Book Recommendation Friday #1: If you liked The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer...

My favorite part of my blog is my "If you liked... then read..." page. Therefore, I have decided to put a post up every other Friday with some new book recommendations instead of just posting them directly on that page of my blog, that way everyone can see them!

I will try to come up with different and unique reading suggestions for each post. I only recommend books that I have already read, so please post below if you have any other reading suggestions.

The books I suggest aren't always necessarily the same genre/plot so much as they have the same feel... and are great reads of course.  

Here is my first post. Click on the book title to find out more about each one. Enjoy!

If you liked The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by: Michelle Hodkin...then you should read...

1. The Body Finder by: Kimberly Detring
2. Before I Fall by: Lauren Oliver
3. Immortal Beloved by: Cate Tiernan
4. When Lightning Strikes by: Meg Cabot
5. The Book of Blood and Shadow by: Robin Wasserman

What other reading recommendations would you like to hear for future posts? 

Review: The Evolution of Mara Dyer by: Michelle Hodkin

The Evolution of Mara Dyer by: Michelle Hodkin (Mara Dyer #2) (2012)

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

537 pages

Genre: Young Adult

Summary: The book jacket: “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. In this gripping sequel to The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, the truth evolves and choices prove deadly. What will become of Mara Dyer next?”

Review: WOW! Just WOW. Who is Mara Dyer?

I couldn't read this book fast enough, my eyes can only read so fast and I can only turn the pages so quickly without ripping them. It was one of those novels, the kind where you read so fast to get to the ending only to remember that there is another one coming out that you will have to wait for and once you reach the ending it will heartbreakingly be over.

This was just as good as the first novel in the trilogy, if not better. We finally start to get some real answers, but don’t get your hopes up too high; we still have a long way to go before we find out the whole truth. I will however warn you: You will beyond a doubt get frustrated. At times I wanted to not so nicely throw this book across the room, and not because it was bad, but because it was so good and I was so into it that I wanted answers just as much as Mara and Noah, I felt for them. It got so intense near the end that I’m pretty sure I was having a panic attack while reading. I can’t even mention the ending, not only because I don’t want to give anything away, but because I am at a loss for words.

Okay, now it is time for a little Noah Shaw love. One of the things I love most about this novel is that the reader gets to find out more about the complex character that is Noah. With every new piece of information that I received, I fell more in love with him, if that is even possible. Sure he has his faults, but his awesomeness outweighs everything else. I’ve had some issues with teen romances in past young adult books, but there is just something about Mara and Noah that make me root for them, for better or for worse. I also want to remind everyone of Mara’s brother Daniel, who is still beyond a doubt one of my most favorite characters ever. His relationship with Mara is amazing, heartwarming, and comical.

I don’t want to give anything away so I’m going to go ahead and wrap this up.

If you liked the first book you will definitely like this one. Heck, even if you were not a huge fan of the first one you will probably like this one.

The only downside, we have to wait a while longer for the last novel in this gripping trilogy to be released.

Rating: 5/5   BUY The Evolution of Mara Dyer

My review for the first novel in this trilogy The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

Review: The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by: Michelle Hodkin

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by: Michelle Hodkin (2011)

Publisher: Simon and Schuster

452 pages

Genre: Young Adult

Summary: An accident that kills her friends leaves Mara Dyer alive but confused and depressed. Her family moves in hope that Mara can start to heal. While dealing with the death of her friends, her slightly overbearing mother, trying to figure out what happened during the accident, and attending a new school, Mara must find a way to keep it together. With the help of her family, especially her older brother, and the new mysterious guy in her life, Noah, she tries to fit the pieces together of that terrible night to figure out what actually happened. Is she in fact going crazy or will she find the answers she is looking for?

Review: I honestly don’t even know where to begin with this review. This book has been floating around for a while now and I have heard nothing but praise for it. I finally got it from the library, snuggled up on the couch, and started to read. Low and behold, I finished it in one day. I cannot stress how great this book is.

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer is filled with suspense, love, friendship, laughter, heartache, and everything in-between from the start to the very last page. As soon as I finished this book I put the sequel on hold at my local library, sadly it was not in so I couldn’t rush over to get it right away. This book is anything but ordinary.

The main and very interesting character, Mara Dyer, is a mess, to say the least, and Hodkin does an amazingly good job at making her seem real and likeable. Mara still acts like the teenager she is at times, but with the death of her friends we get to see firsthand that when faced with a tragic accident, everything changes, and Mara is anything but an annoying teenager. All the characters in this book are great. Mara’s older brother, Daniel, is the best older brother a sister could ask for and adds just the right amount of awesomeness to this novel. Noah, Mara’s love interest, is unique and their relationship is better than the usual boy girl teenage scenario. I guarantee that you will add Noah onto your list of amazing fictional boyfriends that you wish were real. There are many more wonderful characters in this novel that I could talk about all day, but I want you to discover them for yourself.

The narrative in this novel is wonderful. Hodkin is a great writer and I am glad I finally got to experience her talent first hand. One of my favorite parts of this book (okay, all parts of this book are really my favorite) is how the story of the accident that kills her friends unravels for the reader just like it does for Mara. Although this mostly takes place in the present, as Mara starts to remember things the reader gets to see the flashbacks at the same time. It is done smoothly and perfectly and makes you feel like you are right there with Mara the whole time.

If you have yet to jump on the Mara Dyer bandwagon I suggest you do it now. I still can’t believe I waited so long to read this book. This was a fascinating read that everyone should check out. I’m sure this review didn’t even do it justice. 

You should really make sure you have a good sized block of time free for reading once you get your hands on this one.

Rating: 5/5   BUY The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer