A review by sklus
The Retribution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

3.0

So, I think I like the first half of the book better than I did the first two books. Then, it got kind of boring towards the end. People were dying and coming back to life left and right. It's a bit overdone. The book could have ended about 13 chapters earlier and it would have been a more compelling ending.
I'm not a big fan of the characters in this series either. I'm only really a fan of the side characters. Mara just bugs me; she has absolutely no redeeming qualities.

Spoiler

She murders several people, only a few of them for good reason. She is selfish and super murder-y, which isn't my favorite traits when it comes to characters.

Noah was even worse at times. Like he says all the right "romantic boy" phrases which are probably why he's a fav, but his self-destructive nature while simultaneously being perfect. He and Mara's characterization make me wonder whether this book is a positive mental health representation. Most books don't cover mental health at all, so this book is a step up in one regard. My issue comes with the fact that

Spoiler

health issues are part of their "powers." So it's more of a character quirk. It disappears for most of the characters after their powers become complete. I also dislike how mental health workers are the evils one in this.

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