The Evolution Of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

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Mara Dyer believes life can’t 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 strangely unharmed.

There is.

She doesn’t believe that after everything she’s been through, she can fall in love.

She’s wrong.

 

As soon as I started reading Evolution I knew I'd have trouble breaking away from it. It didn't take long for the familiar creepy feeling from the first book to sink back in to be completely enthralled in Mara's dysfunctional world.

Mara is facing the consequences of events that she helped manipulate in the previous book. Her dad's recovering from that gunshot wound. She's in the hospital after her shock at seeing her ex-boyfriend Jude (who's supposed to have died in that building collapse) at the police station when she went to turn herself in.  Her mother is convinced that Mara is suffering a mental breakdown and now needs to have professional counseling. She's sent to outpatient counseling where the other kids in her group are just as mentally disturbed as she is. She's constantly under supervision and her family walks the tightrope of being too protective and too lax with the rules . But don’t worry, Noah is still in the picture, having charming his way into her family's good graces. He’s the only one who believes her when she says that Jude is still alive and is stalking her.

What makes Evolution so riveting is that Mara’s mind is cracking to where she’s distrusting of everyone around her, including herself. Her constant nightmares, memories of the building collapse, the danger that she is to her family and Jude's presence have thrown her off balance. She's barely holding it together.  Noah being the only one who believes her does what he can to investigate and protect her.

And thank goodness for Noah! Evolution is so much darker but Noah brings some relief. He’s always there to ease the tension and soothe her. His humor and snarkiness are perfect for distracting Mara from getting too lost in her mind’s mess.  There were plenty of times when I laughed aloud because of their silly banter –  I'm sure I rolled my eyes at Noah as much as Mara did.

When Mara’s not too busy sliding into insanity or making out with Noah, they’re researching the source of their special “powers”. They’re exploring all kinds of options ranging from genetics to familial connections and even psychics.  But everywhere they turn, there’s a new mystery to solve.

The Evolution of Mara Dyer is thrilling and alarming. I’m not keen on scary reads but the suspense here is all psychological. What makes this book stand out completely is that I had absolutely no frigging idea where the story was headed. I loved feeling as in the dark as Mara felt. 

So I say yes, definitely read this. Don't try and solve the mystery. Just read and follow the descent into madness and by the end you'll be just as astonished as I was. And then you'll be mad because Michelle Hodkin wrote such a brilliant book and she's making us wait another year for the next one. 

 

~ Bel