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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Best book of the year!
I couldn't put it down, I stayed up until 2am to finish it because I just HAD to know. I definitely see myself thinking about this one a lot.
The construction of the story with parallel characters reminded me of "The One" by John Marrs, which I also really liked.
I couldn't put it down, I stayed up until 2am to finish it because I just HAD to know. I definitely see myself thinking about this one a lot.
The construction of the story with parallel characters reminded me of "The One" by John Marrs, which I also really liked.
Frustrating as this was a great idea but was poorly executed. Way too many characters each with their own story, loosely connected but not really coming together in the way I would expect. Its incredibly convoluted and way too long. But the ideas are there!
A near future where people can get memories deleted with a company called Nepenthe - usually a traumatic event. However, due to issues some are experiencing where they get 'traces' of the memory returning, the company is now restoring memories. There are several characters each with their own experience of memory deletion and restoration.
Noor - is a psychologist working at Nepenthe. She interviews people after their deletion to make sure they have no memory of what was deleted and they are mentally ok. She suspects her girlfriend Elena had a deletion and was the reason they broke up. She finds out her boss Louise is trying to contact patients who are having restorations and she is trying to work out why as contact with patients is illegal.
Mei - a young girl, with divorced parents, was adopted and is experiencing traces of a memory. She is led to Amsterdam to try and recover what the memory was and finds her ex-boyfriend who was part of the memory that was deleted. It is revealed that Louise (Noor's boss at Nepenthe) is her mum. The memory she had deleted was her mother telling her about her birth mum ditching her but it impacted some of her other memories so she gets traces.
Finn - Irish living in US and his wife has had a deletion. He believes it has something to do with a relationship she had with a family friend David and that his child is not his. I'm not actually sure how this ended.
Oscar - is on the run in Morroco and he knows something bad has happened but his memory of it has been deleted. He thinks he has committed a crime and has been paid off. He gets his memory restored and it was actually witnessing the death of his parents and the money he has is the compensation.
William - is separated from his wife, ex police officer. He had a deletion but has a memory of a dead girl. He doesn't know the context so thinks a restoration will help him remember and deal with the PTSD. However once restored he learns he accidentally pushed someone into the road and killed them, his memory is mixed up. He's worried he might have a psychological condition that the restoration will exacerbate.
A near future where people can get memories deleted with a company called Nepenthe - usually a traumatic event. However, due to issues some are experiencing where they get 'traces' of the memory returning, the company is now restoring memories. There are several characters each with their own experience of memory deletion and restoration.
Noor - is a psychologist working at Nepenthe. She interviews people after their deletion to make sure they have no memory of what was deleted and they are mentally ok. She suspects her girlfriend Elena had a deletion and was the reason they broke up. She finds out her boss Louise is trying to contact patients who are having restorations and she is trying to work out why as contact with patients is illegal.
Mei - a young girl, with divorced parents, was adopted and is experiencing traces of a memory. She is led to Amsterdam to try and recover what the memory was and finds her ex-boyfriend who was part of the memory that was deleted. It is revealed that Louise (Noor's boss at Nepenthe) is her mum. The memory she had deleted was her mother telling her about her birth mum ditching her but it impacted some of her other memories so she gets traces.
Finn - Irish living in US and his wife has had a deletion. He believes it has something to do with a relationship she had with a family friend David and that his child is not his. I'm not actually sure how this ended.
Oscar - is on the run in Morroco and he knows something bad has happened but his memory of it has been deleted. He thinks he has committed a crime and has been paid off. He gets his memory restored and it was actually witnessing the death of his parents and the money he has is the compensation.
William - is separated from his wife, ex police officer. He had a deletion but has a memory of a dead girl. He doesn't know the context so thinks a restoration will help him remember and deal with the PTSD. However once restored he learns he accidentally pushed someone into the road and killed them, his memory is mixed up. He's worried he might have a psychological condition that the restoration will exacerbate.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
really good premise, not an amazing execution though - the rating is really reflecting the idea. I think I would’ve liked a couple less characters, and for them to come together at the end more than they did.
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
i love a near reality sci-fi story! It takes place in a present day world where memory deletion is possible. A nice character driven book that explores the potential real life realities that knowingly or unknowingly deleting a memory could have. obviously influenced by eternal sunshine without being eye-rollingly too similar.
adventurous
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I liked the idea of it, the execution not so much.
I thought the topic was interesting but there is too many characters, I was confused some times and not much really happens in the end. An alright read who could have been better
I thought the topic was interesting but there is too many characters, I was confused some times and not much really happens in the end. An alright read who could have been better
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
This is a remarkable book. The voice and the writing made me think of Margaret Atwood for sure, not to mention the speculative fiction aspect. It takes place in the near future when a memory procedure called a "removal" is a fairly standard practice by a company called Nepenthe. The procedure, called a "wipe" in slang (Nepenthe does not approve of the slang, it is a removal, thank you) has two subsets, the patients who know it's been done and the patients who have even the memory of the removal taken away. The story is told from I think five points of view, by someone who works there and others who are connected with Nepenthe in ways that aren't immediately clear. I loved the way the plot lines came together and the various points of view were exceptionally well-handled, I never got mixed up about which character I was following. This seems like it could happen, anytime. I could not stop reading this book, I read it in one weekend. Terrific book. Would read another by this author for sure.