Official Synopsis:

Seventeen-year-old Flora Banks has no short-term memory. Her mind resets itself several times a day, and has since the age of ten, when the tumor that was removed from Flora’s brain took with it her ability to make new memories. That is, until she kisses Drake, her best friend’s boyfriend, the night before he leaves town. Miraculously, this one memory breaks through Flora’s fractured mind, and sticks. Flora is convinced that Drake is responsible for restoring her memory and making her whole again. So, when an encouraging email from Drake suggests she meet him on the other side of the world—in Svalbard, Norway—Flora knows with certainty that this is the first step toward reclaiming her life.

But will following Drake be the key to unlocking Flora’s memory? Or will the journey reveal that nothing is quite as it seems?

Rating: 4.5/5 Stars

Review:

This book, like all of the books that I read, has been on my TBR list for what feels like forever.  I was first made aware of it about a year or so ago when I heard about it and was able to relate it to what I was learning in my psychology class. Fast forward a year, and I’m in another psychology class and was able to apply this book to an assignment.

I got strong ‘Memento’ vibes from this book.  Especially since Flora Banks has a tattoo reading ‘Flora Be Brave’ and she writes on her hands what she needs to remember.  This book is great in terms of how unreliable our narrator is, since we don’t know what information she knows to be true is actually true.

At times the book is repetitive as she tries to remember what has happening by reading through her notebook that tells her who she is.  As the book progresses, we get a better look into her past and learn that what we think we know might not be the truth.  This happens a few times throughout the novel and we are always kept guessing.

Most of the story just centers around Banks until she goes somewhere else and meets a few supporting characters.  Even though she was unreliable I really enjoyed reading from her point of view.  At times she’s a 10 year old trapped in a 17 year old’s body struggling with anterograde amnesia and I felt awful that she can’t remember anything.

Overall, this is a great read and I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves books with unreliable narrators.  If you liked ‘The Girl On The Train’ by Paula Hawkins, you’ll love this book whether you tend to read young adult fiction or not.

Connect with the author!

You can find Emily Barr on Twitter at @emily_barr and on Instagram at @emilybarr01!

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