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Remember Me
A new young adult novel from the critically acclaimed author of This Raging Light and Mayhem
If you could erase all of your painful memories, would you? Blue Owens wakes up one day with the strangest feeling that something is very wrong. Everyone’s acting weird and she’s found a note in her closet telling her to get on the Little Blue Bus at 7:45, which she does, meeting up with the exact person she was supposed to avoid: Adam Mendoza. Even though she has no idea who he is, something about him is so familiar. When the two are discovered by their families, the truth is revealed—Blue has paid to have her memories removed, and Adam is one of those memories. What transpires is Blue’s journey to get her memories back, uncover the truth of why she had them removed in the first place, and ultimately decide whether they were too necessary to who she is to lose in the first place.
If you could erase all of your painful memories, would you? Blue Owens wakes up one day with the strangest feeling that something is very wrong. Everyone’s acting weird and she’s found a note in her closet telling her to get on the Little Blue Bus at 7:45, which she does, meeting up with the exact person she was supposed to avoid: Adam Mendoza. Even though she has no idea who he is, something about him is so familiar. When the two are discovered by their families, the truth is revealed—Blue has paid to have her memories removed, and Adam is one of those memories. What transpires is Blue’s journey to get her memories back, uncover the truth of why she had them removed in the first place, and ultimately decide whether they were too necessary to who she is to lose in the first place.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published March 22, 2022
About the author
Estelle Laure
12 books572 followersEstelle Laure is a Vonnegut worshipper who believes in love and magic and the power of facing hard truths. She has a BA in Theater Arts from New Mexico State University and an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, and thinks everyone should have to wait tables or work in a kitchen at least once in their lives. She lives in Taos, New Mexico with her children.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 159 reviews
February 8, 2022
A quiet brilliant mash up of Suzanne Young’s Program and Kaufman’s brilliant screenplay “ESOSM”!
Charlie Kaufman’s “Eternal
sunshine of spotless mind “is Oscar awarded story on 2005 from best writing-original screenplay category: when a relationship gets sour, the couple undergoes a medical procedure to have each other erased from their memories.
I always admired this creative idea of the story and “Meet me at Montauk” is still one of my favorite lines. But I also thought the story suffered from lack of emotional level. It was a little mechanic, dark, obsessive love story!
When I read the blurb about Blue Owens’ story ( her name also reminded me of Kate Winslet’s vivid blue hair color in the movie! ) I get so excited about different approach to this original concept! And I must admit this book brought out the sentimental level I was looking for.
Blue feels restless. There is something extremely bothers her but she cannot put her finger on. She feels like so pieces inside of her are missing. She suffers from emptiness. As she keeps questioning the reason behind her awkward feelings, she finds a note from someone tells her to meet with him at a bus! She never heard of the specific bus and its schedule.
But when she rides in, she meets with Adam and the driver seems like he knows both of them and he seems like he’s happy to see them together. What is going on?
But she gets an answer quickly when she stops by the hospital and she realizes she had a procedure to get rid of specific memories in her mind! Why did she decide to do something so extreme?
I’m not giving away more. You need to read to learn more about Blue and how her story will conclude!
But this book makes you question so many things in your lives. If you had a chance to stop the pain when your grief hits so hard and you hardly breathe, feel dropping tears wash away your face, what would you do? Would you let your memories leave your mind or would you try harder to embrace your pain and get thicker skin, wearing your big girl pants!
Because the pain scratches your heart also is a part of yourself! It hurts like but it also teaches you important lessons. It helps you to understand your priorities in your life!
I loved the author’s execution of this brilliant idea and her approach to the grief!
I enjoyed the heartbreaking adventure of Blue Owens!
This is exhilarating, intense, smart, heartfelt reading journey I highly recommend!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Wednesday Books For sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.
Charlie Kaufman’s “Eternal
sunshine of spotless mind “is Oscar awarded story on 2005 from best writing-original screenplay category: when a relationship gets sour, the couple undergoes a medical procedure to have each other erased from their memories.
I always admired this creative idea of the story and “Meet me at Montauk” is still one of my favorite lines. But I also thought the story suffered from lack of emotional level. It was a little mechanic, dark, obsessive love story!
When I read the blurb about Blue Owens’ story ( her name also reminded me of Kate Winslet’s vivid blue hair color in the movie! ) I get so excited about different approach to this original concept! And I must admit this book brought out the sentimental level I was looking for.
Blue feels restless. There is something extremely bothers her but she cannot put her finger on. She feels like so pieces inside of her are missing. She suffers from emptiness. As she keeps questioning the reason behind her awkward feelings, she finds a note from someone tells her to meet with him at a bus! She never heard of the specific bus and its schedule.
But when she rides in, she meets with Adam and the driver seems like he knows both of them and he seems like he’s happy to see them together. What is going on?
But she gets an answer quickly when she stops by the hospital and she realizes she had a procedure to get rid of specific memories in her mind! Why did she decide to do something so extreme?
I’m not giving away more. You need to read to learn more about Blue and how her story will conclude!
But this book makes you question so many things in your lives. If you had a chance to stop the pain when your grief hits so hard and you hardly breathe, feel dropping tears wash away your face, what would you do? Would you let your memories leave your mind or would you try harder to embrace your pain and get thicker skin, wearing your big girl pants!
Because the pain scratches your heart also is a part of yourself! It hurts like but it also teaches you important lessons. It helps you to understand your priorities in your life!
I loved the author’s execution of this brilliant idea and her approach to the grief!
I enjoyed the heartbreaking adventure of Blue Owens!
This is exhilarating, intense, smart, heartfelt reading journey I highly recommend!
Special thanks to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press/ Wednesday Books For sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange my honest opinions.
June 19, 2021
i was worried. i thought this sounded a bit too much like ‘history is all you left me,’ with a hint of ‘the program’ vibes. so i had some doubts that this wouldnt quite be an original story, but i love concept so i gave it a go.
and i was right. there are a lot of similar elements between this and the books i mentioned. it explores mental health, loss, love, and moving on. i think the message is a good one, but im not quite sold on the execution.
the synopsis literally gives everything away - its the first 50% of the book. the last half is blue remembering and its told through consecutive flashbacks. because of that, the brief nature of the memories, there really isnt any opportunity for character growth, plot, or any sort of development. blue remembers, realises her lesson, and then the book ends.
i think if this had been a bit longer and the plot structured in a different way, it might have been more effective.
but like i said, the message is a good one, so i have no doubt that there will be many readers who are able to empathise with blue and her story.
thank you for the ARC, st. martins press/wednesday books.
↠ 2.5 stars
and i was right. there are a lot of similar elements between this and the books i mentioned. it explores mental health, loss, love, and moving on. i think the message is a good one, but im not quite sold on the execution.
the synopsis literally gives everything away - its the first 50% of the book. the last half is blue remembering and its told through consecutive flashbacks. because of that, the brief nature of the memories, there really isnt any opportunity for character growth, plot, or any sort of development. blue remembers, realises her lesson, and then the book ends.
i think if this had been a bit longer and the plot structured in a different way, it might have been more effective.
but like i said, the message is a good one, so i have no doubt that there will be many readers who are able to empathise with blue and her story.
thank you for the ARC, st. martins press/wednesday books.
↠ 2.5 stars
April 26, 2021
If you’re old enough to know who Jim Carrey is then this book might feel a bit familiar. It’s kind of like his movie ‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’ only with teenagers and a whole lot of ethical issues that would have the APA (American Psychological Association) and AAP (American Academy of Pediatrics) along with their global counterparts angrier than Republicans on the day Biden got elected.
