Hey there,
Let me start this post by saying that if you’re reading this because you’re considering reading The Forgetting by Sharon Cameron, stop what you’re doing and go buy it immediately. Stop considering. Do it. Do it now.
What if all you knew about yourself and your life would be erased, every twelve years? What if every person carried a book with them, and only what they wrote in that book was what they would remember when they awoke from The Forgetting? What would you write in your book? And what if you were the only person who still remembered details of your life from before The Forgetting? You saw people try to erase parts of their lives, you saw people try and get away with chaos, you saw people cross names and memories out of their books, knowing it would all be Forgotten and no one would remember you doing this. You saw people you love erasing you from their story… This is the concept of The Forgetting.
And yet it is SO MUCH MORE than that! Oh, I can’t even begin to describe it!
The main character is wonderful. This young woman who still remembers, her name is Nadia. Nadia lives in a city called Canaan and this city is surrounded by walls and the human fears of Forgetting. Nadia remembers, and Nadia also climbs those walls and explores beyond. She is this fearless, powerful female character that I absolutely adored.
All of the characters in this novel were really well developed, all of them could easily be visualized, and my feelings towards each character were very clear. There was no character I was indifferent towards. I wanted insight into every life introduced in this book. And I got that insight! I wasn’t left wanting more, at all.
The book was easy to read and flowed really well. There were no points where I felt parts were unnecessary as they all added bits and pieces to plot twists along the way. Parts that maybe seemed excessive early on became necessary to plot points later in the book.
Chapters ended in ways that made me want to read more, and each chapter started with a passage from Nadia’s “Book” – the one each person owns and writes their memories in. Being able to have a peek at this very sacred part of Nadia’s life helped her become an even more valuable and wonderful character to me.
There were numerous plot twists throughout this book; some completely unexpected, none too predictable ahead of time (at least not for me). I couldn’t wait to get to the end but also dreaded finishing this story because it was so exciting. I laughed out loud, I had my mouth gaping wide for many parts, and I cried at other parts as well.
I really don’t want to spoil anything with this novel, because it was an exciting surprise at every turn and I loved it so much that I’m thrilled at the prospect of re-reading it! Think The Giver meets more Sci-Fi with a dash of Thriller… Go get it right now. Seriously. Go!
Rating: 5/5 without question
Pros: Amazing world, amazing characters, exciting plot twists, easy to read, so creative, great dialogue
Cons: THAT THIS UNIVERSE DOESN’T CONTINUE, that I read it too quickly because I wanted it to last forever! Seriously, there are no cons.
Now, I’m currently reading Fingersmith by Sarah Waters, but I am also waiting on book mail. So because of the length of Fingersmith (even though I’m excited to read it), I may save this more difficult read for the holidays as I am rather busy with work at the moment.
lifeofcloud 