Review: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
Published by Simon & Schuster 2011

Mara Dyer doesn't think life can get any stranger than waking up in a hospital with no memory of how she got there.

It can.

She believes there must be more to the accident she can't remember that killed her friends and left her mysteriously unharmed.

There is.

She doesn't believe that after everything she's been through, she can fall in love.

She's wrong.

♥♥♥♥♥

This book was amazing. I finished it during lunch at school and I haven't been able to get my mind off it since, which is dangerous, I know. This book is also one of the eight I managed to buy during my NY trip and I can't believe I didn't read it sooner, as I've had it under my desk since October. I've got so much cover love for this book and let's be honest, that blurb tells you nothing, which made it all the more intriguing.  

Mara Dyer has just been in an accident that killed all her closest friends and she's struggling to put the pieces together about what happened that night and why she's not really very hurt while everyone else died. She ends up moving from Rhode Island to Miami to try and forget, and starts at a new school. 

First of all, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer has nothing whatsoever in common with The Adoration of Jenna Fox (which I also bought from NY and loved) even though they sound very similar. Michelle Hodkin managed to take this in a whole different direction: the paranormal kind. Second, Mara was a very likeable character and I found her to be quite selfless and determined, despite how much she was struggling inside herself. She was a regular normal girl going through the aftermath of her best friend's death and I really sympathised with her. Then we have Noah. Oh, Noah. I so badly want him to be real; he has absolutely everything when it comes to the features of a swoon-worthy male love interest. Noah is a typical bad boy with the look to match, but at the same time he's just so much better than that. I loved everything about Noah; he had great looks, a great personality and a hilarious sense of humour (as did Mara) that had me laughing out loud at several points throughout the book. Noah and Mara complimented each other really well and I found myself really rooting for them. The story itself was shrouded in mystery. All through the book, you don't really know what's going on and then BAM, it hits you in the face and you go reeling. Hodkin did a great job with the suspense and intrigue and I was constantly guessing. The book also had quite a creepy feel to it and at points I was really afraid for Mara. Hodkin also didn't give too much away; just small pieces that built up to one massive finale and we finally learn what's going on with Mara. I didn't expect the ending because it didn't make sense; in a good way. It was an ending so unexpected that it caused a rather loud "Holy s***!" to come out of my mouth, earning me some curious glances from my peers and my best friends. 

YOU NEED TO READ THIS BOOK NOW. AM I CLEAR?!

I cannot rate this book with mere stars but they will have to do.

5 stars