Throughout my lifetime I’ve read thousands of books and publicly reviewed hundreds. Out of all those I can count very few that caused the visceral reaction I had with this one.
Rarely have I felt so angry at a book I wanted to throw my iPad. In trying to explain myself to my bestfriend I couldn’t even stick to English as my outrage caused neural pathways to cross and just sputter into chaos trying to decipher my emotions so I ended up splitting into Spanglish with a bit of Gaelic mixed in.
Before I go on I will admit to some biases that more than likely colored my experience that others won’t have so they won’t have the same issues I did.
1. My degree is in Psychology and the idea of ‘Informed Consent’ plus the ethical issues of experimenting on children-young adults has been drilled into me making the flaunting violations of these principles part of the story line (and the fact that only 2 people with just 1 of them being an adult seeing that and trying to do something about it) an issue for me.
2. I’m a suicide survivor and have a major problem with how the subject was treated in relation to what they would do about it
3. I have also been gaslighted and as part of that had my memories, sense of self, sense of what is true/fake, etc messed with and know how incredibly damaging it can be. The fact that didn’t seem to be taken into account or that the story was set up to make it seem like it was for the greater good angered me to no end
I’ve been working in mental health for a long time, I do a lot of community mental health initiatives and particularly under covid mental health became a major hot button topic but this book to me treated the entire subject so cavalierly and disrespectfully.
I can see though teenagers/young adults finding certain aspects romantic and some wishing memory erasing procedures were a thing but for me I just can’t get over the damage and as the book proved possibility for abuse. There was no good pay off at the end to be able to say yeah this stuff happened but everyone realized the consequences so they learned something making the journey worthwhile and necessary – though at least 2 characters came closest to that realization.
I do think there needs to be some kind of trigger warning for those who have had various mental health struggles so they know going in what they could be facing and decide if they’re in a strong enough place to handle it.
One positive though – the author did a good job incorporating a character from the LGBTQ community and addressing the proper pronouns.
Throughout my lifetime I’ve read thousands of books and publicly reviewed hundreds. Out of all those I can count very few that caused the visceral reaction I had with this one.
Rarely have I felt so angry at a book I wanted to throw my iPad. In trying to explain myself to my bestfriend I couldn’t even stick to English as my outrage caused neural pathways to cross and just sputter into chaos trying to decipher my emotions so I ended up splitting into Spanglish with a bit of Gaelic mixed in.
Before I go on I will admit to some biases that more than likely colored my experience that others won’t have so they won’t have the same issues I did.
1. My degree is in Psychology and the idea of ‘Informed Consent’ plus the ethical issues of experimenting on children-young adults has been drilled into me making the flaunting violations of these principles part of the story line (and the fact that only 2 people with just 1 of them being an adult seeing that and trying to do something about it) an issue for me.
2. I’m a suicide survivor and have a major problem with how the subject was treated in relation to what they would do about it
3. I have also been gaslighted and as part of that had my memories, sense of self, sense of what is true/fake, etc messed with and know how incredibly damaging it can be. The fact that didn’t seem to be taken into account or that the story was set up to make it seem like it was for the greater good angered me to no end
I’ve been working in mental health for a long time, I do a lot of community mental health initiatives and particularly under covid mental health became a major hot button topic but this book to me treated the entire subject so cavalierly and disrespectfully.
I can see though teenagers/young adults finding certain aspects romantic and some wishing memory erasing procedures were a thing but for me I just can’t get over the damage and as the book proved possibility for abuse. There was no good pay off at the end to be able to say yeah this stuff happened but everyone realized the consequences so they learned something making the journey worthwhile and necessary – though at least 2 characters came closest to that realization.
I do think there needs to be some kind of trigger warning for those who have had various mental health struggles so they know going in what they could be facing and decide if they’re in a strong enough place to handle it.
One positive though – the author did a good job incorporating a character from the LGBTQ community and addressing the proper pronouns.
October 2, 2021
Good premise! Full review soon!
March 27, 2022
2.5/5 stars
Remember Me is a YA book that takes place in the near future (2032) and has some romance and some science fiction elements.
The narrator is 17 year old Blue (1st person POV). The story is a bit futuristic, but mostly feels contemporary.
Blue realizes that something is wrong as she can't remember certain things.
Overall this book was just okay for me. The idea was promising. But the book did not capture my attention the way that I hoped that it would. And it reminded me a lot of another YA series.
There are some good supporting characters. Blue's gran. Her best friend Turtle. And there is a non-binary character Jack.
The tagline "if you could erase all of your painful memories would you?" is compelling. I did find the premise interesting. But I just wanted more.
Thanks to netgalley and Wednesday books for allowing me to read this book.
June 15, 2021
ah não. não. apenas... não
eu não sei ainda qual nota vou dar ou de que forma comentar sobre esse livro que EXALA irresponsabilidade, falta de ética e de profissionalismo. não sou de qualquer forma alguém que entenda um pouco de psicologia, mas esse livro deve tirar essas pessoas do sério.
não recomendo.
eu não sei ainda qual nota vou dar ou de que forma comentar sobre esse livro que EXALA irresponsabilidade, falta de ética e de profissionalismo. não sou de qualquer forma alguém que entenda um pouco de psicologia, mas esse livro deve tirar essas pessoas do sério.
não recomendo.
September 27, 2021
If you could rid yourself of painful memories, would you? What would we be without our pain? These were some questions explored in Remember Me.
I must confess, I had no idea what this book was about before I read it. I picked it up based on the author and cover without reading the synopsis. Early on, I realized it was NOT a contemporary since the story took place in the near future. Then when all the memory stuff was introduced, I realized this was sci-fi. I don’t tend to read much sci-fi, however, aside from the mind manipulation, this read like a contemporary, and therefore, was successful for me. I have seen many compare this to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and that pretty much fits.
I was quite taken with the premise. What would we be without our pain? That was a very thought provoking idea for me, and I enjoyed exploring it via Blue’s experience. The story unfurled in such a way, that I was eager to get to know more, dig more. I felt as disorientated as Blue in the beginning, and obviously, I came up with my own explanations. I was 100% WRONG! and was quite surprised by what had happened, and after that surprise, there was an even bigger surprise (at least for me).
Laure did a fantastic job with the build of this story. There was much confusion and tension as pieces of what happened were revealed. It was also emotional for me, and I appreciated the way it all came together at one point.
So, would we be better off with or without our pain? I don’t know, but I really enjoyed this interesting exploration of grief and loss. I found myself bawling a few times and was quite moved by this tale of grief, loss, and moving forward.
*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
BLOG | INSTAGRAM |TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS
I must confess, I had no idea what this book was about before I read it. I picked it up based on the author and cover without reading the synopsis. Early on, I realized it was NOT a contemporary since the story took place in the near future. Then when all the memory stuff was introduced, I realized this was sci-fi. I don’t tend to read much sci-fi, however, aside from the mind manipulation, this read like a contemporary, and therefore, was successful for me. I have seen many compare this to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, and that pretty much fits.
I was quite taken with the premise. What would we be without our pain? That was a very thought provoking idea for me, and I enjoyed exploring it via Blue’s experience. The story unfurled in such a way, that I was eager to get to know more, dig more. I felt as disorientated as Blue in the beginning, and obviously, I came up with my own explanations. I was 100% WRONG! and was quite surprised by what had happened, and after that surprise, there was an even bigger surprise (at least for me).
Laure did a fantastic job with the build of this story. There was much confusion and tension as pieces of what happened were revealed. It was also emotional for me, and I appreciated the way it all came together at one point.
So, would we be better off with or without our pain? I don’t know, but I really enjoyed this interesting exploration of grief and loss. I found myself bawling a few times and was quite moved by this tale of grief, loss, and moving forward.
*ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.
BLOG | INSTAGRAM |TWITTER | BLOGLOVIN | FRIEND ME ON GOODREADS
July 18, 2021
Deeply thought-provoking, Remember Me left me with the same question asked in the synopsis. If I could have all my memories erased and wake up the next day forgetting all the bad things that ever happened to me, would I?
Remember Me opens on the eve of protagonist Blue Owens' seventeenth birthday, when she finds the note in her jewellery box instructing her to get on the Little Blue Bus the following morning. She doesn't know where the note came from, how she came to possess it, or who she could be meeting on the bus, but she feels compelled to follow its instructions. It's there that she meets Adam Mendoza, and the missing pieces of the puzzle start to come together over the remainder of the book.
A captivating and engaging read, with strong themes of trauma, loss, depression, and grief, I found this one hard to put down, reading the entire book in two sittings. Although Laure has penned many novels, this is the first I've read, and I thought it was well written. I liked the strong LGBTQ+ representation and use of pronouns for the character of Jack, as well.
I read some pretty negative reviews about Remember Me which is unfortunate because I found it to be an excellent read. While it did have some dark themes, I found it extremely relatable on a personal level. As someone who has struggled with anorexia and depression for most of my life, and tried many forms of treatment, I've often wondered if I would have that part of myself erased if I could. When thinking about that question, as alluring as it would be, I can't say I'd delete that illness from my life, because it's a part of me, and removing that would be removing so much more.
All in all, I really liked this book. Despite its heavy themes, it was an easy read. I'm keen to read more of Estelle's work, and have a craving for more Young Adult and LGBTQ+ fiction after this one.
Avocado Diaries
Remember Me opens on the eve of protagonist Blue Owens' seventeenth birthday, when she finds the note in her jewellery box instructing her to get on the Little Blue Bus the following morning. She doesn't know where the note came from, how she came to possess it, or who she could be meeting on the bus, but she feels compelled to follow its instructions. It's there that she meets Adam Mendoza, and the missing pieces of the puzzle start to come together over the remainder of the book.
A captivating and engaging read, with strong themes of trauma, loss, depression, and grief, I found this one hard to put down, reading the entire book in two sittings. Although Laure has penned many novels, this is the first I've read, and I thought it was well written. I liked the strong LGBTQ+ representation and use of pronouns for the character of Jack, as well.
I read some pretty negative reviews about Remember Me which is unfortunate because I found it to be an excellent read. While it did have some dark themes, I found it extremely relatable on a personal level. As someone who has struggled with anorexia and depression for most of my life, and tried many forms of treatment, I've often wondered if I would have that part of myself erased if I could. When thinking about that question, as alluring as it would be, I can't say I'd delete that illness from my life, because it's a part of me, and removing that would be removing so much more.
All in all, I really liked this book. Despite its heavy themes, it was an easy read. I'm keen to read more of Estelle's work, and have a craving for more Young Adult and LGBTQ+ fiction after this one.
Avocado Diaries
September 21, 2021
Things in Blue’s life are off, and she can’t pinpoint exactly what is wrong. But when she finds a picture and a note hidden in her closet, she follows the note to see where it leads. Enter Adam. He’s incredibly charming, and they have an instant attraction. But he’s having a hard time with all of this. Why would Blue have gone through having her memories altered? He remembers everything.
I’m perplexed that people would request to review this before release day and then argue ethics when the blurb tells you what to expect. Of course it isn’t ethical, but it’s a dystopian-esque book set into the future, and you know what you’re getting into.
Remember Me is very much reminiscent of Alexander Pope’s Eloisa to Abelard, and subsequently, the movie made in its honor. After reading the blurb and having read another of Laure’s works, I expected to enjoy this. But for me, I didn’t love Blue. I can deal with unlikeable characters, but it wasn’t that Blue was unlikable. She was supposed to be feeling emotions, but we, as the reader, didn’t feel those emotions. She lacked depth and character. I loathe a decision her mother made, which made her absolute garbage. Some things in life are unforgivable, and I don’t think I would be so quick to forgive. Because of the lack of depth, I think this wasn’t wholly the right fit for me. Thank you, St. Martin’s, for sending this along.
I’m perplexed that people would request to review this before release day and then argue ethics when the blurb tells you what to expect. Of course it isn’t ethical, but it’s a dystopian-esque book set into the future, and you know what you’re getting into.
Remember Me is very much reminiscent of Alexander Pope’s Eloisa to Abelard, and subsequently, the movie made in its honor. After reading the blurb and having read another of Laure’s works, I expected to enjoy this. But for me, I didn’t love Blue. I can deal with unlikeable characters, but it wasn’t that Blue was unlikable. She was supposed to be feeling emotions, but we, as the reader, didn’t feel those emotions. She lacked depth and character. I loathe a decision her mother made, which made her absolute garbage. Some things in life are unforgivable, and I don’t think I would be so quick to forgive. Because of the lack of depth, I think this wasn’t wholly the right fit for me. Thank you, St. Martin’s, for sending this along.
August 8, 2021
Book synopsis in a one or two sentences:
Blue realizes she has asked for some painful memories to be erased. She realized that she made a mistake and tries to convince the doctors to retrieve those missing memories.
My Thoughts:
I did not enjoy this book at all. The premise of the book was intriguing but it was poorly executed. I wanted more character growth, especially in Blue, who suffered a pretty traumatic experience that she wanted to forget. For a large portion of the book, Blue was recovering her memories and it didn't allow for her to process the trauma in a meaningful way. Nor did she really learn anything from her experience. Also the idea of just being able to go to a doctor and have things wiped from your memory does not seem like a good way to treat mental health concerns. There is one thing I liked about this book, I loved that the author included a non-binary side character. That's about all I liked, unfortunately.
Thank you to Wednesday Books for the free advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review.
Blue realizes she has asked for some painful memories to be erased. She realized that she made a mistake and tries to convince the doctors to retrieve those missing memories.
My Thoughts:
I did not enjoy this book at all. The premise of the book was intriguing but it was poorly executed. I wanted more character growth, especially in Blue, who suffered a pretty traumatic experience that she wanted to forget. For a large portion of the book, Blue was recovering her memories and it didn't allow for her to process the trauma in a meaningful way. Nor did she really learn anything from her experience. Also the idea of just being able to go to a doctor and have things wiped from your memory does not seem like a good way to treat mental health concerns. There is one thing I liked about this book, I loved that the author included a non-binary side character. That's about all I liked, unfortunately.
Thank you to Wednesday Books for the free advanced readers copy in exchange for my honest review.
December 7, 2021
This book was interesting with a premise that has been explored before and was not done particularly uniquely here. In this universe one can erase people or things from their memory. Blue wakes up thinking it’s a normal day but finds a strange note telling her to meet on the little blue bus. This starts a journey that takes Blue through exploration and healing. The characters and story were well done with this one, but I did have issues with the ethics of what Blue went through. Experimentation on teens was done poorly in a way I hope would never occur given how far our psychological research has come. I wasn’t totally sold on the love story, but I honestly don’t think that was the most important part of this one.
