Review: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer
by Michelle Hodkin

Author: Michelle Hodkin
Published: 27th September 2011
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Number of pages: 452
Format: Hardback
Source: Bought.
Purchase: Amazon, The Book Depository, Barnes & Noble

From Goodreads:

Mara Dyer doesn’t think life can get any stranger. She wakes from a coma in hospital with no memory of how she got there or of the bizarre accident that caused the deaths of her best friends and her boyfriend, yet left her mysteriously unharmed. The doctors suggest that starting over in a new city, a new school, would be good for her and just to let the memories gradually come back on their own. But Mara’s new start is anything but comforting. She sees the faces of her dead friends everywhere, and when she suddenly begins to see other people’s deaths right before they happen, Mara wonders whether she’s going crazy! And if dealing with all this wasn’t enough, Noah Shaw, the most beautiful boy she has ever seen can’t seem to leave her alone… but as her life unravels around her, Mara can’t help but wonder if Noah has another agenda altogether…

My Review:

The Unbecoming Of Mara Dyer is the first book in a trilogy by Michelle Hodkin. The plot is very complicated and mysterious, so let's see what the book talks about: Who is Mara Dyer? Mara Dyer seems to be a common teenager, she loves staying with her bestfriends, Claire and Rachel until one day they decided to do something very dangerous: visiting the old mental ospital of the city. After that day, Mara wakes up in hospital, just knowing that her friends are dead and that she can't absolutely remember anything about that night. But it will be that very night, that will change her life. After that event her parents decide to move on to another city, to try to help Mara forget about her old life. But they don't know that what really threatens Mara are her dreams. Since that day, Mara continues having horrible visions and allucinations about her friends' and other people's death.. and what if, it was Mara who caused her friends' death? The doubt  torments Mara, but fortunately she meets Noah, the only one who seems to be able to help her; but Noah has a secret,too. Will they be able to understand what is happening around them? Unfortunately I don't know. (GRRRR I need book two!!)

Brrr. Just reading the plot, it gave me shivers. How can I start? This book was SO good, I completely devoured it!! Even if I really like to read, I have to admit I am not that fast at reading, but this book was an exception: it took only 2 days to finish it!! I think that the thing that made me love this book most is that veil of mystery that surrounds the book until the end; when I finished the book I felt like if I didn't understand anything, like if everything was yet to be discovered. Maybe this has nothing to do with the book, I don't know if any of you have seen the film with Leonardo Di Caprio "Shutter Island"; well, at the finale of this book I felt exactly like when I saw that movie! There is not a reliable finale, that reassures you about what you've read; it leaves you with doubt, and with the HUGE desire to put your hands immediately on the next book. Now speaking of Michelle's writing style, it was really beautifully written and also very flowing; what I found a little boring was the middle part of the book, because the story progressed so slowly and all the twists were concentrated in the end of the book. For some points of view this can also be a strategy, to keep the reader focused on what it's happening, but in my opinion sometimes it was SO slow. What I really liked, instead is the way the author developed the characters; they were all well described, physically and emotionally and this made me create immediately a connection with all of them.I think that Mara is an incredible protagonist because she comes out of the boxes and in a time in which the books seem to be all equal, it's nice sometimes to find something (in this case someone) different. What I found absolutely lovely in her personality it's her insecurity, her fragility, her desperate need of Noah around her. Speaking of the devil, I know I'll probably be the millionth person on earth who said it, but Noah was OOOOOH. Yes, he is. He's so charming, but not only for his physical beauty, but for his intellectual charm. I mean, a boy with who you can discuss of books? Find me one, PLEASE. And in the end, among all this positive things, I have to say mine, as always. Where the hell did Jamie go? I mean, he was introduced at the very beginning of the book and I supposed he was an important character in the story, but then, at a certain point, when he was expelled by the school, he disappeared! I don't know if he was intended to be just an appearance in the book, of if the author wanted someway to get rid of him, but that was not something I liked. I usually develop a strong connection with characters and the inexplicable disappearance of one of them, is disappointing.

Well, I tend to talk a bit too much about what I didn't like, my damn critical spirit, but TRUST ME, "The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer" is something you can't miss (and probably half of you have already read it). So, I really want to see what do you think about "The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer"? If you have read it, how do you feel about the finale and the all story who murdered Rachel and Claire (and Jude, eventually)? I would love to hear your comments about it, or better I NEED YOUR COMMENTS. 

Rated: