Monday, November 7, 2011

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin (Review)


Genre:Young Adult, Paranormal
Publication.Date  September 27th 2011
Pages:452
Published By:  Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
WebsiteMichelle Hodkin |

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer - Goodreads
My review copy:Provided by the publisher (thank you!)
Where to get: Barnes and Noble | Amazon      | Book Depository



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.
(goodreads.com)


“What would you do if I kissed you right now?"
I stared at his beautiful face and his beautiful mouth and I wanted nothing more than to taste it. "I would kiss you back.”
“You want me as much as I want you. And all I want is you."
My tongue warred with my mind. "Today," I whispered.
Noah stood slowly, his body skimming mine as he rose. "Today. Tonight. Tomorrow. Forever.”
“Wait," I said as Noah slipped a book from a shelf and headed toward the door. "Where are you going?"
"To read?"
But I don't want you to.
"But I need to go home," I said, my eyes meeting his. "My parents are going to kill me."
"Taken care of. You're at Sophie's house."
I loved Sophie.
"So I'm...staying here?"
"Daniel's covering for you."
I loved Daniel.
"Where's Katie?" I asked, trying to sound casual.
"Eliza's house."
I loved Eliza.
"And your parents?" I asked.
"Some charity thing."
I loved charity.
"So why are you going to read when I'm right here?”
“You could start a fire with the heat between you two."
"You're mistaking bitter animosity for heartfelt affection.”

“Have you kissed many boys before?" he asked quietly.
His question brought my mind back into focus. I raised an eyebrow. "Boys? That's an assumption."
Noah laughed, the sound low and husky. "Girls, then?"
"No."
"Not many girls? Or not many boys?"
"Neither," I said. Let him make of that what he would.
"How many?"
"Why—"
"I am taking away that word. You are no longer allowed to use it. How many?"
My cheeks flushed, but my voice was steady as I answered. "One."
At this, Noah leaned in impossibly closer, the slender muscles in his forearm flexing as he bent his elbow to bring himself nearer to me, almost touching. I was heady with the proximity of him and grew legitimately concerned that my heart might explode. Maybe Noah wasn't asking. Maybe I didn't mind. I closed my eyes and felt Noah's five o' clock graze my jaw, and the faintest whisper of his lips at my ear.
"He was doing it wrong.”
“In my rush, I hadn't tied my shoelaces. Noah was now tying them for me.
He looked up at me through his dark fringe of lashes and smiled. The expression on his face melted me completely. I knew I had the goofiest grin plastered on my lips, and didn't care.
"There," he said as he finished tying the laces on my left shoe. "Now you won't fall."
Too late.”
“You're distracting,' I said truthfully.
'I won't be. I promise,' Noah said. 'I'll get some crayons and draw quitely. Alone. In a corner.”

Check out the trailer guys!!! It's one of the best book trailers I've ever seen!!!



     
     There isn't anything I could say about this book, that hasn't already been said. You'd have to be some sort of seclude, living in an underground nuclear bunker, to not have heard about Unbecoming of Mara Dyer before. This book had been hyped up like CRAZY. It had been on everyone's lips! People were totally in love with it even before the ARCs were printed! It's one of the hottest releases of 2011, definitely one of my top 5 favorites. And Noah.. Noah Shaw.. *wipes drool from chin*  - don't even get me started!

      Before I start my Noah-inspired raving fit, though, I'd like to talk about the plot a bit.

      Mara Dyer wakes up in a hospital with a couple of bruises and no recollection of how she got there. Something terrible happened during her late-night exploration of an abandoned building. She wasn't alone when the accident took place, though, she was there with a group of her best friends. And now all her friends are dead and she can't remember what it was that caused the building to collapse and bury them all under tons of debris. Like that wasn't enough, weird things are starting to happen around her. She starts getting those flash-back dreams in which - piece by piece - she slowly uncovers the mystery behind the freak accident. The more she learns, the more terrified she becomes, cause maybe.. just maybe.. the building collapse wasn't accidental after all.

      That's about as much as I can tell you without giving away too much. I absolutely loved the construction of this novel - the way Mara didn't know what happened to her and we got to discover the truth along with her, step by step - it was brilliant! It made the whole thing way more mysterious and exciting. It's definitely a blood-pressure riser, I had those moments when it felt like I couldn't flip the pages fast enough! It's a pretty big novel - I mean 452 pages is not too much, but it's not exactly what you'd call a short read, right? Well, guess what?! I breezed through those 452 pages (what felt like) on a single breath! Despite the paranormal aspect of this book (which, btw, was very subtle and not overwhelming at all), this novel felt very real. I liked how it focused more on what Mara felt and what she had to go through, while discovering the shattering truth about herself and what she's capable of, rather than blowing the whole paranormal thing way out of proportion. I got to know Mara and Noah, I learned a lot about them and, thanks to Michelle Hodkin's fantastic storytelling, I could feel their emotions. And there was A LOT to feel. It's a deliciously intense book, dripping with all sorts of emotions: fear, uncertainty, anxiety, anger, regret, desire, love, curiosity, hope.. It's all there! This is a terrific read - the plot is tightly woven and well-thought out. It makes you think, makes feel, makes you sweat, leaves you slightly light-headed and wanting more - everything a great book should.

      And Noah? Oh, Noah!!! I could eat him alive - he's such a hottie! British, mysterious, total sweetheart with a reputation of a heart-breaker.. ahhhh~ So swoon worthy! It's officially my number one on the Book Bachelor list (bye bye Jace!). Undoubtedly one of the best male protagonists EVER. And not only because he is drop-dead gorgeous and bring-me-a-napkin drool-inducing hottie, but also because of his wonderful character, wittiness, mysteriousness, gentleness... everything! There is no other like Noah Shaw!!!

      I can't emphasize enough how AWESOME this book is. It's one of the 2011 YA releases that you absolutely have to read. No discussions. Go get yourself a copy, you'll thank me later!

21 comments:

Carina said...

When I read this, I was incredibly happy that I liked it as much as I expected after all the crazy hype surrounding it. And Noah... aah, I seriously couldn't get enough of him.

A great review for an amazing book! Thanks for sharing,
Carina @ Fictional Distraction

Krazzyme(Young Readers) said...

This is too much! I have to read this now! I mean you called it the most awesome book of 2011! AND you said that for half blood too(I <3 that book!)


Krazyyme @ Young Readers

Natalia Belikov said...

excellent review my dear!!! I so totally agree with everything your sayd about Noah!! OMG OMFG!!! HE IS SUCH A DUDE! HOLY COW!!! LOVE HIM WITH INSATY OH LORD NOAH OH HELL YEHA COME HERE OH GOD YES!!! XDDDD

I think we both have the hots for him huhuuhuhu!!!

btw, I had no idea you were Canadian and I just notive you are from Vancouver! lucky!! Cinda Chima was there not long ago! aaah!!!
Bye ^.^
XDDDD yey!!

Dazzling Reads

Kathy said...

Sigh... I could gush about Noah Shaw all day! I blush just thinking about him. He is my number 1 book hottie. Swoon!

I love this book so much as well. I am dying for book two.

Amazing review!

Andrea @ Cozy Up said...

Thanks for the amazing review Evie! I can't wait to read this book. There is so much hype and everyone seems to love it!

Read Between the Lines said...

Awesome review I loved this book also just simply WOW this book rocked and I agree Noah Shaw is YUMMY

Unknown said...

This book is on my TBR. I want to read it super badly! :D

Haley @ YA-Aholic said...

Great review hun! I have this one sitting on my shelf, I need to pick this one up soon! I nee to meeet Noah!! haha Thanks for sharing ! (:

Allison said...

People all seem to have such strong reactions to this book - they either absolutely love it or they hate it.

I am so curious about it, I'll have to pick up a copy to see what the deal is!

Chrisbails said...

I wanted this book before your review, now I want it even more. Loved the quotes for the book. I absolutely love the cover of this book, one of my favs of the year. Thanks for the great review.
christinebails@yahoo.com

Unknown said...

I loved the whole premise of this novel and couldn't put it down once I started! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review!

Unknown said...

I first heard of this book a while ago and I just love every moment of it even though I don't know how to explain it to people. Thanks for the great review!

Christina said...

Gotta love a boy who still loves to draw with crayons!

I have a copy of this, but haven't read it yet...

K . R . Guidera said...

Loving the cover...will definitely check this one out!

Glass said...

I loved this book - Mara is so "dark", nothing like usual YA characters.

Unknown said...

I apparently have been in a bunker lol. I just picked this book up fromt he library the otehr day to read because I started finding reviews about how amazing this book is. I found one that said otherwise, so I figured it was worth a shot. I'm excited to read it. the cover drew me in first and then all the reviews I found sealed the deal and I checked it out.

gracelo said...

I loved The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, too! I posted a review of it about a month back, because it took a while for my brain to create coherent thoughts, and even then I couldn't express how much I loved it!

Unknown said...

Another great book! My TBR list is piling up fast! Good thing, I heard about great things about the book so I'm not "living in an underground nuclear bunker". Thanks for the review!

Anonymous said...

I definitely want to read this book now! Thank you for the helpful review.

Rima said...

Great review! I loved this book, I finished it soo quickly, couldn't turn the pages fast enough! I love how Michelle Hodkin portrayed Mara as such an unreliable narrator, just made the story that much more interesting. And NOAH..*drools*.. nuff said. :P

May said...

Great review! I felt the same way when I read it too :D
I like to read reviews on this book especially, because a lot of people have an either "love it or hate it" attitude towards it. So it's interesting to see both sides. But I also loved it lol

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