October 17, 2021
Estelle Laure’s Remember Me is a slightly dystopian universe that’s set in the near future, but reads mostly like a contemporary YA novel. We follow Blue’s story as she meets Adam. He mysteriously has a hard time with their interactions as it turns out he remembers everything but Blue’s memories are altered.
We journey with her as she figures out why she willing removed her memories, as she then discovers some devastating truth.
This book is all about feelings, whether it be about pain, love, sadness or friendships. Whilst the book is sad and even a bit messy at times, it definitely ends positively and compassionately, as ultimately at the core of this book, it’s all about love.
We’ve all probably thought about never remembering a painful memory again and with that feeling, we can all relate somewhat to the plot. Kudos to the author for adding a non binary secondary character so well into the story.
Overall, this was a moving and heartbreaking read that will linger with me for awhile.
This book is available now.
Thank you to the publishers for the arc.
TW: grief and loss, trauma, depression, mental illness, suicide
We journey with her as she figures out why she willing removed her memories, as she then discovers some devastating truth.
This book is all about feelings, whether it be about pain, love, sadness or friendships. Whilst the book is sad and even a bit messy at times, it definitely ends positively and compassionately, as ultimately at the core of this book, it’s all about love.
We’ve all probably thought about never remembering a painful memory again and with that feeling, we can all relate somewhat to the plot. Kudos to the author for adding a non binary secondary character so well into the story.
Overall, this was a moving and heartbreaking read that will linger with me for awhile.
This book is available now.
Thank you to the publishers for the arc.
TW: grief and loss, trauma, depression, mental illness, suicide
April 7, 2022
Language: R (72 swears, 23 “f”); Mature Content: R; Violence: PG13
Waking up for school should feel like a normal day, but Blue knows that she’s missing something. She just can’t remember what. But the strange note she found in her closet must be a clue. So Blue obeys the note and boards the little blue bus on her seventeenth birthday – one leap of faith that leads to another.
The book cover and summary lead me to believe that the book was mostly about Blue and her romantic relationship. If that’s the focus, I really didn’t like Blue’s story, and I think it would have been better with a sadder ending. However, a new focus arose as I read that felt more like a story of navigating family, pain, and difficult decisions. With this shift, I feel misled, and I’m not sure how satisfied I am with the resolution. Lessons of grief and mental illness are clearly communicated, but I can get that from better books.
Blue and the maternal side of her family are Italian, but her father’s side is not described and is assumed White. Adam is described as “not just white,” and his father is a “brown dude.” Dr. Sweet is described as Black. The mature content ratings is for mention of drug and alcohol use, underage drinking, innuendo, brief description of fondling, mention of rape, discussions of sex, nudity, and oral sex. The violence rating is for mentions of suicide.
Reviewed for https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/
Waking up for school should feel like a normal day, but Blue knows that she’s missing something. She just can’t remember what. But the strange note she found in her closet must be a clue. So Blue obeys the note and boards the little blue bus on her seventeenth birthday – one leap of faith that leads to another.
The book cover and summary lead me to believe that the book was mostly about Blue and her romantic relationship. If that’s the focus, I really didn’t like Blue’s story, and I think it would have been better with a sadder ending. However, a new focus arose as I read that felt more like a story of navigating family, pain, and difficult decisions. With this shift, I feel misled, and I’m not sure how satisfied I am with the resolution. Lessons of grief and mental illness are clearly communicated, but I can get that from better books.
Blue and the maternal side of her family are Italian, but her father’s side is not described and is assumed White. Adam is described as “not just white,” and his father is a “brown dude.” Dr. Sweet is described as Black. The mature content ratings is for mention of drug and alcohol use, underage drinking, innuendo, brief description of fondling, mention of rape, discussions of sex, nudity, and oral sex. The violence rating is for mentions of suicide.
Reviewed for https://kissthebook.blogspot.com/
March 23, 2022
DNF’d at 18%
I wanted to love this one but it just didn’t hook me like I’d hoped. I just couldn’t hold the motivation to read it and then I went a week without picking it up and I didn’t remember anything, so I decided to just try to casually read it and went another couple weeks and just couldn’t pick it back up…
BUT none of this is to say that is was a bad book because it wasn’t by any means! I was so intrigued by the premise and the writing was wonderful… it just wasn’t for me. Who knows, maybe I’m just slumping and that’s what ruined it for me, or maybe it was just the right book at the wrong time but I have to leave it for now. I really hope others enjoy it though!
Special thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, and Estelle Laure for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
I wanted to love this one but it just didn’t hook me like I’d hoped. I just couldn’t hold the motivation to read it and then I went a week without picking it up and I didn’t remember anything, so I decided to just try to casually read it and went another couple weeks and just couldn’t pick it back up…
BUT none of this is to say that is was a bad book because it wasn’t by any means! I was so intrigued by the premise and the writing was wonderful… it just wasn’t for me. Who knows, maybe I’m just slumping and that’s what ruined it for me, or maybe it was just the right book at the wrong time but I have to leave it for now. I really hope others enjoy it though!
Special thank you to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books, and Estelle Laure for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review!
July 17, 2022
If you could have your memories taken away would you do it? As I was reading the book I just kept asking myself if this was something I would do. I've had my share of bad things happen...would I want to forget it?
I liked the story, but I didn't love it. I think it being a teenager was hard for me. I thought the author did such a great job though. It really makes you think about your own life.
Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday books for the book in exchange for my honest review.
I liked the story, but I didn't love it. I think it being a teenager was hard for me. I thought the author did such a great job though. It really makes you think about your own life.
Thank you to NetGalley and Wednesday books for the book in exchange for my honest review.
August 10, 2021
This did not live up to the hype at all. Grief is not easy to handle. Being presented with the ability to forgo experiencing it by erasing the memory causing the grief may sound appealing. But unintended consequences will occur. Sounds like a good story, right? But this is slow to start, way too over the top with contrived plot twists, and very unsatisfying.
Want to read
February 27, 2022I've read a few books on a similar topic. I'm intrigued
A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.
A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing an e-ARC via Netgalley. This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.
April 7, 2022
I really didn't appreciate the way that depression and suicide were handled in this book and the writing felt really detached and unemotional.
Read
November 21, 2022DNF at 30%
this writing is not for me...
this writing is not for me...
August 29, 2021
Once I started reading this book, I couldn't put it down. I love the characters in this story. I love the friendships and the love interest is just the sweetest. Estelle Laure has me really thinking about the future and if I would want to forget but most importantly "Do I want to remember?".
October 1, 2022
This book is almost good, but lacking a lot of depth.
May 17, 2021
I really wanted to like this book. The pacing was great, the characters alive, the suspense built beautifully, but I just couldn't seem to find a connection to anything. I actually DNF it near halfway through, but please don't let my review keep you from trying it yourself! It has some amazing moments of genius, but overall, just didn't click with me.
June 10, 2022
I don't think there's even a possibility that I'll be able to write out everything I feel about this book in this review. It's only July, but I can say with complete certainty that this will be one of my favorite books of the year and I've already preordered it so I can have a physical copy when it comes out this October.
Remember Me is an honest and raw story about love and grief. Our main character Blue wakes up one morning to find that she feels exceedingly strange. She finds a note in her room that contains a mysterious meeting place, although she has no memory of how it got there. Throughout the day, she discovers more and more gaps in her memory and gets physically ill when she pushes herself to remember those blank spots. Resigning herself to solve this issue, she decides to go to the meeting place on the note. There, she meets a boy she seems to be immediately drawn to: Adam. She then learns that she had elected to have some of her memories removed. From then on, pieces start to fall into place and Blue has to decide if her memories are worth saving without knowing why she wanted them erased in the first place.
