Hysteria by Megan Miranda Published by Walker Childrens on February 05th 2013
Pages: 336
Source: Borrowed from the Library
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Mallory killed her boyfriend, Brian. She can't remember the details of that night but everyone knows it was self-defense, so she isn't charged. But Mallory still feels Brian's presence in her life. Is it all in her head? Or is it something more? In desperate need of a fresh start, Mallory is sent to Monroe, a fancy prep school where no one knows her . . . or anything about her past.But the feeling follows her, as do her secrets. Then, one of her new classmates turns up dead. As suspicion falls on Mallory, she must find a way to remember the details of both deadly nights so she can prove her innocence-to herself and others.
In another riveting tale of life and death, Megan Miranda's masterful storytelling brings readers along for a ride to the edge of sanity and back again.
Hysteria was high up on my reading list well before it came out so when I first got my library card it was one of the first books I requested, and then patiently(um, not) waited for my hold to come through. I had heard mixed things about Hysteria but that didn’t stop me, I love a good mystery thriller so I decided to still give it a shot.
Mallory, the main character, killed her boyfriend. She cannot remember the details but it apparently was self defense so she is not charged. She is struggling being in her town because his friends, his mother, and even her own parents act weird around her. Her parents decide to send her to an elite boarding school, the same one her father went to when he was her age, and she immediately hates it. Strange things start to happen around her and her secret gets let out about what happened back at home.
The character’s in Hysteria were really hard to get attached to. The main character Mallory, was fine in terms of her traits but I didn’t form any specific attachment with her throughout the story. Every situation she was in, I felt bad for her, or scared for her, but I didn’t exactly care about the outcome either way. Reid, her childhood friend and love interest, was interesting. I enjoyed him and thought he was sweet and cute, and definitely a good match up for Mallory but I didn’t swoon over him like I do in most books. I did enjoy seeing the back and forth between Mallory and Reid however. Colleen, Mallory’s best friend, was my favorite character. I thought she was witty and I loved how loyal she was to Mallory, despite everyone’s reservations.
The mystery aspect was fun, although predictable. I basically knew what was going to happen before it happened, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing in Hysteria. I still found the pacing quick, and the plot interesting. I think the scene played a large part in keeping the plot interesting as the boarding school Mallory was attending was quite creepy, with the deep forest and large amounts of fog.
I liked Hysteria, but I didn’t love it. It was enjoyable and incredibly easy to read. This was my first Megan Miranda book but I really enjoyed her writing style so I will definitely be picking up her other books. If you like mysteries, thrillers and fast paced contemporaries I recommend you pick up Hysteria. Although the ending might not surprise you, it’s an enjoyable journey to get there.
Your review makes me feel just a bit better haha. I actually stopped reading this one about a quarter of the way through simply because I was not getting into the main character’s head at all. I wasn’t getting along with her and she was either boring me or bothering me and like you said — I was kind of indifferent about what was going to happen to her. I’m glad you found some good things about it too though! 🙂
I can see how you would put it down Brittany! If it wasn’t for my need to validate my predictions, I might have put it down. If it was a slow paced book, I’m not sure I would have finished it but I definitely did enjoy it by the end regardless 😛 Thanks for commenting !!