The Evolution of Mara Dyer

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Mara Dyer knows she isn't crazy. She knows that she can kill with her mind, and that Noah can heal with his. Mara also knows that somehow, Jude is not a hallucination. He is alive.

Unfortunately, convincing her family and doctors that she's not unstable and doesn't need to be hospitalised isn't easy. The only person who actually believes her is Noah. But being with Noah is dangerous and Mara is in constant fear that she might hurt him. She needs to learn how to control her power, and fast! Together, Mara and Noah must try and figure out exactly how Jude survived when the asylum collapsed, and how he knows so much about her strange ability... before anyone else ends up dead!

Excerpt provided by Syndetics

The Evolution of Mara Dyer 1 LILLIAN AND ALFRED RICE PSYCHIATRIC UNIT Miami, Florida I WOKE UP ON THE MORNING OF SOME DAY IN SOME hospital to find a stranger sitting in my room. I sat up gingerly--my shoulder was sore--and studied the stranger. She had dark brown hair that bled into gray at the roots, and hazel eyes with webs of crow's feet at the corners. She smiled at me, and her whole face moved. "Good morning, Mara," she said. "Good morning," I said back. My voice was low and hoarse. It didn't sound like my own. "Do you know where you are?" She obviously didn't realize that the floor directory was positioned directly outside the window behind her, and that from the bed, I had a clear view. "I'm at the Lillian and Alfred Rice Psychiatric Unit." Apparently. "Do you know who I am?" I had no idea, but I tried not to show it; she wouldn't have asked me if we'd never met, and if we had met, I should remember her. "Yes," I lied. "What's my name?" Damn. My chest rose and fell quickly with my breath. "I'm Dr. West," she said evenly. Her voice was warm and friendly but not at all familiar. "We met yesterday, when you were brought in by your parents and a detective by the name of Vincent Gadsen." Yesterday. "Do you remember?" I remembered seeing my father lying pale and wounded in a hospital bed after he was shot by the mother of a murdered girl. I remembered that I was the one who made her do it. I remembered going to the police station to confess to stealing my teacher's EpiPen and releasing fire ants in her desk, which is why she died of anaphylactic shock. I remembered that it wasn't true--just a lie I would feed the police so they would keep me from hurting anyone I loved again. Because they wouldn't believe I wished my teacher dead and that not long after, she died. Choked to death on a swollen tongue, exactly the way I imagined she would. I remembered that before I could tell anyone any of this, I saw Jude at the Thirteenth Precinct of the Metro Dade Police Department. Looking very much alive. But I did not remember coming here to the hospital. I didn't remember being brought. After Jude appeared, I remembered nothing else. "You were admitted yesterday afternoon," the stranger--Dr. West--said. "The detective called your parents when they couldn't get you to stop screaming." I closed my eyes and saw Jude's face as he walked by me. Brushed past me. Smiled. The memory stained the backs of my eyelids, and I opened them quickly, just to see something else. "You told them that your boyfriend, Jude Lowe, who you thought died in a building collapse in December, is alive." "Ex," I said quietly, fighting to stay calm. "Excuse me?" "Ex-boyfriend." Dr. West tilted her head slightly and employed her carefully neutral psychologist expression, one I recognized well since I'd seen it often on my psychologist mother. Particularly in the past few months. "You said that you caused the abandoned asylum in Rhode Island to collapse, crushing your best friend, Rachel, and Jude's sister, Claire, inside. You said Jude sexually assaulted you, which is why you tried to kill him. And you said he survived. You said he's here." She was perfectly calm as she spoke, which magnified my panic. Those words in her mouth sounded crazy, even though they were true. And if Dr. West knew, then so did-- "Your mother brought you here for an evaluation." My mother. My family. They would have heard the truth too, even though I hadn't planned to tell it. Even though I didn't remember telling it. And this was where it got me. "We didn't begin yesterday because you were sedated." My fingers wandered up my arm, beneath the short sleeve of my white T-shirt. There was a Band-Aid on my skin, covering what must have been the injection site. "Where is she?" I asked, picking at the Band-Aid. "Where is who?" "My mother." My eyes scanned the hallway through the glass, but I didn't see her. The hall looked empty. If I could just talk to her, maybe I could explain. "She's not here." That didn't sound like my mother. She didn't leave my side once when I was admitted to the hospital after the asylum collapsed. I told Dr. West as much. "Would you like to see her?" "Yes." "Okay, we can see if we can work that out later." Her tone made it sound like that would be a treat for good behavior, and I didn't like it. I swung my legs over the bed and stood up. I was wearing drawstring pants, not the jeans I last remembered myself in. My mother must have brought them from home. Someone must have changed me. I swallowed hard. "I think I want to see her now." Dr. West stood up as well. "Mara, she isn't here." "Then I'll go find her," I said, and started looking for my Chucks. I crouched to look under the bed, but they weren't there. "Where are my shoes?" I asked, still crouched. "We had to take them." I rose then, and faced her. "Why?" "They had laces." My eyes narrowed. "So?" "You were brought here because your mother thought you may be a danger to yourself and others." "I really need to talk to her," I said then, struggling to keep my voice even. I bit down hard on my bottom lip. "You'll be able to." "When?" "Well, I'd like you to speak with someone first, and have a doctor come in, just to make sure you're--" "And if I don't want to?" Dr. West just looked at me. Her expression was sad. My throat wanted to close. "You can't keep me here unless I consent," I managed to say. I knew that much, at least. I was a lawyer's daughter and I was seventeen years old. They couldn't keep me here unless I wanted to be kept. Unless-- "You were screaming and hysterical and you slipped. When one of our nurses tried to help you up, you punched her." No. "It became an emergency situation, so under the Baker Act, your parents were able to consent for you." I whispered so I wouldn't scream. "What are you saying?" "I'm sorry, but you've been involuntarily committed." Excerpted from The Evolution of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.

Reviews provided by Syndetics

School Library Journal Review

Gr 9 Up-Veins of romance and spiritualism run through this taut psychological novel. In this second part of a proposed trilogy, 17-year-old Mara wakes up in a psychiatric ward, not knowing how she got there. She does not believe that her evil ex-boyfriend, Jude, died in the building collapse in The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (S & S, 2011); instead, he is alive and stalking her. Thrown into the mix is Mara's belief that the building collapsed because she wished that it would. Mara's new boyfriend, Noah, believes her, but her doctors and parents think that she is delusional, paranoid, and has PTSD. The high level of suspense never lets up. Mara is the narrator, but her stints in psych wards and her regular doses of antipsychotic meds beg the question: Is she reliable? Mara believes that the bloody message written on the bathroom mirror, the mutilated cat on the patio, and the spooky doll retrieved from the trash are Jude's ways of taunting her. Is he responsible for these acts or is Mara? Tension escalates as Mara and Noah uncover clues but find no answers. Are Mara's unnerving dreams really memories belonging to her dead grandmother? The unusual charm that Noah wears on a cord around his neck is nearly identical to the one Mara finds hidden in a doll that belonged to her grandmother. Suspenseful, romantic, and spooky, The Evolution of Mara Dyer is one terrific yarn.-Jennifer Prince, Buncombe County Public Library, NC (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

In spite of evidence otherwise, Mara is certain that Jude is still alive and terrorizing her. Her certainty, along with the guilt and trauma she bears as the result of the asylum collapse and her friends' deaths, convinces her family and mental health officials that she is suffering from PTSD or worse, delusional disorder, a possible precursor to schizophrenia. The only person who believes her because he literally is able to see what she sees is gorgeous Noah. Just as in the first book of the series (The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, 2011), this will have readers doubting Mara's sanity, trusting the mental health professionals, and suspicious of Noah's intentions. Readers will eagerly await the concluding title.--Bradburn, Frances Copyright 2010 Booklist

Kirkus Book Review

Mara's absorbing tale continues in this first sequel in the Mara Dyer series, answering some questions but, clearly, leaving plenty of suspense still to come. In the opening book, the author left open whether Mara's difficulties were psychological, paranormal or criminal. Here, Mara continues her relationship with wealthy Noah, and the two learn that they have more in common than they ever suspected. Meanwhile, Mara insists that her supposedly dead former boyfriend, Jude, continues to stalk her. She is being treated as an outpatient for PTSD after causing (as she originally believed) the deaths of Jude and her friends, but she's sure she doesn't need to be in residential psychiatric care. Noah uses his wits and wealth to try to protect her and to investigate the possibility that Jude indeed survived, even as Mara's actions appear increasingly disturbed. Hodkin stretches the story into another lengthy tome but keeps readers' interest focused throughout with a lively prose style and a bit of romance. Her skillful exploitation of ambiguity enhances the suspense, exploring not only the psychological possibilities, but narrative tricks as well. Is it a realistic tale of insanity, a supernatural story or a mystery? Readers will be guessing until a final suspenseful scene resolves some secrets and sets up what promises to be an exciting and intriguing next installment. Interesting and unusual. (Suspense. 12 up)]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.