The word heartbreaking is not enough to describe this novel. Throughout the entire second half of the book, I sobbed, and I mean can't breath, can't see through the tears sobbed. Laure does an incredible job of writing about the impact of profound loss on not only the person directly affected, but the people around them as well. We want to be mad about how other people react to those affected, but we can't because we can see where they're coming from. The sheer impact of the emotions portrayed is weighty enough on its own, but coupled with the style and form of the writing, there's no escaping them, even for the toughest reader.
I could not recommend this book more and I'm excited to force all of my friends to read it, so they can be as upset as me.
Remember Me is an honest and raw story about love and grief. Our main character Blue wakes up one morning to find that she feels exceedingly strange. She finds a note in her room that contains a mysterious meeting place, although she has no memory of how it got there. Throughout the day, she discovers more and more gaps in her memory and gets physically ill when she pushes herself to remember those blank spots. Resigning herself to solve this issue, she decides to go to the meeting place on the note. There, she meets a boy she seems to be immediately drawn to: Adam. She then learns that she had elected to have some of her memories removed. From then on, pieces start to fall into place and Blue has to decide if her memories are worth saving without knowing why she wanted them erased in the first place.
The word heartbreaking is not enough to describe this novel. Throughout the entire second half of the book, I sobbed, and I mean can't breath, can't see through the tears sobbed. Laure does an incredible job of writing about the impact of profound loss on not only the person directly affected, but the people around them as well. We want to be mad about how other people react to those affected, but we can't because we can see where they're coming from. The sheer impact of the emotions portrayed is weighty enough on its own, but coupled with the style and form of the writing, there's no escaping them, even for the toughest reader.
I could not recommend this book more and I'm excited to force all of my friends to read it, so they can be as upset as me.
April 27, 2023
This was a riveting book with a heartbreakingly good end. I loved reading Blue and Adam's story. Thanks so much St. Martins Publishing Group for the advanced copy from your giveaway!
March 24, 2022
A teen in the near future wakes up to discover that her life seems off kilter. As she tries to retrace her steps to the moment everything changed, she finds herself confronting hard truths. Author Estelle Laure’s latest YA novel features a plot that’s slightly out of breath but contains writing that sparkles in Remember Me.
It’s 2031 and the day before Blue Owens’s birthday. She should feel excited; she should be looking forward to celebrating with her best friends, Turtle and Jack. But Blue wakes up with the weirdest sensation that something is not right.
Her body is giving her weird messages, for one thing. Then she finds an unsigned note and a photo in her closet. The note tells her to meet someone on a little blue bus the next morning. What blue bus? As long as Blue has lived in Owl Nook, New Mexico—and that’s pretty much her whole life—she’s never seen a blue bus in their small town.
She could just ignore the note, write it off as a prank, except it doesn’t seem like the kind of prank anyone she knows would pull. She only has Turtle and Jack; no other friends. She lives with her grandmother who she calls Gran. Her mom is dead; her dad lives in Florida. Who would do something like this? And why doesn’t she recognize anyone but herself in the photo with the note?
Against her better judgment, Blue makes her way to the bus the next day and meets Adam Mendoza. Her eyes tell her she’s never met Adam before; her heart tells her they were once something important. Eventually she gets Adam to tell her what happened. The two of them used to date, but after an Incident—with a capital I—Blue decided to undergo a procedure to have Adam removed from her memories.
She should be content with the answer, but she’s not. Clearly she and Adam meant something to one another at some point. They have a history, and Blue senses, even if she can’t remember, that they were happy for the most part. So why would she go through with this drastic step?
She finds her way back to the clinic where it all started and demands to get her memories back. There she fights for what she believes is rightfully hers: access to the pain of her life. The adults in charge warn her that she won’t like what she finds out, but Blue doesn’t care. She wants to know what she’s lost and reclaim it.
Author Estelle Laure jumps right into the action, starting the book on the day before Blue’s birthday when she discovers the note. While writers are often advised to start their stories with an inciting incident, readers might get the sense that they’ve missed something important with the opening chapters of the book. They meet Blue when she’s trying to make sense of the note, the photo, and why her backpack contains several bottles of orange juice. The plot doesn’t give readers much to know who Blue is and what she’s about, giving an abrupt introduction to the main character.
The book feels like it’s hurtling toward Blue’s birthday, getting her through her first meeting with Adam and back to the clinic in a hurry. Once she demands to get her memories back, the pace slows down. Laure takes her time to offer readers Blue’s history and the events leading up to her decision to have her memories removed. Some readers might feel like they’re being rushed to this point to get to the “main event.” They may not get enough time with Blue before her birthday in order to fully sympathize with her after she discovers what she’s lost.
Lines skip ahead in the story, assuming readers will catch up, which might disorient them a little bit. Also, Blue’s mentions early in the book about wanting love feel forced. The meeting with Adam at times seems a little manufactured rather than an organic progression of the story.
Nevertheless, Laure’s descriptions are bright and innovative, and the book’s plot falls squarely within the genre for her target market. YA readers sensitive to discussions about sex and sexuality might not want to pick this one up.
It’s 2031 and the day before Blue Owens’s birthday. She should feel excited; she should be looking forward to celebrating with her best friends, Turtle and Jack. But Blue wakes up with the weirdest sensation that something is not right.
Her body is giving her weird messages, for one thing. Then she finds an unsigned note and a photo in her closet. The note tells her to meet someone on a little blue bus the next morning. What blue bus? As long as Blue has lived in Owl Nook, New Mexico—and that’s pretty much her whole life—she’s never seen a blue bus in their small town.
She could just ignore the note, write it off as a prank, except it doesn’t seem like the kind of prank anyone she knows would pull. She only has Turtle and Jack; no other friends. She lives with her grandmother who she calls Gran. Her mom is dead; her dad lives in Florida. Who would do something like this? And why doesn’t she recognize anyone but herself in the photo with the note?
Against her better judgment, Blue makes her way to the bus the next day and meets Adam Mendoza. Her eyes tell her she’s never met Adam before; her heart tells her they were once something important. Eventually she gets Adam to tell her what happened. The two of them used to date, but after an Incident—with a capital I—Blue decided to undergo a procedure to have Adam removed from her memories.
She should be content with the answer, but she’s not. Clearly she and Adam meant something to one another at some point. They have a history, and Blue senses, even if she can’t remember, that they were happy for the most part. So why would she go through with this drastic step?
She finds her way back to the clinic where it all started and demands to get her memories back. There she fights for what she believes is rightfully hers: access to the pain of her life. The adults in charge warn her that she won’t like what she finds out, but Blue doesn’t care. She wants to know what she’s lost and reclaim it.
Author Estelle Laure jumps right into the action, starting the book on the day before Blue’s birthday when she discovers the note. While writers are often advised to start their stories with an inciting incident, readers might get the sense that they’ve missed something important with the opening chapters of the book. They meet Blue when she’s trying to make sense of the note, the photo, and why her backpack contains several bottles of orange juice. The plot doesn’t give readers much to know who Blue is and what she’s about, giving an abrupt introduction to the main character.
