ARC, 391 pages
Release Date: October 4, 2016Published by: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Read from: October 11, 2016-October 21, 2016Stand-aloneSource: BEAFor fans of: Mysteries, Contemps, Romance, YA, Chick-lit, Debut Authors, Diverse ReadsAddison Sullivan has been in an accident. In its aftermath, she has memory lapses and starts talking to a boy that no one else can see. It gets so bad that she’s worried she’s going crazy.
Addie takes drastic measures to fill in the blanks and visits a shadowy medical facility that promises to “help with your memory.” But at the clinic, Addie unwittingly discovers it is not her first visit. And when she presses, she finds out that she had certain memories erased. She had a boy erased.
But why? Who was that boy, and what happened that was too devastating to live with? And even if she gets the answers she’s looking for, will she ever be able to feel like a whole person again?
*MY THOUGHTS*
From the beginning when I heard of this book I knew I needed it. It was such a unique concept that I made it a priority as soon as it got to be October. And I’m so glad I went through with my first thought and read it because WOW.
“Sometimes I feel like I’ve sleepwalked through my life so far, with nothing significant or extraordinary happening to me. It’s time for that to change.'”pg. 59
Addison Sullivan was in a bus crash. She thinks she’s fine until things begin getting jumbled and there’s a really cute guy that she wants to check on but no one can find. Things don’t get better for Addison right away, so she finds a memory facility that may be able to fix the problems she’s been having. She realizes this isn’t her first time there. But why was she here last time? Why won’t anyone tell her?
“I can’t be crazy. Crazy means stuck here in this town.'”pg. 74
The coolest part of this book was the memory lapse thing. I really, really liked the way it was done. (I’m not a fan of the results, but that’s beside the point…) There wasn’t that much science talk so the book wasn’t bogged down with things I didn’t understand. And I loved that Everett chose to tell it in a Before and After kind of way with chapters that corresponded together. It gelled so well and towards the end of the book when the secrets started coming out, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough.
“How do you miss something you don’t remember?'”pg. 246
I also loved this book because it did have a bit of a deeper meaning in it. Everett touched on depression and shows that no matter how hard things get, you still have some fight in you. This is such an important message for anyone, and I love that she added it into the book. I read one passage about it and even had to say “Wow” out loud. Everett’s writing style alone will make you forget that this is a debut.
“If my life was a song, I’d want it to sound like that.”pg. 247
The only issue I had with this book was the reason she chose to forget something. It could have went one of two ways, but it went the way I didn’t want it to. And it upset me because I had gotten to love this character and then at the end it just went south and I hated them. Maybe that’s the reaction the author wanted, but I could have seen myself giving a bigger reaction had it went another way. It would have destroyed me then, this way only made me dislike him. (If you’re confused reading this and want to know what I mean, please e-mail me or DM me on Twitter. I don’t want to add spoilers lol)
“…the biggest lie is that there are things that aren’t survivable. That there are things not worth surviving. I never ever want you to believe that. That you can’t keep going or that that you can’t overcome the thing you’re facing.'”pg. 374
Overall, this book didn’t quite end the way I wanted it to, but it was still a worthwhile read. I will still recommend this book for the wonderful writing style and the deeper meaning it gives off. This book will be a wonderful addition to anyone’s shelf.
Overall, I give this
