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3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
I hated everything about this book except the plot in the beginning. Mara was unreasonable and unlikable, her siblings were one-dimensional and perfectly convenient, Noah was just... awful. He literally pinched Mara's lips shut when he wanted to make a point once, ordered for her at a restaurant without permission, had the usual "rich kid with daddy issues background," and he allegedly treated girls horribly but Mara was "not like other girls." There was an unexpected paranormal element which appeared midway through--I did not enjoy that. I thought it would be a "recover-the-memories-and-fall-in-love" contemporary mystery, not a "ooh I have deadly powers and so does my boyfriend and this causes problems" paranormal mystery. In the end, NOT like Sacred Lies of Minnow Bly, but somehow WORSE.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Toxic friendship, Sexual harassment, Injury/Injury detail
I feel like this book mainly focused on the romance which I didn’t really like
Reading this book felt like being dragged, kicking and screaming, back into 2011. it’s angsty dark YA fiction in all its glory, tropes and cliches included. in some ways it was endearing, a girl reclaiming her life/agency after a deeply traumatic event with the help of [magic?]. in others, not so much. when once i would have read ~dark and mysterious~ boyfriend, i saw instead ~possessive and a lil violent~ boyfriend. so, uh 3/5 stars because despite (or maybe because of?) all the edgy YA tropes, i found myself rooting for mara and her weird little family
I liked this story! It was nicely thought out and the characters were amazing! I especially loved Noah he was extremely sweet and sarcastic!! I love it! There were times when I didn't like Mara Dyer because I believe at certain times she was being incredibly selfish, like in the ending. She had valid reasons but all because she has this ability does not mean she knows how to control it. Which she herself admits of not having. Either way I wasn't expecting the ending, that knocked me off my feet!! Like what?! what just happened?! So I will definitely pick up the sequel The Evolution of Mara Dyer!! I recommend this book to anyone who's interested in mystery, romance, and paranormal type books!!
Re-read March 21, 2024
I saw this book in the bookstore a while ago and remembered liking parts of it. I never got around to reading the whole trilogy, so I figured to read through this one again and continue on. I couldn't even make it all the way through the first book. I really do not like Noah as a character, and as he's obviously going to be the love interest, I can't bring myself to keep reading about him.
The good stuff that I noted in my original review is still good. Noah just ruins the reading experience. This guy made me so uncomfortable with how he kept following Mara around and pushing himself on her even after she told him to leave her alone. He basically acted like he didn't care about her feelings, and when she tried to push him away he just followed her. The guy actually said the line, "You're not like other girls." Why are controlling jerks who ignore the girl's wishes played up as legitimate romantic partners? This book was written ten years ago and I still see this kind of male lead show up in books.
Shout out to Jamie, though. I know he was just the token gay best friend archetype, but he was still the most entertaining part of the book.
Original review: November 12, 2012
I picked up this book just to kill time during my lunch break, liked the character's voice and decided to give it a chance. Now that it's over all I can think of is, "what happened?"
Parts of it were brilliant. Being a fan of psychological thrillers, I loved how Mara struggled with her hallucinations and questioning herself. I loved how I didn't know if what she was seeing really happened or if it was all in her mind. I loved the mystery behind the mysterious deaths along the way.
And guess what ruined it all? That's right, the love story. Why are stalker perfect boyfriends such a thing in teen fiction? It made me want to scream and shake Mara while asking "What are you doing?!" She was warned multiple times by her only friend about this guy but she keeps pursuing Noah anyway. By the time the last third of the book rolled around, I was inwardly groaning at this couple.
This story would have been fine or, dare I say it, better without the love interest. I wish I could give it more stars because I honestly did love parts of the story. But there were so many unbelievable moments that I can't while still being honest.
If you love paranormal teen romance, this is for you. It's a lot like many of the other paranormal teen romances out there. As for me, I think I need a break from this genre.
I saw this book in the bookstore a while ago and remembered liking parts of it. I never got around to reading the whole trilogy, so I figured to read through this one again and continue on. I couldn't even make it all the way through the first book. I really do not like Noah as a character, and as he's obviously going to be the love interest, I can't bring myself to keep reading about him.