The book feels like it’s hurtling toward Blue’s birthday, getting her through her first meeting with Adam and back to the clinic in a hurry. Once she demands to get her memories back, the pace slows down. Laure takes her time to offer readers Blue’s history and the events leading up to her decision to have her memories removed. Some readers might feel like they’re being rushed to this point to get to the “main event.” They may not get enough time with Blue before her birthday in order to fully sympathize with her after she discovers what she’s lost.
Lines skip ahead in the story, assuming readers will catch up, which might disorient them a little bit. Also, Blue’s mentions early in the book about wanting love feel forced. The meeting with Adam at times seems a little manufactured rather than an organic progression of the story.
Nevertheless, Laure’s descriptions are bright and innovative, and the book’s plot falls squarely within the genre for her target market. YA readers sensitive to discussions about sex and sexuality might not want to pick this one up.
March 29, 2022
When Blue woke up for school, things didn’t seem quite right. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but things were just off. And then she found the note on her dresser—Meet me on the Little Blue Bus, 7:45, 5/19/32.
Her school besties picked her up for the ride to school, Turtle driving her Jeep and Jack sitting beside her. Blue gets in the car and rides along to school, listening to them talk about senior prank day. The class had gone with an agricultural theme, leaving hay in parking spots and sabotaging many faculty with unexpected water drops. Blue is a little sad about that, how her two best friends are just a week away from graduation, and she still has another year. And Turtle and Jack are so in love, and she’s alone.
Blue goes about her day, despite a bad headache and that nagging feeling that something is wrong. But when she gets to her photography class, she knows something is wrong. All of her work for the entire semester has been ruined. There are streaks where her photos were. The teacher assures Blue that she did the work and got full credit for it, but she can’t explain why Blue has no photos to show for that.
Blue can’t explain why or how there are gaps in her memory, but she’s determined to find out, and she’s going to start by getting on that Little Blue Bus tomorrow, her birthday, and seeing where it takes her.
As soon as she gets on the bus, the driver recognizes her. Blue’s memory is still blank. She grabs a seat and rides as they head up the mountain. She hadn’t remembered the Little Blue Bus at all. She’d had to look it up online to find out what it was, after she read that note. The Little Blue Bus runs from her small town of Owl Nook, New Mexico, up the mountain, so those who ski and snowboard have a direct route to the slopes. The bus continues to make stops up the mountain, and that’s when he gets on.
Blue takes one look at him and knows that this person is significant to her. He sits next to her and introduces himself as Adam. And he has a question for her: “Do you remember me at all?”
Blue is desolate to realize that he has memories of her, but she has nothing in her mind where her memories were. Her journey to try to figure out what happened to her reveals so many secrets, so much pain, so much that had been lost to her. And she has to make a choice—does she want simply to move forward to her life, or does she want to try to recover those memories . . . along with the pain that almost broke her?
Remember Me is a heartbreaking novel of teenage love, loss, and endless grief. The intensity of the feelings comes through every page as Blue and her friends and family go through all the worst that life can serve up and try to keep moving forward. A powerful novel of mental illness and health, of love and hope, of loss and healing, Remember Me is author Estelle Laure’s compelling call to live through the pain and find our way to the other side.
I thought Remember Me was devastating and beautiful. Blue’s pain is so visceral, her grief so consuming, that you can see how she got to the end of her sanity. But watching her journey to the bottom and then back up is inspiring for those of us who face mental illness and want to believe in a future. This book is intense, so it may not be appropriate for everyone, but it does offer a compelling perspective on those who struggle to fit in, struggle to deal with their strong emotions, and struggle to find their place. This is an important book, and I hope the readers who need this story will be able to find it. Because I know those readers are out there.
Egalleys for Remember Me were provided by Wednesday Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.
Her school besties picked her up for the ride to school, Turtle driving her Jeep and Jack sitting beside her. Blue gets in the car and rides along to school, listening to them talk about senior prank day. The class had gone with an agricultural theme, leaving hay in parking spots and sabotaging many faculty with unexpected water drops. Blue is a little sad about that, how her two best friends are just a week away from graduation, and she still has another year. And Turtle and Jack are so in love, and she’s alone.
Blue goes about her day, despite a bad headache and that nagging feeling that something is wrong. But when she gets to her photography class, she knows something is wrong. All of her work for the entire semester has been ruined. There are streaks where her photos were. The teacher assures Blue that she did the work and got full credit for it, but she can’t explain why Blue has no photos to show for that.
Blue can’t explain why or how there are gaps in her memory, but she’s determined to find out, and she’s going to start by getting on that Little Blue Bus tomorrow, her birthday, and seeing where it takes her.
As soon as she gets on the bus, the driver recognizes her. Blue’s memory is still blank. She grabs a seat and rides as they head up the mountain. She hadn’t remembered the Little Blue Bus at all. She’d had to look it up online to find out what it was, after she read that note. The Little Blue Bus runs from her small town of Owl Nook, New Mexico, up the mountain, so those who ski and snowboard have a direct route to the slopes. The bus continues to make stops up the mountain, and that’s when he gets on.
Blue takes one look at him and knows that this person is significant to her. He sits next to her and introduces himself as Adam. And he has a question for her: “Do you remember me at all?”
Blue is desolate to realize that he has memories of her, but she has nothing in her mind where her memories were. Her journey to try to figure out what happened to her reveals so many secrets, so much pain, so much that had been lost to her. And she has to make a choice—does she want simply to move forward to her life, or does she want to try to recover those memories . . . along with the pain that almost broke her?
Remember Me is a heartbreaking novel of teenage love, loss, and endless grief. The intensity of the feelings comes through every page as Blue and her friends and family go through all the worst that life can serve up and try to keep moving forward. A powerful novel of mental illness and health, of love and hope, of loss and healing, Remember Me is author Estelle Laure’s compelling call to live through the pain and find our way to the other side.
I thought Remember Me was devastating and beautiful. Blue’s pain is so visceral, her grief so consuming, that you can see how she got to the end of her sanity. But watching her journey to the bottom and then back up is inspiring for those of us who face mental illness and want to believe in a future. This book is intense, so it may not be appropriate for everyone, but it does offer a compelling perspective on those who struggle to fit in, struggle to deal with their strong emotions, and struggle to find their place. This is an important book, and I hope the readers who need this story will be able to find it. Because I know those readers are out there.
Egalleys for Remember Me were provided by Wednesday Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.
March 21, 2022
What's it about (in a nutshell):
Remember Me by Estelle Laure is an in-depth exploration of the consequences of being able to forget about those things that cause us pain – big and small.
What I Enjoyed:
What I enjoyed most about Remember Me was the intriguing messages at the end of the story. The main one is," what would we be without our pain?" The story answers that question through a few characters dotted within the story. Their reasons were different, but the outcome was the same. Grief and depression are essential to forming the people we are and have relevance ultimately toward love and life. Other questions also come up, and I think they would be great to explore in book clubs and other discussion opportunities.
I also liked that the big twist made the whole story make sense, even though it was the wrong way to go. I honestly didn't see it coming, but I loved that it made the entire story come together and make perfect sense. That also helped me to be able to empathize with all the characters, as I then understood what they were reacting to, whereas before the twist, their reactions seemed totally out of proportion for the situation.
The story is a fascinating exploration into the effectiveness of erasing those things in our life that cause us pain. It brings up such thought-provoking situations and scenarios that create the base for exploring more and contemplating the ramifications of the role of grief and depression in each of our lives. I always enjoy a story that makes me think even if I don't want to do so.
The 1st-person narration is just right for this story because that narration style made it an intensely personal narrative. I don't think it would have been nearly as effective if written in 3rd-person, putting distance between the reader and the story. As told by her, Blue's story is compelling, frightening, heart-wrenching, and understandable.
Characters:
Blue is an 11th grader who decided to have some of her memories erased. Learning her story is the story.
Gran (Gina Bellini) is Blue's guardian, and her concern for her granddaughter always rings true and paramount.
Alex is a guy that Blue meets on the bus early in the story.
Turtle is Blue's best friend. Her real name is Tatiana Tuttle, but everyone calls her Turtle. She loves musical theater and skipped a grade, so she is now a senior on her way to college the following year.
Jack is Turtle's partner who identifies as non-binary and goes by the pronouns they/them.
What I Wish:
From a counseling perspective, there are so many issues concerning experimenting on teens and the procedure itself for dealing with grief, depression, suicide, etc. This story is fiction and based on a science fiction concept, so I tried to put my feelings as a counselor aside, but it still caused me a bit of concern, especially when I thought about teens reading it. It definitely can trigger people in terms of death and suicide, and the ethical questions should be discussed with any teens who read the story.
To Read or Not to Read:
If you are looking for a thought-provoking reflection of the role of pain in our lives, Remember Me is just the story you should pick up.
Remember Me by Estelle Laure is an in-depth exploration of the consequences of being able to forget about those things that cause us pain – big and small.
What I Enjoyed:
What I enjoyed most about Remember Me was the intriguing messages at the end of the story. The main one is," what would we be without our pain?" The story answers that question through a few characters dotted within the story. Their reasons were different, but the outcome was the same. Grief and depression are essential to forming the people we are and have relevance ultimately toward love and life. Other questions also come up, and I think they would be great to explore in book clubs and other discussion opportunities.
I also liked that the big twist made the whole story make sense, even though it was the wrong way to go. I honestly didn't see it coming, but I loved that it made the entire story come together and make perfect sense. That also helped me to be able to empathize with all the characters, as I then understood what they were reacting to, whereas before the twist, their reactions seemed totally out of proportion for the situation.
The story is a fascinating exploration into the effectiveness of erasing those things in our life that cause us pain. It brings up such thought-provoking situations and scenarios that create the base for exploring more and contemplating the ramifications of the role of grief and depression in each of our lives. I always enjoy a story that makes me think even if I don't want to do so.
The 1st-person narration is just right for this story because that narration style made it an intensely personal narrative. I don't think it would have been nearly as effective if written in 3rd-person, putting distance between the reader and the story. As told by her, Blue's story is compelling, frightening, heart-wrenching, and understandable.
Characters:
Blue is an 11th grader who decided to have some of her memories erased. Learning her story is the story.
Gran (Gina Bellini) is Blue's guardian, and her concern for her granddaughter always rings true and paramount.
Alex is a guy that Blue meets on the bus early in the story.
Turtle is Blue's best friend. Her real name is Tatiana Tuttle, but everyone calls her Turtle. She loves musical theater and skipped a grade, so she is now a senior on her way to college the following year.
Jack is Turtle's partner who identifies as non-binary and goes by the pronouns they/them.
What I Wish:
From a counseling perspective, there are so many issues concerning experimenting on teens and the procedure itself for dealing with grief, depression, suicide, etc. This story is fiction and based on a science fiction concept, so I tried to put my feelings as a counselor aside, but it still caused me a bit of concern, especially when I thought about teens reading it. It definitely can trigger people in terms of death and suicide, and the ethical questions should be discussed with any teens who read the story.
To Read or Not to Read:
If you are looking for a thought-provoking reflection of the role of pain in our lives, Remember Me is just the story you should pick up.
July 29, 2021
(I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.)
Remember Me was a cute, insightful story about the tragedies that happen in life and how we as humans have to cope with it, learn to move on and live what time we have left. At first, it was a slow start and I had trouble keeping interest. I read a few reviews and that pushed me to keep going. Overall; I'm glad I did. Not only was Blue's story emotional and poignant, it filled me with a sense of how I need to alter my own grieving in life. While pushing it down, shoving the emotions away, and forcing yourself to not feel may be the easy route, it ultimately isn't possible. The grief still comes; one way or another. Whether it be slowly fading over time, or hitting you like a punch to the gut one day years down the road, it still comes.
I think what made me not like the beginning so much is the fact that I felt I was reading a modern day version of Perks of Being a Wallflower. Three friends, each with crazy unique personalities. One, whose younger than the other two and is soon to be left behind as they go off to college, all while dealing with serious mental health issues. It seemed a little redundant, and I feel Estelle Laure spent too much time on the beginning; therefore rushing the end.
But once the story began to fall into place, and the ball got rolling, I really enjoyed what I was reading. It's a concept I've heard of in other YA dystopian type books; Delirium and ridding 'love' to keep society successful, Matched and being paired off the bat so no harm comes to the heart, things like that. But I've never seen it done quite like this. I think it being so realistic is what made me enjoy the story and its meaning even more. It does seem like a realistic feat, being able to erase memories. I wouldn't be surprised if that became a normal occurrence in the far future.
The reason I gave it three stars, however, is that I felt something was missing. I believe it to be just how short the book was, it was hard to care about Blue and her tragedies, or connect to the other characters. Maybe that's what Laure intended, wanting the story to be brief to leave most interpretation up to the reader, but I would've loved to get more substance from the book. More of the aftermath of the procedure between Blue and Adam, and reuniting with her family. Especially with the doctor who performed on Blue. Her abrupt comments about her own experience with the surgery I found odd, because it was never elaborated on.
While I do feel it was too brief, I did enjoy Laure's writing style and the premise overall. I look forward to seeing her other work, and how the public reacts to this story once it's released. I think many other people could use flipping through these pages, maybe helping them on their journey towards healing after grief, regret, and pain.
Remember Me was a cute, insightful story about the tragedies that happen in life and how we as humans have to cope with it, learn to move on and live what time we have left. At first, it was a slow start and I had trouble keeping interest. I read a few reviews and that pushed me to keep going. Overall; I'm glad I did. Not only was Blue's story emotional and poignant, it filled me with a sense of how I need to alter my own grieving in life. While pushing it down, shoving the emotions away, and forcing yourself to not feel may be the easy route, it ultimately isn't possible. The grief still comes; one way or another. Whether it be slowly fading over time, or hitting you like a punch to the gut one day years down the road, it still comes.
I think what made me not like the beginning so much is the fact that I felt I was reading a modern day version of Perks of Being a Wallflower. Three friends, each with crazy unique personalities. One, whose younger than the other two and is soon to be left behind as they go off to college, all while dealing with serious mental health issues. It seemed a little redundant, and I feel Estelle Laure spent too much time on the beginning; therefore rushing the end.
But once the story began to fall into place, and the ball got rolling, I really enjoyed what I was reading. It's a concept I've heard of in other YA dystopian type books; Delirium and ridding 'love' to keep society successful, Matched and being paired off the bat so no harm comes to the heart, things like that. But I've never seen it done quite like this. I think it being so realistic is what made me enjoy the story and its meaning even more. It does seem like a realistic feat, being able to erase memories. I wouldn't be surprised if that became a normal occurrence in the far future.
The reason I gave it three stars, however, is that I felt something was missing. I believe it to be just how short the book was, it was hard to care about Blue and her tragedies, or connect to the other characters. Maybe that's what Laure intended, wanting the story to be brief to leave most interpretation up to the reader, but I would've loved to get more substance from the book. More of the aftermath of the procedure between Blue and Adam, and reuniting with her family. Especially with the doctor who performed on Blue. Her abrupt comments about her own experience with the surgery I found odd, because it was never elaborated on.
