteriously unharmed, her doctors suggest she start over in a new city, at a new school, and just hope the memories gradually come back.

But Mara’s new start is anything buy comforting. She sees the faces of her dead friends everywhere and now she’s started to see other people’s deaths before they happen. Is she going crazy? As if dealing with all this isn’t enough, Noah Shaw, the most beautiful boy she’s ever seen, can’t seem to leave her alone. But does he have her best interests at heart, or another agenda altogether?

Let me just say this – it’s so hard to figure out what the genre is of this book! There’s so many different elements mixed in. It’s definitely a mystery, that’s for sure. But then sometimes it seems like a psychological thriller. Sometimes paranormal. Sometimes romance. So I’m just going to go ahead and say it fits into every single one of these.

Right from the start this book was mysterious, and I wanted answers immediately. I needed to know what had happened. And I was determined to find those answers.

I feel like the first 100 pages or so were a lot slower than the rest of the book. They seemed to be setting up the background story, building it all up. Which is only to be expected in the first book of a series. But this book definitely picked up a bit after the 100 page mark, for me at least.

Now, I don’t read mysteries often, but if they’re all as bloomin’ addictive as this one, I might just have to dabble into this genre a bit more. It got to a stage where I was furiously flipping the pages, almost wild with need for the answers. There was one of those times where I stayed up late because the OH MY GOD WHAT HAPPENS NEXT moment kept happening. On repeat. While the story (and my mind) were spiraling out of control.

And can I just mention the amount of sarcastically witty conversations that happened in this book?!? Because you can bet your bottom dollar that I adored it.

The characters were a love of mine too. Mara Dyer (great name by the way) was so interesting to me. I loved reading the way she thought, and how she would unleash this stubborn sarcasticness in defense. How she had her creative side, and somewhat normality, but then would gradually become more unnerving.

And Noah. Oh how I loved Noah. I can’t even explain why.

There was such a good family presence in this book. I feel like in most books, apart from contemporaries, the family of the main character just seems to vanish somewhat. So with the family playing a huge part in this book, to me it was refreshing to see. I loved all of the relationships, they were realistic and strong.

I do admit that towards the end, things did get a bit confusing. A lot of things are revealed at the same time, and it can be a bit too much to take in at first. Plus to me, one of the “big reveals” seemed a bit too…convenient for me. Though it did make the story more interesting, I feel. So at least there’s that.

“Thinking something does not make it true. Wanting something does not make it real.”

Also, I am not alright with that cliffhanger. WAY TO ADD MORE QUESTIONS, HODKIN. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. Though I suppose I should’ve seen it coming, it being a mystery and all.

I’ll definitely be continuing this series. This first book was a very promising start, with the haunting atmosphere and endless questions. I can’t wait to see where this whole spiral of satisfying confusion ends up.

Rated 4/5 stars!

Order from Amazon!

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Share your thoughts!

Have you read this book? What did you think?

Who’s your favourite character?

For people who have read further – does the rest of the series live up to the first book?

If you haven’t read this book, is it on your TBR?

Let me know in the comments!

Until next time…

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