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annahoj1's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
thepinkfairy's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
lara_nox05's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
zareena's review
3.0
Review originally posted on The Slanted Bookshelf.
My Rating: 3 stars
The Memory Keepers really grabbed be with the first scene. We start off from Seven’s POV as he is breaking into the Whites’ house only to be caught by Alba. The scene ends with her realising he’s a thief and then we go back in time for about a day.
The Memory Keepers is set in the future when memories are the most valuable thing a person has and people steal memories – aka skids – to sell on the black market. London is its own separate state if you will and is divided into two areas: North and South. North is for the wealthy and South is for the poor. Seven is a skid thief from the South. The book alternates from both Seven and Alba’s POV but, unusually, I felt like I understood Seven a lot more. He isn’t the best skid thief around or super cocky. He does what he does because that is his only option for survival. There isn’t much glamour in his job and he knows that. What stood out about Seven for me was how real his fear and loneliness felt. A lot of the time characters in dystopian novels will act like nothing scares them but this isn’t the case with Seven. But he isn’t a coward or a wimp – he loves what he does and acts cocky sometimes, just overly so.
Alba’s loneliness also came across really well but I didn’t like her as much. She is very disconnected from her parents and her mother sometimes abuses her. I understood the way Alba acted but I would have liked for her to have a bit more spine.
As I said, the plot really grabbed me in the first chapter but it started going downhill. Towards the end the author added a ton of different things to the plot and everything felt rushed. The ending had a lot of loose ends and I honestly think a sequel is needed. Also, I lost a bit of interest in the characters and wasn’t really invested in them the whole time. I still liked them but I didn’t really care too much what happened.
All in all The Memory Keepers is an okay book and it was enjoyable but it didn’t grab me.
YA
3 stars
My Rating: 3 stars
The Memory Keepers really grabbed be with the first scene. We start off from Seven’s POV as he is breaking into the Whites’ house only to be caught by Alba. The scene ends with her realising he’s a thief and then we go back in time for about a day.
The Memory Keepers is set in the future when memories are the most valuable thing a person has and people steal memories – aka skids – to sell on the black market. London is its own separate state if you will and is divided into two areas: North and South. North is for the wealthy and South is for the poor. Seven is a skid thief from the South. The book alternates from both Seven and Alba’s POV but, unusually, I felt like I understood Seven a lot more. He isn’t the best skid thief around or super cocky. He does what he does because that is his only option for survival. There isn’t much glamour in his job and he knows that. What stood out about Seven for me was how real his fear and loneliness felt. A lot of the time characters in dystopian novels will act like nothing scares them but this isn’t the case with Seven. But he isn’t a coward or a wimp – he loves what he does and acts cocky sometimes, just overly so.
Alba’s loneliness also came across really well but I didn’t like her as much. She is very disconnected from her parents and her mother sometimes abuses her. I understood the way Alba acted but I would have liked for her to have a bit more spine.
As I said, the plot really grabbed me in the first chapter but it started going downhill. Towards the end the author added a ton of different things to the plot and everything felt rushed. The ending had a lot of loose ends and I honestly think a sequel is needed. Also, I lost a bit of interest in the characters and wasn’t really invested in them the whole time. I still liked them but I didn’t really care too much what happened.
All in all The Memory Keepers is an okay book and it was enjoyable but it didn’t grab me.
YA
3 stars
brookgassman's review
3.0
Title: The Memory Keepers
Author: Natasha Ngan
Genre: Romance, Sci Fi, Futuristic, YA/Teen
Age: 12+
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Summary:
"No one can take your memories from you... can they?"
Seven is a thief with a difference - he steals downloadable memories from banks and memoriums to sell onto London's black market, trading secrets and hidden pasts for a chance at a future of his own. He makes sure he keeps some special stuff back to 'surf' himself though - it's the only real form of entertainment he can afford. But one night, as Seven is breaking into a private memorium in a wealthy part of London, he is caught in the act by one of its residents; Alba, the teenage daughter of London's most famous criminal prosecutor. Instead of giving him away, Alba promises to keep Seven's secret - as long as he allows her to go memory-surfing herself. In doing so, they discover a hidden memory about Seven's past, revealing a shocking secret about Seven's childhood, the government and a mysterious experiment known as The Memory Keepers...
Now Seven and Alba will have to race against time to unlock the maze of The Memory Keepers - but can they keep themselves out of harm's way before the London Guard - and Alba's father - catches up with them?
Reaction:
This book was great at the beginning, but then it got increasingly worse. This saddens me because when I got this book I was really, really excited to read it, and now it disappointed me. I really enjoyed the world building aspect and the memory keeping parts of the book. But, this book had so many plots going on at once, it was very difficult to keep track of what you were reading. There was the plot of Seven and Alba's romance, the plot of where Seven came from, the mystery of "TMK", the plot of Alba's family, etc, etc. I could go on and on with how many plots there was. But, I think the thing that irked me the most out of anything in the book was the fact that they never resolved the problem in the book! And it's a stand-alone too! How can you not resolve a plot with a stand-alone novel? It still baffles me.
The Characters:
Alba: She annoyed me. She was a spoiled rich girl who tried to be brave, but in the story she really didn't do anything. She tried to figure out a mystery but ended up just thinking about how hot Seven was the entire novel, which really gets boring after a while.