While I do feel it was too brief, I did enjoy Laure's writing style and the premise overall. I look forward to seeing her other work, and how the public reacts to this story once it's released. I think many other people could use flipping through these pages, maybe helping them on their journey towards healing after grief, regret, and pain.
March 7, 2022
REMEMBER ME is an intriguing YA sci-fi that examines the power of pain, memory, and grief/loss. The story begins with Blue, who wakes up feeling like she has forgotten something important but not remembering what it is. Everyone around her seems to be acting a little strange, and she knows something is not quite right with the things she knows to be true. When she looks deeper into her own room, she finds an unfamiliar note telling her to take the Little Blue Bus at 7:45 am on her birthday in a couple days.
When she does, she realizes the bus driver knows her, even though she has no memory of him, and the boy who rides with her seems to know her, and her body feels like it knows him, even though she cannot ever recall having met him before. This path takes her to discovering who she was and what happened to her - she went to a psychologist using an experimental treatment to remove memories. But what was she trying to forget? And who is she without her painful memories?
What I loved: This was an intriguing read that examines the way grief/loss, pain, and trauma shape our experiences and define us. Memories hold a lot of power, and the book grapples with the ideas around losing them and the way that they transform and define us. People who are old enough to know the movie, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, will recognize some of these themes as well as how they have evolved here.
The book changes throughout the telling, and I honestly did not guess the reason for the memory alterations. The book asks some intriguing questions around the possibility of losing your pain through memory and the choices around doing so. Important themes around guilt, grief/loss, the power of memory, mental illness, consent, the role of a therapist, romantic love, and family dynamics make this a thought-provoking read that merits some further discussion. This would be great for a book club or discussion group.
Blue is an intriguing character, and she evolves as we learn more about her past. The character that we meet at the beginning of the story is not the character in the middle of the book or at the end. Her development was really compelling, and while readers may not agree with her choices, I think they become more understandable as we learn more about her.
What left me wanting more: While there are some themes touched upon with depression and suicidality, I would appreciated further resolution and discussion around these. The focus of the story is on memories, but these themes are really powerful and important for readers who may be grappling with their own mental illnesses.
Final verdict: Overall, REMEMBER ME is an intriguing and thought-provoking story of the power of pain and the importance of memory.
Please note that I received an ARC. All opinions are my own.
When she does, she realizes the bus driver knows her, even though she has no memory of him, and the boy who rides with her seems to know her, and her body feels like it knows him, even though she cannot ever recall having met him before. This path takes her to discovering who she was and what happened to her - she went to a psychologist using an experimental treatment to remove memories. But what was she trying to forget? And who is she without her painful memories?
What I loved: This was an intriguing read that examines the way grief/loss, pain, and trauma shape our experiences and define us. Memories hold a lot of power, and the book grapples with the ideas around losing them and the way that they transform and define us. People who are old enough to know the movie, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, will recognize some of these themes as well as how they have evolved here.
The book changes throughout the telling, and I honestly did not guess the reason for the memory alterations. The book asks some intriguing questions around the possibility of losing your pain through memory and the choices around doing so. Important themes around guilt, grief/loss, the power of memory, mental illness, consent, the role of a therapist, romantic love, and family dynamics make this a thought-provoking read that merits some further discussion. This would be great for a book club or discussion group.
Blue is an intriguing character, and she evolves as we learn more about her past. The character that we meet at the beginning of the story is not the character in the middle of the book or at the end. Her development was really compelling, and while readers may not agree with her choices, I think they become more understandable as we learn more about her.
What left me wanting more: While there are some themes touched upon with depression and suicidality, I would appreciated further resolution and discussion around these. The focus of the story is on memories, but these themes are really powerful and important for readers who may be grappling with their own mental illnesses.
Final verdict: Overall, REMEMBER ME is an intriguing and thought-provoking story of the power of pain and the importance of memory.
Please note that I received an ARC. All opinions are my own.
April 10, 2022
There has been an influx of YA novels in the past nine months or so that deal with the subject of memory loss by both organic and inorganic means and memories being tampered with, and had this book been able to throw something new to the mix (instead of relying on parallelism as a crutch for world-building and plot development) it might have had a good amount of potential.
But there’s the rub: It might have had a good amount of potential… if there weren’t also other distinct issues wrong with the book.
For instance: The blurb essentially gives away every single bit of the first half of the book without reticence. Also, it took until about 45 pages into a 269 page book (so, about 17% of the way through) to come even close to clearly introducing the conflict. As I once discussed with an author and creative writing professor: If it takes you more than about 30 pages into a book for readers to get a solid idea of the world you’ve built and to introduce the central conflict, then your book already has issues.
Think of it this way: A page of dialogue in a script takes up about one minute of screen time. A movie (just like almost every story since the plays of Ancient Greece) has three acts; and in a 2 hour movie, those acts end at the 30 minute mark, the 60 minute mark, and the 90 minute mark. By that 30 minute mark, you need to have established your world, introduced all your main characters, introduced the antagonist, and solidified the central conflict of the plot.
And yes, books are a different animal, but by 30 pages into this book I had no solid grip on the world the author had built, had no solid idea of who the main character was as a person, had no clue who or what the antagonist was, and had only a vague idea of what the central conflict was save that it sounded like the same central conflict as many other books in this genre.
Then, we have the second half of the book, which changes gears almost entirely from the first half and is rife with flashbacks. This narrative shift doesn’t come across as a genuine effort at trying something new–it feels like the author didn’t know what to do with all the exposition necessary for the book to end up making sense, so it all ended up in a second half full of telling us how the first half got to where it is. I didn’t like it.
Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Wednesday Book for allowing me early access to this title in exchange for a fair and honest review. As per personal policy, this review will not appear on any bookseller or social media site.
But there’s the rub: It might have had a good amount of potential… if there weren’t also other distinct issues wrong with the book.
For instance: The blurb essentially gives away every single bit of the first half of the book without reticence. Also, it took until about 45 pages into a 269 page book (so, about 17% of the way through) to come even close to clearly introducing the conflict. As I once discussed with an author and creative writing professor: If it takes you more than about 30 pages into a book for readers to get a solid idea of the world you’ve built and to introduce the central conflict, then your book already has issues.
Think of it this way: A page of dialogue in a script takes up about one minute of screen time. A movie (just like almost every story since the plays of Ancient Greece) has three acts; and in a 2 hour movie, those acts end at the 30 minute mark, the 60 minute mark, and the 90 minute mark. By that 30 minute mark, you need to have established your world, introduced all your main characters, introduced the antagonist, and solidified the central conflict of the plot.
And yes, books are a different animal, but by 30 pages into this book I had no solid grip on the world the author had built, had no solid idea of who the main character was as a person, had no clue who or what the antagonist was, and had only a vague idea of what the central conflict was save that it sounded like the same central conflict as many other books in this genre.
Then, we have the second half of the book, which changes gears almost entirely from the first half and is rife with flashbacks. This narrative shift doesn’t come across as a genuine effort at trying something new–it feels like the author didn’t know what to do with all the exposition necessary for the book to end up making sense, so it all ended up in a second half full of telling us how the first half got to where it is. I didn’t like it.
Thanks to NetGalley, St. Martin’s Press, and Wednesday Book for allowing me early access to this title in exchange for a fair and honest review. As per personal policy, this review will not appear on any bookseller or social media site.
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