Initial Impressions 1/22/16: 3.5 stars 
 Well, that was a fun and cheeky ending! Very clever and lots of fun. 
 Unfortunately, I had a lot of issues up until then. This book was the least mysterious/suspenseful. I was totally bummed that I didn't have as many "omg" or "wtf" moments as I had in the first two books. Book two was just out of control with crazy moments and RETRIBUTION kind of took a turn... 
 There was a lot going on in this book but things started to feel way more far-fetched. I mean, we're dealing with possible paranormal, possible sci-fi, possible mind-messing, but things started to really stray here, I think. Here are some spoilery thoughts: (view spoiler)[ Noah was missing for like 70% of the book so that was a bummer. I wasn't in love with him to start BUT I did like his rapport with Mara and they had a nice balance. I also was totally lost with all of the Horizons stuff... Well, not LOST but it felt a bit too far removed from the feel of the first two books and it really wasn't doing anything for me. (hide spoiler)] End spoilers! 
 This was also incredibly violent and gory. I mean, it doesn't really turn me off but I was like HOLY COW, things are getting intense and that also started to carry me away from the logic and believability. (view spoiler)[Mara's body count started to get plain ridiculous and the scene with the EYE? *shudder* (hide spoiler)] 
 When it comes down to it, RETRIBUTION did provide a lot of big questions for me. My issue was that I wasn't a big fan of how those answers came to be. I did like what the answers were but I wished things had played out a little differently to get there. Some scenes felt unnecessary and overdone when something simpler could have happened. It was paranormal, it was science, and yet it was neither. 
 I was sadly not super impressed with the conclusion to the series but I was left on a high note with the very ending of the book itself. I wished parts in the beginning of RETRIBUTION had been more condensed and maybe played out a little differently. Overall, the series was fun but felt a little too dramatic to me when it could have been more suspenseful. The suspense and mystery was absolutely GREAT but I wanted so much more of it in the last book. 
 Full review as originally posted on The Book Addict's Guide 2/8/16: RETRIBUTION was a very weird case for me in that the entire book was actually a bit lacking for me but the ending was so clever and very fun! It actually left me on a good note with the series which was nice because I was kind of frustrated with the overall feel of this book, especially as a series conclusion. It sort of felt like it should have been the "sophomore slump" you so often see in trilogies except this happened in the last book instead. Very strange! 
 RETRIBUTION was the least mysterious/suspenseful for me. There was a lot of action and some straight up "I can't believe he/she just did that" moments but it felt more like shock value than actual suspense. I was totally bummed that I didn't have as many "omg" or "wtf" moments as I had in the first two books. Book two was just out of control with crazy moments and RETRIBUTION kind of took a turn... 
 There was a lot going on in this book but things started to feel way more far-fetched. I mean, we're dealing with possible paranormal, possible sci-fi, possible mind-messing, but things started to really stray here, I think. Without spoiling anything, I will note that there seemed to be a major character shift which really threw me off. There are new characters who gain more spotlight and other characters who end up moving to the back-burner or are completely (physically) absent for large chunks of the book. It kind of screwed up the dynamic for me and just plain felt odd to do in the last book when relationships are solidifying and answers are finally happening. 
 I was also not impressed with the new settings and scenery change. Again, it felt like the "sophomore slump" since that so often happens to me in book two even though this was the last book in the trilogy. I just really didn't like the turn the book took and I felt like an inordinate amount of time was spent in this new setting with this new concept. I really felt like things could have been wrapped up quicker -- or just differently all together -- and the story could have continued with more suspense or crazy answers. 
 When it comes down to it, RETRIBUTION did provide a lot of big questions for me. My issue was that I wasn't a big fan of how those answers came to be. I did like what the answers were but I wished things had played out a little differently to get there. Some scenes felt unnecessary and overdone when something simpler could have happened. It was paranormal, it was science, and yet it was neither. I was sadly not super impressed with the conclusion to the series but I was left on a high note with the very ending of the book itself. I wished parts in the beginning of RETRIBUTION had been more condensed and maybe played out a little differently. Overall, the series was fun but felt a little too dramatic to me when it could have been more suspenseful. The suspense and mystery was absolutely GREAT but I wanted so much more of it in the last book. 
 SERIES THOUGHTS 
 Mara Dyer was a lot of fun and really did keep me on the edge of my seat! I'm glad I ended up reading all of these back-to-back-to-back because I would have lost a lot of details if I had waited. The second book was definitely the most thrilling and twisty for me and I really wish the third book had continued on that pace. It was definitely a bit crazy but it also started to become a bit too wild for me in the sense that I wasn't quite believing it anymore. I kind of felt like Michelle Hodkin was trying to combine too many things all into one series. There are some series (The Raven Cycle comes to mind) where the books blur the lines between genres and you don't end up falling into any one specific category. I feel like that's what Mara Dyer should have been for me and it almost was, but things started to fall apart once the answers started coming into play. The answers to the mysteries did resolve things but I wasn't a big fan of how we got there. 
 The romance was definitely a lot of fun and I loved the balance between Mara and Noah! They played off of each other nicely and their opposition really made them a good pair! I wasn't wholly sold on the romance the way some readers are. There was definitely chemistry there and I don't know if it was because I was listening to the audiobook but I could have used a bit more development of the feelings before the whole falling in love thing. BUT I do get it in the long run! 
 I absolutely loved the humor in these books. Lots of sarcasm, quips, banter, and jokes based on pop culture. I love how every day humor really brings characters alive and Michelle Hodkin did an amazing job with that! Although I wasn't totally satisfied with some of the plot developments, I think Michelle Hodkin does an amazing job at character development. I feel like I got a really good sense of who everyone was and Michelle Hodkin really let each personality shine! 
 Overall, I was hoping for a bit more suspense and mind-messing! Each book definitely had its moments but it didn't quite seem consistent throughout the series. I also really enjoyed how thing wrapped up but I wasn't a big fan of how book three got there. It was a solid series, though, and I definitely want to pick up the Noah POV that's coming out in 2017! I actually feel like I have the potential to enjoy it more than this one... I'm pretty excited for it!