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A review by nedjemet
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
2.0
The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer is yet another book that has fallen victim to this strange phenomenon in which the female leads ignore the theoretical main plot in favor of a hot boy. It’s also one of the worst of these casualties that I’ve seen. Normally these books at least try to tell both stories, but Mara turns the main plot into a barely-existent side-plot the moment that her hottie (Noah) appears.
This isn’t instant-death for enjoyment. I liked Casandra Clare’s mortal instruments well enough even though it also fell victim to this, but that was because the romance was interesting. It had some real, if a little heavy-handed, drama to it. This one? Not so much. It’s little more than a will-they, won’t-they situation whose only drama is Mara’s inability to make choices. It certainly doesn’t help that Noah is so over-the-top “ideal” in traits (speaks multiple languages, has a British accent, is super rich) and so underwhelming in charm that I don’t know what to do with him. He’s got some good lines and I did find myself liking him more and more as the novel went on, but he just does so many things that grated on me.
For example, in one scene, he orders food on Mara’s behalf. This, in and of itself, is not a terrible thing. They’re at a restaurant that he loves that she’s never been to. That’s a situation where it’s totally reasonable for him to make suggestions. It’s the way that he does it that left me feeling all icky about him.
Okay guys, this is not how you want to have this scene play out. You want to charm the girl? Ask her if you can order for her and do it before the waiter shows up! If you’re going to ignore that, then at least check to see if she’s got allergies or if she hates spicy food or if there was something special she was craving! Wanting to treat her to a great meal is sexy. Assuming that you know what she considers a great meal is not. I think that I’d walk out if a guy pulled this on me, sexy accent or not! Add to this his abominable treatment of every girl who isn’t either his sister or Mara and, yeah, he’s an asshole. A fun asshole who I did enjoy in a guilty-pleasure, I-can-enjoy-this-because-it’s-fiction sort of way, but still an asshole.
The book also suffers in that it fits every bad high-school-story stereotype. This is also not an instant show-stopper. You can fit stereotypes and still have a fantastic final product a la Mean Girls, but Mara doesn’t do that. Instead, it’s all of the high-school stereotypes with nothing clever added to set them apart. The mean “slut”, the evil jock, the flamboyant bff, the new girl that the hot guy who’s never loved anyone instantly falls for. All of these and more are here in all their glory with nothing to set them apart from every other incarnation. The things that would have made them interesting, three dimensional characters are ignored in order to add unnecessary, high-school drama that had me sighing and checking how many pages were left in this thing. (Also, the amount of slut shaming in this book is just, wow. I actually felt more sympathy for the “mean girl” character than I did for Mara.)
You may have noticed that I’ve failed to mention anything about the paranormal stuff that the book’s summary promises. There’s a reason for that: it’s barely a thing until the last 50 pages. Before then, paranormal stuff happens once every hundred pages or so and Mara essentially ignores it. People are dying all around her and she’s not even trying to figure out why. I wanted the paranormal stuff to be developed so badly. It was a great premise that promised a fantastic ride, but it never delivered.
If you like books like Twilight where the supernatural elements are cursory at best and everything focuses on drama between the romantic leads, then you will probably like this. If you like male leads who dance merrily along the border between presumptuous asshole and confident romantic, then you may also like this because Noah is the best part of the book in spite of his flaws. Everyone else is probably better off looking elsewhere.
I will say that my best friend loves this book due to the fact that it talks about PTSD and mental health. I can see where she’s coming from, but I don't share her sentiments. If a book is going to delve into the depths of largely-misunderstood mental health issues, then I want to see the author dedicate at least a chapter to discussing the illness. As it was, I don't know what was PTSD and what was paranormal stuff which makes it hard to call this book a champion of mental health awareness.
This isn’t instant-death for enjoyment. I liked Casandra Clare’s mortal instruments well enough even though it also fell victim to this, but that was because the romance was interesting. It had some real, if a little heavy-handed, drama to it. This one? Not so much. It’s little more than a will-they, won’t-they situation whose only drama is Mara’s inability to make choices. It certainly doesn’t help that Noah is so over-the-top “ideal” in traits (speaks multiple languages, has a British accent, is super rich) and so underwhelming in charm that I don’t know what to do with him. He’s got some good lines and I did find myself liking him more and more as the novel went on, but he just does so many things that grated on me.
For example, in one scene, he orders food on Mara’s behalf. This, in and of itself, is not a terrible thing. They’re at a restaurant that he loves that she’s never been to. That’s a situation where it’s totally reasonable for him to make suggestions. It’s the way that he does it that left me feeling all icky about him.
The waiter appeared then, and Noah plucked the menu from my hands and handed it over, rushing off our order in Spanish. The waiter departed for the kitchen.
I shot him a dark look. "I hadn't decided yet."
"Trust me."
Okay guys, this is not how you want to have this scene play out. You want to charm the girl? Ask her if you can order for her and do it before the waiter shows up! If you’re going to ignore that, then at least check to see if she’s got allergies or if she hates spicy food or if there was something special she was craving! Wanting to treat her to a great meal is sexy. Assuming that you know what she considers a great meal is not. I think that I’d walk out if a guy pulled this on me, sexy accent or not! Add to this his abominable treatment of every girl who isn’t either his sister or Mara and, yeah, he’s an asshole. A fun asshole who I did enjoy in a guilty-pleasure, I-can-enjoy-this-because-it’s-fiction sort of way, but still an asshole.
The book also suffers in that it fits every bad high-school-story stereotype. This is also not an instant show-stopper. You can fit stereotypes and still have a fantastic final product a la Mean Girls, but Mara doesn’t do that. Instead, it’s all of the high-school stereotypes with nothing clever added to set them apart. The mean “slut”, the evil jock, the flamboyant bff, the new girl that the hot guy who’s never loved anyone instantly falls for. All of these and more are here in all their glory with nothing to set them apart from every other incarnation. The things that would have made them interesting, three dimensional characters are ignored in order to add unnecessary, high-school drama that had me sighing and checking how many pages were left in this thing. (Also, the amount of slut shaming in this book is just, wow. I actually felt more sympathy for the “mean girl” character than I did for Mara.)
You may have noticed that I’ve failed to mention anything about the paranormal stuff that the book’s summary promises. There’s a reason for that: it’s barely a thing until the last 50 pages. Before then, paranormal stuff happens once every hundred pages or so and Mara essentially ignores it. People are dying all around her and she’s not even trying to figure out why. I wanted the paranormal stuff to be developed so badly. It was a great premise that promised a fantastic ride, but it never delivered.
If you like books like Twilight where the supernatural elements are cursory at best and everything focuses on drama between the romantic leads, then you will probably like this. If you like male leads who dance merrily along the border between presumptuous asshole and confident romantic, then you may also like this because Noah is the best part of the book in spite of his flaws. Everyone else is probably better off looking elsewhere.
I will say that my best friend loves this book due to the fact that it talks about PTSD and mental health. I can see where she’s coming from, but I don't share her sentiments. If a book is going to delve into the depths of largely-misunderstood mental health issues, then I want to see the author dedicate at least a chapter to discussing the illness. As it was, I don't know what was PTSD and what was paranormal stuff which makes it hard to call this book a champion of mental health awareness.