Thursday, August 29, 2013

Book Review: The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

If you read my last book review you'll know that I LOVED the first book in this trilogy. Once again the cover and title didn't disappoint and when I started reading, I couldn't stop! Here's my summary:

Mara wakes up once again in the hospital. Unlike the first time this happened though, she remembers how she got there. Mara had gone to the police station to give a statement when she saw her ex-boyfriend--the one who is supposed to be dead--the one she's been seeing ever since she woke up in the last hospital. He touched her. He spoke to her. Apparently, Mara freaked out. That's how she ended up back in the psych ward. Mara does everything she can to tell her mom and brother and doctor she isn't crazy and isn't lying but no one believes her. Convinced they will lock her up for good, she decides to play their game and act normal and go along with what they are saying. It works. Mara is released. But she isn't giving up. She knows now that Jude is alive and stalking her and trying to make everyone believe she is guilty of his crimes as well as crazy. Mara's boyfriend Noah is the only one who believes her. Together the two search even harder from answers while Mara attends an outpatient program/school to get better. In the meantime, her and Noah discover that Mara's dead grandmother, who everyone also believed was crazy, and Noah's dead mother, actually knew each other. What's more is that Mara is starting to have memories that could only belong to her grandmother. Things get even more tense when Jude kidnaps Mara and displays some powers of his own. The next time Mara wakes up, she can't convince anyone she's sane. They send her to a last resort inpatient facility. Thankfully Noah manages to get in too. It's there she and Noah discover that Mara's doctor and the head of the facility isn't all she seems. When Jude shows up for one final attempt at revenge, Mara does the only thing she can think of that might finally get him out of their lives forever. Except this time the consequences are more than she imagined. 

Whew! This was one roller coaster of an emotional book ride! Mara's journey was emotional and relatable once again. She dealt with many of the same teenage problems other kids her age deal with as well as the added problem of overwhelming emotional issues. I tore through this book loving the mounting threat of Jude and enjoying the sweet romance that continued to develop between Noah and Mara. I liked the little clues that were dropped along the way that kept me wondering what was going on with these two kids as well as many of the other kids Mara had met. Why were they different? Was Mara's grandmother like them? How is Jude still alive? The question of Mara's mental stability and reliability as a narrator was always on the forefront of my mind. Was she crazy and just had me fooled for two books? The answer at the end of Evolultion was a nice set up for book three and a shocking revelation that left more questions than answers. What's more is that where Mara is left and the consequences of what she did left me with my mouth open and my eyes wide with shock. Book three, The Retribution of Mara Dyer, releases in June 2014.

Thanks for reading! Feel free to comment below!


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