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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
I just could not get into this book. I know that the people that read Claire North really like her. But this is the second book of hers I have tried, and she just isn't for me.
I did the audio version, and the performer/reader was fine. It wasn't her fault. The story just didn't work for me. Nor did the characters. Nor the premise. It was very hard to finish listening to this one.
I did the audio version, and the performer/reader was fine. It wasn't her fault. The story just didn't work for me. Nor did the characters. Nor the premise. It was very hard to finish listening to this one.
I really enjoyed this book. The main character has a problem that's similar to another book I've read, but it goes in a completely different direction.
As an aside, every once in a while Hope thinks "Hey Macarena" (I'm not sure if there's an exclamation point at the end or not) and if I was the narrator I'd have to take a moment to pause the recording and sing "Heeeey Macarena!" out loud. Instead she just said "Hey, Macarena" which makes me think it was just meant to be said.
As an aside, every once in a while Hope thinks "Hey Macarena" (I'm not sure if there's an exclamation point at the end or not) and if I was the narrator I'd have to take a moment to pause the recording and sing "Heeeey Macarena!" out loud. Instead she just said "Hey, Macarena" which makes me think it was just meant to be said.
adventurous
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very readable style. Intriguing plot and characters, I do wish the origin of Hope's condition had been explored more but other than that a thoroughly enjoyable read.
Content Warnings
Minor: Suicide, Murder
The hardest thing to find when you are a reader, is finding a book that you have not already read.
My teacher though us that literature is based on three basic plot: love, money and family. Then the difference between a book and another is how good the author is in telling it.
This book defies that definition because Hope, can't have any of the things that defines a person.
It did something to me, it made me feel and had repercussion on my life.
Hope is one of those characters that I will keep in my heart.
My teacher though us that literature is based on three basic plot: love, money and family. Then the difference between a book and another is how good the author is in telling it.
This book defies that definition because Hope, can't have any of the things that defines a person.
It did something to me, it made me feel and had repercussion on my life.
Hope is one of those characters that I will keep in my heart.
(too busy with work / starting from beginning)
This is not a fantastic fiction, but fantastically boring. I was constantly hoping for a better continuation and it was never realized.
This book has two themes:
1. Hope, the main character, is a woman who can not be remembered. People meet her and forget her within seconds of her walking away. This obviously makes life extremely difficult and she has to resort to all kinds of illegal behavior just to survive. It asks all kinds of identity questions like who are you if no one remembers you, are you real? She can't have relationships because no one remembers her. The isolation and frustration becomes overwhelming for the character. She has no one to tell her if she is worthy.
2. Perfection. An app that allows people to earn points to become perfect. This is also an interesting concept. What is perfection? Is it white male, rich, beautiful, vapid? What are you willing to give up to become perfect? Money, ideals, thoughts, quirks, your identity?
Hope begins by hating the Perfection App and working to destroy it while simultaneously wondering if it can make her memorable.
This is all interesting but then, in the second half of the book, the story becomes a twisty-turny spy intrigue. Fun but it does not really ever answer the question of how Hope can build relationships or understand herself or her solve her problem of being forgotten.
Finally, I did not really believe that the main character was Sudanese. It seems to have been a simple descriptor (was the author attempting to comment on the invisibility of minorities?) but there was no depth to the portrayal. I remember reading that slave narratives became popular in the late 1800s and many white authors attempted to capitalize on the popularity by writing fictionalized slave narratives. Historians have been able to determine which narratives were written by former slaves vs white authors, in part by looking at how the author wrote about race. Was white normative and all black characters described as the other or vice versa? In this book, white culture is normative and the author's race is only peripheral to the story and it doesn't even impact her interactions with other people.
1. Hope, the main character, is a woman who can not be remembered. People meet her and forget her within seconds of her walking away. This obviously makes life extremely difficult and she has to resort to all kinds of illegal behavior just to survive. It asks all kinds of identity questions like who are you if no one remembers you, are you real? She can't have relationships because no one remembers her. The isolation and frustration becomes overwhelming for the character. She has no one to tell her if she is worthy.
2. Perfection. An app that allows people to earn points to become perfect. This is also an interesting concept. What is perfection? Is it white male, rich, beautiful, vapid? What are you willing to give up to become perfect? Money, ideals, thoughts, quirks, your identity?
Hope begins by hating the Perfection App and working to destroy it while simultaneously wondering if it can make her memorable.
This is all interesting but then, in the second half of the book, the story becomes a twisty-turny spy intrigue. Fun but it does not really ever answer the question of how Hope can build relationships or understand herself or her solve her problem of being forgotten.
Finally, I did not really believe that the main character was Sudanese. It seems to have been a simple descriptor (was the author attempting to comment on the invisibility of minorities?) but there was no depth to the portrayal. I remember reading that slave narratives became popular in the late 1800s and many white authors attempted to capitalize on the popularity by writing fictionalized slave narratives. Historians have been able to determine which narratives were written by former slaves vs white authors, in part by looking at how the author wrote about race. Was white normative and all black characters described as the other or vice versa? In this book, white culture is normative and the author's race is only peripheral to the story and it doesn't even impact her interactions with other people.
Another enjoyable book by Claire North. I love how she can take an interesting idea for a character - in this case, someone whom no one remembers - and implement it to such a degree. North seems to think of every way that Hope can help people to keep remembering her, and all the ways she can use her forgetfulness in her favor.
Yet another outstanding novel by Claire North.
Hope’s ability/affliction is an incredible idea, making her a rich, complex protagonist.
An inventive and twisting thriller with a lot to say about modern society and the goals we pursue.
Hope’s ability/affliction is an incredible idea, making her a rich, complex protagonist.
An inventive and twisting thriller with a lot to say about modern society and the goals we pursue.