Seven: Better than Alba, but still not good. Seven was sort of a perv and creeped me out sometimes. He often had fantasies about Alba when she was taking a bath. Creeper much?
Dolly: The best of all the characters, and my favorite character to boot. She actually had some sense in the novel. She tried to keep Alba and Seven safe. Dolly saved Seven and Alba's life on multiple occasions and was at Alba's beck and call. She was the strongest of all the characters.
Overall:
Overall, this was a very mediocre novel that really had a great idea to it but ended up just being a huge let down. If the plot had actually been resolved I think I could have given this book a solid four stars, but right at this moment my three stars still stands strong. I wouldn't particularly recommend this book, but if you like sci fi romance with no plot (or too many plots) this is the book for you!
Feeling Sad :( -Terantum
For more spoiler free, honest reviews go to my actual blog: http://sweetendbook.blogspot.com/
Books, books, and more books, follow me on twitter @SweetEndReviews
For the story behind the reviews check out my facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SweetEndReviews
Author: Natasha Ngan
Genre: Romance, Sci Fi, Futuristic, YA/Teen
Age: 12+
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Summary:
"No one can take your memories from you... can they?"
Seven is a thief with a difference - he steals downloadable memories from banks and memoriums to sell onto London's black market, trading secrets and hidden pasts for a chance at a future of his own. He makes sure he keeps some special stuff back to 'surf' himself though - it's the only real form of entertainment he can afford. But one night, as Seven is breaking into a private memorium in a wealthy part of London, he is caught in the act by one of its residents; Alba, the teenage daughter of London's most famous criminal prosecutor. Instead of giving him away, Alba promises to keep Seven's secret - as long as he allows her to go memory-surfing herself. In doing so, they discover a hidden memory about Seven's past, revealing a shocking secret about Seven's childhood, the government and a mysterious experiment known as The Memory Keepers...
Now Seven and Alba will have to race against time to unlock the maze of The Memory Keepers - but can they keep themselves out of harm's way before the London Guard - and Alba's father - catches up with them?
Reaction:
This book was great at the beginning, but then it got increasingly worse. This saddens me because when I got this book I was really, really excited to read it, and now it disappointed me. I really enjoyed the world building aspect and the memory keeping parts of the book. But, this book had so many plots going on at once, it was very difficult to keep track of what you were reading. There was the plot of Seven and Alba's romance, the plot of where Seven came from, the mystery of "TMK", the plot of Alba's family, etc, etc. I could go on and on with how many plots there was. But, I think the thing that irked me the most out of anything in the book was the fact that they never resolved the problem in the book! And it's a stand-alone too! How can you not resolve a plot with a stand-alone novel? It still baffles me.
The Characters:
Alba: She annoyed me. She was a spoiled rich girl who tried to be brave, but in the story she really didn't do anything. She tried to figure out a mystery but ended up just thinking about how hot Seven was the entire novel, which really gets boring after a while.
Seven: Better than Alba, but still not good. Seven was sort of a perv and creeped me out sometimes. He often had fantasies about Alba when she was taking a bath. Creeper much?
Dolly: The best of all the characters, and my favorite character to boot. She actually had some sense in the novel. She tried to keep Alba and Seven safe. Dolly saved Seven and Alba's life on multiple occasions and was at Alba's beck and call. She was the strongest of all the characters.
Overall:
Overall, this was a very mediocre novel that really had a great idea to it but ended up just being a huge let down. If the plot had actually been resolved I think I could have given this book a solid four stars, but right at this moment my three stars still stands strong. I wouldn't particularly recommend this book, but if you like sci fi romance with no plot (or too many plots) this is the book for you!
Feeling Sad :( -Terantum
For more spoiler free, honest reviews go to my actual blog: http://sweetendbook.blogspot.com/
Books, books, and more books, follow me on twitter @SweetEndReviews
For the story behind the reviews check out my facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SweetEndReviews
elmarie_bassage's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-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? No
3.5
Solid writing. Great world building and characters. Loved the relationships.
mj_james_writes's review against another edition
3.0
The Memory Keeper's is Natalie Ngan's second novel. It is a YA Science Fiction novel set in London. London has been split in half. One half is full of prosperous aristocrats. The other half is the slums, full of people trying to survive poverty. Seven is a thief - he steals memories. He makes copies and then surfs the memories in his spare time. It is a way to live another life without ever leaving your own.
The premise of the novel is extremely interesting. There is a clandestine organization doing experiments for personal gain. There is a Romeo and Juliet love story of two people from opposite sides of the tracks. It has the making of a great story.
Unfortunately, it falls short. The story is not very flushed out. At times it just becomes downright weird. When the truth is reveled it felt very anti-climatic. I guess the impact of the situation was not explained enough for me to get why it would matter. The story itself wasn't very connected. It had the making of a great novel, but I felt that it felt polish.
The premise of the novel is extremely interesting. There is a clandestine organization doing experiments for personal gain. There is a Romeo and Juliet love story of two people from opposite sides of the tracks. It has the making of a great story.
Unfortunately, it falls short. The story is not very flushed out. At times it just becomes downright weird. When the truth is reveled it felt very anti-climatic. I guess the impact of the situation was not explained enough for me to get why it would matter. The story itself wasn't very connected. It had the making of a great novel, but I felt that it felt polish.