Review: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

Pages: 464

Source: Publisher

Rating: 4.5/5

Mara Dyer wakes up in a hospital bed after being unconscious for three days and life as she knows it will never be the same. She learns that she was the only survivor when an abandoned building collapsed and her friends have been laid to rest. She cannot remember anything and she begins to show signs of post traumatic stress disorder. Her mother is pushing her to begin a series of therapy and medications, but Mara is not sure that is what is needed at this time. The hallucinations are terrifying and almost constant but she needs to keep them hidden to avoid her mother. In an attempt to better the situation Mara’s family have decided to move to Florida and start over. Mara is thankful and appreciative, especially of her brothers who have agreed to the move. Starting a new school is not easy for Mara, she seems to have immediate enemies and the school “player” has taken an interest in Mara. She’s loves to hate him, but there is something about him that draws her to him. Flashbacks of the accident are coming more intense and frequent and Mara must figure out what happened.

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer is an incredibly well written book. Michelle Hodkin keeps her readers in the dark, and readers are brought along on Mara’s journey. As the first book in a series, there will be more to come and readers will enjoys the twists and turns. Mara’s situation is unique and creepy. The romance between Mara and Noah is very well done, and although Noah has a reputation you will really root for him. I began to trust and feel his sincerity. While Mara lives with her flashbacks, I became more and more worried and confused about her. What is happening to her? What happened to her? Readers will realize that Mara can not be trusted, you can’t take her seriously because she is constantly confused about the situation. As Noah and her become closer and he tries to help her out, we learn that he has a backstory himself. This will peak readers interest and glued to the pages. 

Overall, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer is dark, twisted and a great psychological thriller. This felt very unique in the Young Adult genre. Throughout the entire book, I was questioning the accident, and Mara. I felt completely left int he dark, and scrambling for answers. As Mara desperately wants a normal life, you feel incredibly sad that she has to live through this. As Mara begins to question if she is just crazy, you can’t help but wonder if she is. Michelle Hodkin is a fantastic writer, and while some questions are answered by the end, readers will still have plenty of thoughts lingering in their mind when the story is over. This series has a lot of potential, and I’m jumping on the Michelle Hodkin wagon.