Wrap up – Mara Dyer Trilogy by Michelle Hodkin

I read this collection spread out over just under four years! I think because the middle book disappointed me after the stellar impression from the debut, I was reluctant to pick up ‘The Retribution of Mara Dyer’ for a while after its release.

And a friendly warning: this is a wrap-up, so it discusses many elements with the plot, so avoid reading if you don’t like *spoilers!*

I was blow away with the debut. Hodkin’s writing is eloquent and haunting and I loved the analytical introspection of the protagonist. Plus the paranormal mystery storyline mixed in with a bit of thriller kept me engaged. A rich tapestry of characters that you don’t get a lot of in YA had me singing its praises to anyone who’d listen. And then the sequel “The Evolution of Mara Dyer’ put a big spanner in the works. The narrative moved away from the paranormal mystery/thriller, to that of a contemporary dealing with mental illness. We still get all the supernatural elements, but find ourselves embroiled in something that floundered about. Mara was not sure of anything –and as a result, I had no clue where the story was going. The pacing slowed right down because we were dealing circle shares and lengthy introductions to new cast members in the Sanatorium. I missed the tone of the debut and consequently was not too eager to pick of ‘The Retribution of Mara Dyer’ when it was released.

After reading many rave reviews for the conclusion for this trilogy, I finally got around to reading it and my faith was just about fully restored. Though the genre was approaching more sci-fi than paranormal. Experiments for developing abilities – and mental illness the cost of acquiring such abilities is a fantastic concept. I was a touch underwhelmed about this explanation. The hint of past lives and ghosts from the first novel is what had interested me in this series initially.

This series is the first that I have read in YA with a darker tone to it, and I really can’t hype Hodkin’s writing enough. She is a sheer genius with her turn of phrase. What started out as feeling like a paranormal thriller, morphed into a gothic romance. So it was a bit of a rocky road with this trilogy, but definitely gets two thumbs up from me.

Of course we can continue in this universe with the latest releases of The Shaw Confessions, of which I am keen to collect and read. ‘The Becoming of Noah Shaw,’ ‘The Reckoning of Noah Shaw,’ and a third yet untitled volume to be published in 2019. Let’s hope it continues with the timeline and does not suffer the middle book slump.

For individual reviews click on the links below:

‘The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer’ – https://strokingfire.wordpress.com/2014/08/26/book-review-the-unbecoming-of-mara-dyer/

‘The Evolution of Mara Dyer’ https://strokingfire.wordpress.com/2014/10/08/book-review-the-evolution-of-mara-dyer/

‘The Retribution of Mara Dyer’ – https://strokingfire.wordpress.com/2017/07/19/book-review-the-retribution-of-mara-dyer-by-michelle-hodkin/

© Casey Carlisle 2018. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.

Book Review – The Evolution of Mara Dyer

From Goodreads:

Mara Dyer once believed she could run from her past.
She can’t.

She used to think her problems were all in her head.
They aren’t.

She couldn’t imagine that after everything she’s been through, the boy she loves would still be keeping secrets.
She’s wrong.

After falling in love with the first in the series, ‘The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer’ I could not wait to jump into this novel. Michelle Hodkin has such a melodic turn of phrase, interwoven with sharp satire. Half the time I’m marveling at her writing, and the other half at the story.

I expected this sequel to surpass the debut novel, however, the first ten chapters dragged a little for me, until the pace began to quicken to stop me from frequent lapses in reading. This really surprised me – I found it a little longwinded in sections and was constantly finding my attention turn to the laundry, or washing the dishes. After the halfway mark though, I completed it in a day. I’m putting my distraction down to Mara’s drawn out experiences in the psychiatric facility, (don’t worry this is not a spoiler) there was too much internal monologue and not enough action.

There is still the mystery that continues throughout – some parts are solved, some aren’t. And I am still eager to read the third installment. The retribution of Mara Dyer.’

I could not predict the course of Mara’s journey, Michelle manages to keep enough out of sight that you don’t know what the hell is going on until it is upon you.

For me, Mara felt a bit too whiny in this edition, and Noah, a little too polished at times – I loved that quote about him being beautifully broken, and wanted my adorably damaged Noah back.

Where some of the characters from the first novel took a back seat and a plethora of new characters were introduced, I didn’t connect as easily with the new cast.

I also felt the protagonist was given too much power – and that’s all I’m going to say to avoid spoiler territory. Who knows, maybe things will be uncovered it the following novel to lend credible explanation.

Overall, this novel was still an enchanting read, filled with dark mystery. Departing from the realism present in ‘The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer’ added to the frustration with many questions by the end of the book…

   

© Casey Carlisle 2014. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Casey Carlisle with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.