The good stuff that I noted in my original review is still good. Noah just ruins the reading experience. This guy made me so uncomfortable with how he kept following Mara around and pushing himself on her even after she told him to leave her alone. He basically acted like he didn't care about her feelings, and when she tried to push him away he just followed her. The guy actually said the line, "You're not like other girls." Why are controlling jerks who ignore the girl's wishes played up as legitimate romantic partners? This book was written ten years ago and I still see this kind of male lead show up in books.
Shout out to Jamie, though. I know he was just the token gay best friend archetype, but he was still the most entertaining part of the book.
Original review: November 12, 2012
I picked up this book just to kill time during my lunch break, liked the character's voice and decided to give it a chance. Now that it's over all I can think of is, "what happened?"
Parts of it were brilliant. Being a fan of psychological thrillers, I loved how Mara struggled with her hallucinations and questioning herself. I loved how I didn't know if what she was seeing really happened or if it was all in her mind. I loved the mystery behind the mysterious deaths along the way.
And guess what ruined it all? That's right, the love story. Why are stalker perfect boyfriends such a thing in teen fiction? It made me want to scream and shake Mara while asking "What are you doing?!" She was warned multiple times by her only friend about this guy but she keeps pursuing Noah anyway. By the time the last third of the book rolled around, I was inwardly groaning at this couple.
This story would have been fine or, dare I say it, better without the love interest. I wish I could give it more stars because I honestly did love parts of the story. But there were so many unbelievable moments that I can't while still being honest.
If you love paranormal teen romance, this is for you. It's a lot like many of the other paranormal teen romances out there. As for me, I think I need a break from this genre.
First of all: O.M.G.
The last time a book left me feeling this way was when I read Nocte. This book kept me gripped right to the very end. The story starts with Mara being involved in an accident that kills her two friends and boyfriend, she wakes up in a hospital bed with no memory of how she got there. Soon after she starts experiencing hallucinations other strange things. With everything that has happened Mara and her family moves to Florida for a fresh start. Mara starts at a new school and meets a guy called Noah who has his own secrets. Mara continues to experience creepy hallucinations and has dream memories of what happened the night her friends died. It's in those memories that she finally learns the truth about what happened.
I loved how much of a mind f*@k this story was. It really sucks you in, I was desperate to find out what the hell was going on. I enjoyed how the story was told which is kind of hard to explain but it has a sort of dreamlike quality to it, which made figuring out the story that much harder. It was one of those rare times where I couldn't guess what was going to happen next.
I really felt for Mara, to go through what she was experiencing must have been terrifying and lonely. At times it was hard to figure whether what she was experiencing was real or just a figment of her imagination. I'm still not sure how I feel about Noah, he has a likable charm about him and you do find out a lot about him but I still feel there is so much more to his character that we haven't seen yet.
Overall this was an excellent read. I'm not sure how this went under my radar for so long but I'm glad I found out about it because it was just soo good!!
The last time a book left me feeling this way was when I read Nocte. This book kept me gripped right to the very end. The story starts with Mara being involved in an accident that kills her two friends and boyfriend, she wakes up in a hospital bed with no memory of how she got there. Soon after she starts experiencing hallucinations other strange things. With everything that has happened Mara and her family moves to Florida for a fresh start. Mara starts at a new school and meets a guy called Noah who has his own secrets. Mara continues to experience creepy hallucinations and has dream memories of what happened the night her friends died. It's in those memories that she finally learns the truth about what happened.
I loved how much of a mind f*@k this story was. It really sucks you in, I was desperate to find out what the hell was going on. I enjoyed how the story was told which is kind of hard to explain but it has a sort of dreamlike quality to it, which made figuring out the story that much harder. It was one of those rare times where I couldn't guess what was going to happen next.
I really felt for Mara, to go through what she was experiencing must have been terrifying and lonely. At times it was hard to figure whether what she was experiencing was real or just a figment of her imagination. I'm still not sure how I feel about Noah, he has a likable charm about him and you do find out a lot about him but I still feel there is so much more to his character that we haven't seen yet.
Overall this was an excellent read. I'm not sure how this went under my radar for so long but I'm glad I found out about it because it was just soo good!!