Reviews

Forget This Ever Happened by Cassandra Rose Clarke

dreareads_'s review against another edition

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5.0

This was SO MUCH FUN!

The top review on here calls it “too weird” and I full understand that but it was also why I loved it.

I mean talking reptiles, a town that keeps forgetting there are monsters, time lines, aliens, and memory loss. And on top of that a coming of age story about a bisexual girl falling in love with the towns goth girl and finding herself??
✨What is not to Love?✨

Yes the mystery was a bit easy to guess and it the themes of race that it explores were not fully developed but the 90’s vibes really made the story worth it.

I HIGHLY recommend this

whatabetty's review against another edition

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this was an odd duck

katsnaps's review against another edition

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1.0

DNF. I has expectations for this book based on the description but very early on it became more campy than surreal.

popthebutterfly's review against another edition

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4.0

Disclaimer: I received this arc and e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: Forget This Ever Happened

Author: Cassandra Rose Clarke

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 4/5

Diversity: Bisexual main character, latina lesbian main character

Recommended For...: thrillers, romance, sci-fi

Publication Date: October 6, 2020

Genre: YA Thriller

Recommended Age: 16+ (homophobia, gaslighting, guns, violence, cops shown sympathetically)

Publisher: Holiday House

Pages: 336

Synopsis: Sometimes there's a town called Indianola.

And sometimes there isn't.

Summer, 1993. Claire has been dumped in rural Indianola, Texas, to spend her whole vacation taking care of mean, sickly Grammy. There's nothing too remarkable about Indianola: it's run-down, shabby, and stifling hot, a pin-dot on the Gulf Coast.

Well, there is one remarkable thing, she discovers. Something otherworldly.

But if you leave Indianola, you forget about it... and if you stay, you have to live with it every day.

Because there's a confluence of energies at Indianola, a fissure in time and space, a gap in reality. Nothing is as it seems. And unless Claire can figure out this town--the talkative lizards under the pecan trees; the honey-sweet but terrifying girl next door; the cute daughter of a powerful family, who would answer Claire's questions if she had any answers; the pervasive sense of history coming unspooled, like a video tape--she might never leave.

Featuring a mindbending plot, heartfelt queer romance, brilliant writing, and intricate worldbuilding, Forget This Ever Happened is a lush and thrilling genre-bender perfect for the Black Mirror generation.

Review: Overall this was a good book. I like books that can mess with me a little psychologically and this one did a good job of that. The book did well to develop the characters and the plot.

However, I did have issues that some of the preferred terms (gay, lesbian, bisexual, etc) weren't used in the book and I thought that the book didn't do well the action scenes. It was all kinda muddy for me in a lot of the portions were most of the action occurs.

Verdict: It was pretty spooky!

velmawiththadrip's review against another edition

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5.0

This was such a fun read! It was described as genre bending and I think that fits it perfectly! It has a little bit of everything - aliens, changing timelines, mystery, romance! I honestly couldn’t put it down!

claire_taylors_version's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

5.0

justanothermark's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

grey_jayne's review against another edition

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This is a case of me not being able to latch onto the story. It could be good for me some other time but I wasn't sucked in and if that's so then I'm moving on. DNF Queen here, utilizing my right as a Glasser to cast this book back into the sea.

aspiring_spinster's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.25

alyssa_olaf's review against another edition

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4.0

Forget This Ever Happened is a subtle sci-fi novel that shares the peculiar experiences of Claire, who is spending the summer of 1993 taking care of her ill grandmother in Indianola, Texas. This was such a fun read! I loved the eeriness of Indianola, the "monsters" paroozing the town, and a wholesome summer romance! If you're looking for a queer and less intense Stranger Things, then you'll enjoy this novel.