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3.38 AVERAGE
3.38 AVERAGE
You know that movie with Dennis Quaid, "DOA", where the professor has been poisoned and has 36 hours to solve his own crime before he dies? This book reminds me of that movie. DCI Hans Richardson is a Mono; he can only remember things for one day and then they disappear. He doesn't die but it makes it difficult for him to solve murders, even with scrupulous notes. At the same time, the reader follows the story through the eyes of Claire, another Mono and wife of the main suspect, her husband. Through her we see how Monos are treated by the assumed superiors, Duos who can remember two days in their past. The concept was very interesting and Ms. Yap manages to find ways to handle most issues with the memory black hole. There were a couple twists in the book; one I guessed and the other I didn't. I am not sure if Ms. Yap gave away the first one to hide the second one or if I just guessed it. However, I felt like there was almost too much for the book to tackle. In addition to the bigotry between the two classes, there was also the relationship between Claire and her husband and his mistress, and how the detective handled trying to pretend to be a Duo in order to succeed at work. Honestly, his story was the most fascinating and I wish the book would have focused more on him, but that might not have been as interesting to a majority. No matter which part interests you, there is something in this book for everyone.
A copy of this book was provided by NetGalley and Mullholland Books in exchange for an honest review.
A copy of this book was provided by NetGalley and Mullholland Books in exchange for an honest review.
Well dayum I was about to rate it 2-3 stars because the end was expected, the murderer was quite obvious but still hidden which made the story intriguing till the end and when the police arrives to arrest the culprit there's another twist that I hadn't seen coming.
So it deserves the 4 stars.
Managing to surprise the reader till the very last page is quite a tough job to do, it requires a well crafted story behind which the author did. She leaded us to know and suspect the real murderer to finally dismiss everything.
I salute her plot twist and good work knowing that it's her debut novel!
I'm looking forward to read more from her.
(Also the technology approach made the thriller more appealing for me as I love this new genre.)
So it deserves the 4 stars.
Managing to surprise the reader till the very last page is quite a tough job to do, it requires a well crafted story behind which the author did. She leaded us to know and suspect the real murderer to finally dismiss everything.
I salute her plot twist and good work knowing that it's her debut novel!
I'm looking forward to read more from her.
(Also the technology approach made the thriller more appealing for me as I love this new genre.)
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
4.25 stars
I was intrigued from just the description of the book and then was thrilled to discover that a world limited in memory was every bit of a fun as a setting for a mystery as I had anticipated.
Yap sets up some really compelling social ideas for how society would chose to divide over length of memory instead of by religion or skin color. While there was also plenty of compelling reasons to explain why the memory issues existed for all human beings, the only thing I wish I understood better was exactly how long this issue had been effecting people.
I also really enjoyed the way that the technology that has become such a standard part of our daily lives has been reappropriated to fit within the world the author has created. I won’t spoil anything beyond that, other than to say that I had a chuckle over this kind of blend of real world people and other world ideas.
What surprised me the most about this story is that there are really three main threads to the narrative, one being the most obvious- the attempt to solve a murder, the second being a B plot about the detective’s desire to hide that the fact that he is a mono (this is revealed fairly early on) and the third and most surprising is that the story turned out to have a lot of real love at the heart of the story. I don’t usually find a lot of genuine romance in murder mysteries, at least not in the kinds I read.
Overall this book offered a unique world and an intriguing murder with some fun twists in the end.
I was intrigued from just the description of the book and then was thrilled to discover that a world limited in memory was every bit of a fun as a setting for a mystery as I had anticipated.
Yap sets up some really compelling social ideas for how society would chose to divide over length of memory instead of by religion or skin color. While there was also plenty of compelling reasons to explain why the memory issues existed for all human beings, the only thing I wish I understood better was exactly how long this issue had been effecting people.
I also really enjoyed the way that the technology that has become such a standard part of our daily lives has been reappropriated to fit within the world the author has created. I won’t spoil anything beyond that, other than to say that I had a chuckle over this kind of blend of real world people and other world ideas.
What surprised me the most about this story is that there are really three main threads to the narrative, one being the most obvious- the attempt to solve a murder, the second being a B plot about the detective’s desire to hide that the fact that he is a mono (this is revealed fairly early on) and the third and most surprising is that the story turned out to have a lot of real love at the heart of the story. I don’t usually find a lot of genuine romance in murder mysteries, at least not in the kinds I read.
Overall this book offered a unique world and an intriguing murder with some fun twists in the end.
Futuristic, with monos and duos, but a fantastic twist in the end
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
What a unique and totally original book! "Yesterday" by Felicia Yap had me gripped from the start with a dystopian/science fiction style crime mystery set in present day. The story features two kinds of people - 'monos' who can only remember yesterday and 'duos' who remember yesterday and the day before. They are totally reliant on their 'idiaries' where they enter their day's events, thoughts and feelings and then learn them. With the capability of searching their idiaries for specific words and events they are able to recall their memories what actually happened on a particular day. When Claire Evans' discovers that her husband's mistress has been found in the River Cam and that it is believed he killed her two days ago, she can't recall what he did that day because she can only remember yesterday. She relies on her diary to tell her where she's been, who she loves and what she's done. But can she believe what is written, what the police say and can she trust her cheating husband?
This book does need you to suspend disbelief so you can fully enjoy it, regardless of the implausibility of it all. It was really an enjoyable read for me and I particularly loved the twist at the end and the way we were privy to different points of view regarding the same event. Set out in a layout of diary entries, facts and notes to self, first person thoughts, extracts from a novel and events as they happened, I found this story a pleasure to read and with the tantalising hint of a further book I look forward to reading more by this author, she's a new and fresh voice in an already flooded market of so-so thrillers but this stands out for its different approach and unique premise. Well written, she entices the reader in with intrigue and traditional suspense and I'd happily recommend to thriller/psychological readers looking for something just that little bit different.
4.5 stars
This book does need you to suspend disbelief so you can fully enjoy it, regardless of the implausibility of it all. It was really an enjoyable read for me and I particularly loved the twist at the end and the way we were privy to different points of view regarding the same event. Set out in a layout of diary entries, facts and notes to self, first person thoughts, extracts from a novel and events as they happened, I found this story a pleasure to read and with the tantalising hint of a further book I look forward to reading more by this author, she's a new and fresh voice in an already flooded market of so-so thrillers but this stands out for its different approach and unique premise. Well written, she entices the reader in with intrigue and traditional suspense and I'd happily recommend to thriller/psychological readers looking for something just that little bit different.
4.5 stars
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes