Giveaway 35

Remember how I said I wasn't giving away books in September?

Well, Oops, I did it again.

Blame Beth Revis, author of ACROSS THE UNIVERSE. She said that Michelle Hodkin's THE UNBECOMING OF MARA DYER was unputdownable. Which made me curious, because books are rarely unputdownable when people say they are. And life is hectic right now, I just didn't have time to read the whole back. So I decided to check out a few chapters.

2.15 am, meet Claire. Claire, 2.15.

I will tell you the truth. I started following Michelle's blog a long time ago. Ether shortly before or shortly after her book deal was announced. And when the summary of MARA became available, it didn't do much for me.

It was so vague.

From Michelle's Blog:

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.

Creepy, but vague.

And then, I heard her editor talk about it, and it was still creepy, but less vague, and I wanted to read it. But not in a "give it to us NOW, your horrible Hobbitses. We wants it it NOW" sort of way.

And then release day came, and Beth started gushing. And since the Kindle fairies had already deposited my pre-order (I read all new releases by bloggers I follow), I picked it up.

MY TAKE:

I understand now why summaries are vague. It's hard to explain MARA without telling the whole story.

There are elements of mystery, romance, and paranormal. And don't worry if you're not a fan of "teen paranormal romance". It's not that kind of book. It's more in the sense of "Holy Crap, my jewelry box just spoke to me in the voice of my dead grandmother! Time to up the meds, Doc!"

There's a creepy edge to the entire book. Something happened with Mara and her friends. They died, she didn't. And from that moment, things never quite add up. Her Mom, a psychiatrist, is convinced it's Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. But there's always a vibe that it could be more.

Also, the ending is a doozie. Beth warned that I wouldn't see it coming. So I was extra vigilant. Still blindsided.

And I loved the pop culture references to The Eye of Sauron and Gryffindor, etc.

I can't wait for the next book.

And I couldn't NOT give it away.

TO WIN:
Tell me: What paranormal thing/creature/experience would(or does) creep you out the most in your real life?
Open internationally, followers only.
Open until Wednesday 11.59 pm EST.

(PS, My bloggiversary's coming up. Get ready for INSANITY!)